Steve Bannon's contempt of Congress trial is expected to be swift


Stephen Bannon, former President Donald Trump's one-time strategist and campaign chairman, is going on trial Monday to face two counts of contempt of Congress over his flouting of a subpoena from the House Jan. 6 committee. U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, the Trump appointee overseeing Bannon's trial in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., rejected most of Bannon's proposed defense strategies in hearings last week.
"What's the point of going to trial if there are no defenses?" Bannon lawyer David Schoen asked after Nichols threw out Bannon's proposed motions to delay the trial, put prominent Democrats on the stand for questioning, and take shelter under what Bannon unsuccessfully claimed was Trump's invocation of executive privilege. "Agreed," Nichols replied.
That was Nichols' way of urging Bannon to seek a plea deal to avoid a short trial he is very likely to lose, George Washington University law professor Randall Eliason told The Washington Post. "Obviously everyone's entitled to a trial, but usually if you go to trial there's some kind of legal or factual dispute that needs to be resolved," he explained. "The judge's point is, there aren't really any here. ... In those instances, going to trial becomes what prosecutors sometimes call a long guilty plea."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Jury selection is slated to begin Monday, and once a jury is seated, "the trial is likely to be brief — prosecutors say their case will take a day, and given the judge's limitations on which witnesses Bannon can call and what issues he can raise, it's unclear how long Bannon's own case may take," the Post reports. Each count Bannon faces carries a minimum 30-day sentence and maximum one year in prison, but prosecuting contempt of Congress is exceedingly rare, and Bannon's case is unusual in other ways.
Bannon has made clear he will not plead guilty. "Pray for our enemies, because we're going medieval on these people," he said in a recent podcast about his upcoming trial. "We're going to savage our enemies."
Given Bannon's long odds at trial, he may be refusing to negotiate a plea deal to preserve his right to appeal, or "maybe it's just a show to him, one where he can play the MAGA martyr and use it to raise his profile," Eliason said. "That's not a legal reason to go to trial but it may be enough of a reason for him."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Nepal chooses toddler as its new ‘living goddess’
Under the Radar Girls between two and four are typically chosen to live inside the temple as the Kumari – until puberty strikes
-
October 5 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Sunday's political cartoons include half-truth hucksters, Capitol lockdown, and more
-
Jaguar Land Rover’s cyber bailout
Talking Point Should the government do more to protect business from the ‘cyber shockwave’?
-
Russia: already at war with Europe?
Talking Point As Kremlin begins ‘cranking up attacks’ on Ukraine’s European allies, questions about future action remain unanswered
-
Museum head ousted after Trump sword gift denial
Speed Read Todd Arrington, who led the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum, denied the Trump administration a sword from the collection as a gift for King Charles
-
Trump declares ‘armed conflict’ with drug cartels
speed read This provides a legal justification for recent lethal military strikes on three alleged drug trafficking boats
-
Supreme Court rules for Fed’s Cook in Trump feud
Speed Read Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook can remain in her role following Trump’s attempts to oust her
-
‘This isn’t just semantics’
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Miami Freedom Tower’s MAGA library squeeze
THE EXPLAINER Plans to place Donald Trump’s presidential library next to an iconic symbol of Florida’s Cuban immigrant community has South Florida divided
-
Judge rules Trump illegally targeted Gaza protesters
Speed Read The Trump administration’s push to arrest and deport international students for supporting Palestine is deemed illegal
-
Trump: US cities should be military ‘training grounds’
Speed Read In a hastily assembled summit, Trump said he wants the military to fight the ‘enemy within’ the US