Steve Bannon pleads not guilty to money laundering, fraud charges
Ally to former President Donald Trump Stephen Bannon on Thursday pleaded not guilty to charges of money laundering and conspiracy for allegedly misleading donors who gave money to build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, The Associated Press reports.
Per the indictment, New York prosecutors have accused Bannon of promising donors — who handed over more than $15 million to the private fundraiser "We Build the Wall" — that their money would go toward the border project, while concealing "his role in diverting hundreds of thousands of dollars to the drive's chief executive, who had promised to take no salary," Reuters summarizes.
Trump had previously pardoned Bannon for "the same alleged conduct" central to an August 2020 federal prosecution, AP writes, but presidential pardons don't apply to state offenses — and Manhattan prosecutors later decided to go after Bannon anyway, considering the purported scheme affected hundreds of Manhattanites. Bannon pleaded not guilty in the original case. The aforementioned chief executive, meanwhile, pleaded guilty to federal wire fraud conspiracy and tax charges back in April; he has yet to be sentenced, per Politico and Reuters.
Subscribe to 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.
Bannon has condemned the new charges, which he related back to the midterm elections in November. "I've got news for them," Bannon told reporters after being released without bail. "We are going to win a sweeping landslide at every level, from school boards to election officials ... We are not going to back down and they will not be able to shut me up," per Reuters.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
-
The Pentagon faces an uncertain future with Trump
Talking Point The president-elect has nominated conservative commentator Pete Hegseth to lead the Defense Department
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
This is what you should know about State Department travel advisories and warnings
In Depth Stay safe on your international adventures
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US Published
-
'All Tyson-Paul promised was spectacle and, in the end, that's all we got'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
DOJ demands changes at 'abhorrent' Atlanta jail
Speed Read Georgia's Fulton County Jail subjects inmates to 'unconstitutional' conditions, the 16-month investigation found
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
China tries to bury deadly car attack
Speed Read An SUV drove into a crowd of people in Zhuhai, killing and injuring dozens — but news of the attack has been censored
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Menendez brothers may go free in LA prosecutor plan
Speed Read Prosecutors are asking for the brothers to be resentenced for the 1989 murder of their parents
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Abercrombie ex-CEO charged with sex crimes
Speed Read Mike Jeffries ran the brand during its heyday from 1992 to 2014
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump ally Bannon reports to prison
Speed Read He will serve a four-month sentence for contempt of Congress
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump criminal trial starts with rulings, reminder
Speed Read The first day of his historic trial over hush money payments was mostly focused on jury selection
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Parents of school shooter sentenced to 10-15 years
Speed Read Jennifer and James Crumbley are the first parents to be convicted in a US mass shooting
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Unlicensed dealers and black market guns
Speed Read 68,000 illegally trafficked guns were sold in a five year period, said ATF
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published