The committee of inquiry into the processing of the attack on the US Capitol on January 6th wants to bring the former Trump adviser Steve Bannon to court. The committee unanimously adopted a report finding Bannon’s disregard for Congress. The next step is for the Democratic-dominated House of Representatives to vote on it before the case goes to court. Bannon was Republican Donald Trump’s chief strategist for the first few months of his presidency.
Bannon had not followed a summons before the committee on Thursday last week. He invoked the president’s prerogative to withhold certain information from Congress or courts, the so-called executive privilege. The report now adopted says that even if Trump could seek this privilege, it would not relieve Bannon of his duty to testify before the committee. Bannon’s refusal has no legal basis and violates legal provisions.
The committee in the US House of Representatives is to investigate the background to the attack on the Capitol. Supporters of Trump stormed the seat of the US Congress in Washington on January 6th. Five people were killed in connection with this, including a police officer. Bannon is suspected of having prior knowledge of plans for violent protests. On the day before the storming of the Capitol he had said in his podcast: “Tomorrow all hell breaks loose.”
Committee chairman, Democrat Bennie Thompson, said Bannon must cooperate with the investigation, “or he will face the consequences.” Thompson warned other witnesses not to follow Bannon’s example. Republican vice-chairman, Trump critic Liz Cheney, said Bannon and Trump’s invocation of so-called executive privilege suggests “President Trump was personally involved in the planning and execution of Jan. 6, and this committee will get to the bottom”.
No Trump friends on the committee
Trump filed a lawsuit in a federal court in the US capital Washington on Monday to block the release of documents to the committee. Trump insists on executive privilege. He accuses his opponents of “chicane”. The White House announced that President Joe Biden would not stop the transfer of documents from the National Archives to the Congress Committee.
There had been heated arguments between Republicans and Democrats over the committee of inquiry. Among the nine members are seven Democrats and only two Republicans, both of whom are designated Trump critics. In addition to Cheney, there is Congressman Adam Kinzinger.
Bannon is co-founder of the right-wing Internet platform “Breitbart” and is one of the most influential voices in the ultra-conservative camp of US politics. He was arrested last summer on charges of diverting money from an online fundraiser to build a wall in Mexico for other purposes. He pleaded not guilty and was released on bail. In January, Trump pardoned Bannon, along with more than 70 other people, just hours before the end of his term in office.