Steve Bannon, a longtime ally and adviser to former President Donald Trump, livestreamed as he turned himself into the FBI ahead of a Monday court appearance following his indictment for contempt of Congress after refusing to cooperate with a House of Representatives committee investigating the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol insurrection.
Bannon vowed he was "going on the offense" against the Biden administration, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Attorney General Merrick Garland, claiming he was "taking on the Biden regime." Rep. Adam Schiff, a Burbank Democrat who’s a member of the Jan. 6 select committee, told KCBS Radio's Jeff Bell and Patti Reising he wasn't surprised by Bannon's actions.
"They're proud of their law-breaking," Schiff said of Bannon and other former Trump administration officials in an interview on Monday, "and I think one of the important responsibilities of the Justice Department is to, once again, reinforce the idea that the rule of law applies equally to everyone, whether you’re a friend of the former president or you're not."
The Department of Justice on Friday charged Bannon with two federal counts of criminal contempt after he refused to provide documents following a subpoena and testify for a congressional deposition. Bannon could face up to a year in prison and a $100,000 fine for each charge, if convicted.
David Schoen, Bannon's lawyer, told the Associated Press that another lawyer advised his client that he shouldn’t comply because former President Trump would assert executive privilege over their conversations leading up to Jan. 6. President Joe Biden refused to assert executive privilege over Trump White House documents related to the investigation, and a federal judge ruled last week that Trump couldn't shield those documents from investigators as a result.
Schiff said Bannon's refusal to cooperate stems from his belief "that he's above the law," pointing to Trump pardoning Bannon on the last day of the former president’s term earlier this year. The Department of Justice last year charged Bannon with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit laundering, alleging he and his business partners defrauded hundreds of thousands of donors in a crowdfunded campaign to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
"He found out, with his indictment by the grand jury, that he's not (above the law)," Schiff said. "But I would expect that he’ll continue with that same tactic, but it’s really important for the Justice Department to vindicate the fact that no one is above the law."
Mark Meadows, Trump’s former chief of staff, defied a separate subpoena on Friday for documents and testimony. Schiff said the committee will decide "what to do" with Meadows and other witnesses who didn't cooperate "very soon."