IIn the case against well-known US right-wing populist and former presidential adviser Steve Bannon for contempt of Congress, prosecutors have asked for a six-month prison sentence. In a motion filed with the court on Monday, the prosecution is also seeking a $200,000 fine against former President Donald Trump’s former chief strategist. Bannon deserves a “harsh punishment” for his refusal to comply with a subpoena from the parliamentary inquiry into the storming of the Capitol.
Bannon’s defense asked the court to only impose a suspended sentence. Should a prison sentence be imposed, Bannon should be allowed to serve it out under house arrest. Attorneys Evan Corcoran and David Schoen write that the outcome of an appeals process must also be awaited before a sentence is enacted.
A federal judge in the capital Washington must now decide on the sentence. The sentence will be announced on Friday.
Bannon has already been found guilty on two counts
Bannon was found guilty of two counts of contempt of Congress in July. The 68-year-old ignored a summons from the investigative committee investigating the January 6, 2021 Capitol storming. In addition, the former boss of the right-wing website “Breitbart News” refused to hand over documents to the committee.
Under the law, the maximum penalty for contempt of Congress is one year in prison per count. However, official guidelines, which are usually below the legal upper limit, are decisive for determining prison sentences.
The investigating committee considers Bannon to be a key witness in the investigation into the storming of the Capitol. According to the panel, the right-wing populist spoke to Trump the day before the storming. In his own podcast at the time, Bannon also predicted that on January 6, 2021, “all hell will break out.”
Radical Trump supporters stormed Congress when the election victory of Trump’s challenger Joe Biden in the November 2020 presidential election was to be officially confirmed. The storming of the Capitol with five dead and around 140 injured police officers caused horror worldwide and is considered a black day in the history of US democracy.
Trump has not yet testified in the trial
A parliamentary committee of inquiry has been working on the events since last year. Most recently, the panel decided last week in a spectacular step to summon Trump himself. The ex-president has not yet stated whether he is ready to testify. However, this is considered highly unlikely. A refusal by the 76-year-old, who is flirting with another presidential candidacy in 2024, could lead to bitter legal disputes.
Bannon had been a central figure in Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. After Trump’s election victory, he then became chief strategist in the White House. However, Trump fired him in August 2017 amid tensions between Bannon and other employees and the President himself.
The two right-wing populists then approached each other again. Shortly before the end of his presidency, Trump pardoned Bannon, who had been charged with suspected embezzlement of donations from a campaign to finance a border wall with Mexico. Last September, Bannon was indicted again on the same charges by the Manhattan Attorney’s Office.
