Former White House Chief Strategist Stephen Bannon appears on screen during the fourth House hearing investigating the January 6 attack on the Capitol at the Cannon House office building on June 21, 2022 in Washington, DC.
Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty Images
Steve Bannon told the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 riot that he was willing to testify, preferably in a public hearing.
Bannon, a former adviser to former President Donald Trump, was due to stand trial next week on criminal contempt charges for refusing to cooperate with a congressional investigation into the Capitol riot.
Bannon’s lawyer argued at the time that he was adhering to the executive privilege claim sought by Trump, which allegedly barred Bannon from providing the materials requested by the special committee.
But Trump on Saturday sent a letter to Bannon waiving executive privilege, even though the House Select Committee and federal prosecutors said executive privilege had never served as an argument for not complying with a congressional subpoena. .
“When you were first subpoenaed to testify and produce documents, I invoked executive privilege. However, I have seen how unfairly you and others have been treated, having to spend huge amounts of money in legal fees and all the trauma you must have going through out of love for your country and out of respect for the office of the President,” Trump wrote in the letter.
“Therefore, if you come to an agreement as to the time and place for your testimony, I will waive executive privilege for you that allows you to come in and testify truthfully and honestly,” Trump added.
Bannon representatives sent the letter along with their own follow-up to the committee on Jan. 6.
“While Mr. Bannon has been steadfast in his convictions, circumstances have now changed,” Bannon’s attorney, Bob Costello, said in a letter. “Mr. Bannon is willing and indeed prefers to testify at your public hearing.”
It’s unclear how his upcoming trial will be affected if Bannon ends up testifying before the committee. Bannon, who has pleaded not guilty to two counts of contempt of Congress, faces a maximum sentence of one year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000 on each charge if convicted.
A spokesman for the committee did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment. Bannon’s attorney Costello declined to comment beyond confirming the letters.
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