House to vote Thursday on holding Bannon in contempt as Justice decision looms

The House of Representatives will vote Thursday on whether to hold longtime Trump ally Steve Bannon in contempt of Congress after he defied a subpoena from a committee investigating the violent Jan. 6 Capitol riots.

On Tuesday, a committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol voted 9-0 to hold Bannon in contempt.

“The select committee will not tolerate defiance of our subpoenas, so we must move forward with proceedings to refer Mr. Bannon for criminal contempt,” Chairman Bennie Thompson said Tuesday.

The House as a whole will now vote Thursday on whether it should hold Bannon in contempt of Congress. If the vote succeeds, as is expected, Speaker Nancy Pelosi will likely certify the report for the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia.

The Jan. 6 committee has vowed to move swiftly and forcefully to punish anyone who won’t cooperate with the probe, but it’s likely up to the Justice Department and the courts to determine what happens next.

There’s still considerable uncertainty about whether the Justice Department will prosecute Bannon, despite Democratic demands for action.

According to NBC News, the Jan. 6 committee is seeking to speak with Bannon because they believe he had “had specific knowledge about the events planned for January 6th before they occurred.”

A 26-page contempt report documents many attempts the committee has made to make contact with Bannon regarding testimony. While Bannon has claimed executive privilege, committee members say such a statute does not apply in this case.

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