Former White House adviser Steve Bannon, who was found guilty in July of two counts of criminal contempt of Congress after he failed to comply with a subpoena issued to him regarding the January 6 investigation, faces up to two years in prison today at his sentencing hearing.
However, he is likely to receive a shorter jail sentence after the Department of Justice (DOJ) called for the right-wing strategist to receive six months in prison and a fine of $200,000 for his noncompliance and for disparaging members of the committee on his War Room podcast.
Bannon, a longtime ally of former President Donald Trump, argued that he avoided complying with the congressional subpoena on the advice of his former attorney, Robert Costello, and therefore should not be punished over it.
Ahead of Friday’s sentencing, Bannon’s legal team suggested that he should avoid a custodial sentence and instead be handed probation or home confinement.
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“Should a person who has spent a lifetime listening to experts – as a naval officer, investment banker, corporate executive, and Presidential advisor – be jailed for relying on the advice of his lawyers?” wrote Bannon’s lawyer Evan Corcoran.
“Should a person be jailed where the prosecutor declined to prosecute others who were similarly situated – with the only difference being that this person uses their voice to express strongly held political views? If the answer to any of these questions is no, then a sentence of probation is warranted.”
Bannon also requested that any sentence imposed be served on home confinement, arguing that he qualifies for it under sentencing guidelines. But the Department of Justice has recommended that Bannon should receive the “top end” of government sentencing guidelines because of his “sustained, bad-faith contempt” of Congress.
As well as handing down a sentence, Judge Carl Nichols could also decide when the influential political strategist and conservative media personality will begin his punishment.
