Fresh off of being convicted for contempt of Congress for defying a House Jan. 6 committee subpoena, Steve Bannon called for a new congressional panel to investigate the Capitol riot.
Shrugging off his conviction, Bannon stressed that he has a “long appeals” process ahead of him and implored Republicans to ratchet up their ideological war with Democrats. He underscored how he believes a new congressional committee on Jan. 6 is needed to help get to the bottom of the intelligence failures that day.
STEVE BANNON FOUND GUILTY OF CONTEMPT CHARGES
“We need a commission or committee on January 6. It’s got to be with the new Congress, with Republicans in charge — we got to get to the bottom of the intelligence failures, FBI involvement, DHS involvement, the intelligence services — what happened to the Pentagon and the National Guard,” he told Fox News’s Tucker Carlson.
Throwing shade on the current Jan. 6 committee for lacking a ranking member appointed by the minority party, Bannon insisted a new panel should grant Democrats adequate representation. The committee lacks a ranking member because House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) withdrew his nominees after some had been rejected by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).
“Let the Democrats have a ranking member. Let them have a counsel and just get to it,” he added.
Bannon also celebrated the coming retirement of committee member Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) and called for Republicans to give Vice Chairwoman Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) the boot during her primary next month.
As Bannon listed off an agenda for Republicans to pursue, Carlson noted that Bannon could be going to jail soon, but Bannon brushed that aside.
“First off, if I go to jail, I go to jail. I will never back off a second look. I spent eight years as a naval officer. I’ve committed my life to this point to this program to get this done. I will never back off for Trump in the Constitution. And I’m not backing off one inch. If I go to jail, so be it,” Bannon replied.
Carlson lamented how other Democrats, such as former Attorney General Eric Holder, had bucked subpoena demands and avoided jail time, unlike Bannon. The former Trump chief strategist and senior counselor surmised that individuals such as Holder managed to get off because of their power.
“The secret sauce is their power and also, to be honest, their controlled opposition. That’s what has to change,” Bannon said. “We have to deliver a crushing blow to this Democratic Party apparatus. But then we have to really govern on offense. Every committee in the House has to be an oversight committee. We have to go after the Biden administration, which is illegitimate.”
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Bannon was convicted of two counts of contempt charges Friday by a federal grand jury and faces between 30 days and one year in prison and up to a $100,000 fine per charge. A sentencing date for him is slated for Oct. 21. His legal team has vowed to appeal the decision.
