An adviser to a former US president has refused to cooperate with a committee investigating a January raid on the capital.
A US jury has found former Donald Trump strategist Steve Bannon guilty of two charges against Congress.
Bannon, 68, was indicted for failing to cooperate with the congressional committee investigating the 2021 capital raid.
The former White House Chief Strategist was appointed as an unofficial adviser to the former US President during the uprising on January 6, 2021.
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He faces up to two years in prison and has to pay a fine of up to $200,000.
Justice Department lawyers argued that Bannon felt “above the law”, ignoring a “mandatory” legal call by the Congressional committee.
In her closing statement, Prosecutor Molly Gaston said, “Our government will only work if the people show up, it will only work if the people follow the rules, and only if the people will be held accountable when they don’t.” she said.
“Defendant chose loyalty to Donald Trump over law enforcement.”
Although Bannon’s defense team promised to be “medieval” against their enemies, on Thursday, 21/7/Thursday, Bannon closed the case without testifying and calling other witnesses.
Lawyers claimed that the case against Bannon was an act of political revenge.
Instead of ignoring subpoenas, they claimed that he negotiated on them and believed that deadlines were flexible.
Attorney Evan Corcoran told the court in his closing remarks that the course his client Steve Bannon had taken was “a mistake” but “not a crime”.
The jury debated for about three hours on Friday, July 22, before reaching a verdict.
Bannon was a key player in Trump’s victory in the 2016 election, first serving as campaign chairman and later taking on the role of chief strategist for the White House.
He left that post in August 2017 amid the political fallout of a violent far-right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. But he is still considered one of Trump’s most important allies.
The House of Representatives committee investigating the capital raid issued a legal subpoena to Bannon in September 2021.
The panel long believed that Bannon was involved in efforts by Trump supporters to invade Congress and contest the outcome of the November 2020 presidential election.
He is particularly interested in the communications between Bannon and Trump prior to the event, as well as meetings with other key figures at a nearby hotel.
It is alleged that this meeting will be part of a final attempt to prevent the transfer of power to President Joe Biden after the election victory.
However, Bannon declared his innocence and defied the subpoenas, saying he would turn it into “hell” for the Biden administration.
He further argued that his meetings with the former president were protected by executive privilege, a legal principle that prevented communications between the presidents and their advisers from being disclosed.
However, a judge ruled that he could not claim concessions in this case.
– Text originally published at https://www.bbc.com/portuguese/internacional-62273889
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source: Noticias
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