Steve Bannon: Jury finds former Trump adviser guilty

Steve Bannon, a close ally and one-time adviser to former President Donald Trump, was convicted on Friday on two counts of contempt by the House committee investigating the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol.

He was found guilty of refusing to appear for a deposition and refusing to provide documents requested by a committee subpoena. He faces up to two years in jail.

Bannon, 68, played a key role in Trump's successful 2016 campaign and is also a figurehead among the US far-right. He went on to serve as Trump's chief White House strategist in 2017 before losing favor with the president. The two later patched things up.

What happened during the trial?

Bannon's defense tried to paint him as a target of a politically motivated attack by Democrats.

Evan Corcoran, one of Bannon's attorneys, told jurors, "The question is, 'Why? Why was Steve Bannon singled out?"

However, the prosecution rejected that claim and said the Trump ally had to be held accountable for his unlawful disregard for the authority of Congress and the committee.

Prosecutor Molly Gaston told jurors the attack represented a "dark day" for America, adding, "There is nothing political about finding out why Jan. 6 happened and making sure it never happens again."

The jurors needed less than three hours to arrive at their decision. Each charge carries a minimum sentence of 30 days up to a maximum of one year, as well as a fine of $100 (€98.70) to $100,000.

Bannon's conviction is the first successful prosecution for contempt of Congress since G. Gordon Liddy was convicted in 1974 for his role in the Watergate scandal that led to the resignation of former President Richard Nixon.

"We may have lost the battle here today but we're not going to lose this war," Bannon told the media after the verdict. 

"I stand with Trump and the Constitution," he added. 

Meanwhile, Bennie Thompson and Liz Cheney — the chair and vice chair of the House committee — hailed the verdict, saying that "no one is above the law."

"The conviction of Steve Bannon is a victory for the rule of law and an important affirmation of the Select Committee's work," they said in a statement.

Why did Congress subpoena Bannon?

Congress had reason to believe that Bannon, who was serving in an unofficial capacity at the time, had been involved in the planning and fundraising to help Trump try to overturn the 2020 election.

The committee issued a subpoena for any documents or communications that were related to Trump or his allies such as Rudy Giuliani, or extremist far-right groups such as the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers who also showed up to the Capitol on January 6.

Bannon initially tried to claim that he was under the protection of Trump's executive privilege as his excuse for not showing up for the hearing, but the committee rejected this as Bannon was not employed by Trump at the time of the riot and Trump was no longer president.

Months after refusing to comply, the former presidential adviser agreed to cooperate, but the prosecutors describe the move as a "last-ditch attempt to avoid accountability."

The hearings have revealed more information about the attack on the Capitol and Trump's possible involvement. The events themselves saw a large group of Trump supporters try to break into the Capitol building to stop then-Vice President Mike Pence from declaring Joe Biden the winner of the election.

ab/wd (Reuters, AP)