WASHINGTON – The chief counsel of the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack told a federal court jury Wednesday that former White House strategist Steve Bannon was put on notice multiple times in October that he faced the threat of criminal prosecution for defying the panel’s requests for documents and testimony.
In the second day of testimony in Bannon’s contempt trial, Kristin Amerling said Bannon’s attorney only notified the committee after a deadline had passed for the production of a trove of documents that he believed to be exempted from complying because former President Donald Trump had intended to invoke executive privilege.
“The select committee’s position was this was not a valid rationale for refusing to comply,” Amerling said, referring to Oct. 8, 2021 correspondence with Bannon attorney Robert Costello.
The committee counsel said Costello was informed that the panel was “obligated to view (Bannon’s) failure to comply as willful non-compliance with the criminal contempt statute.”
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Earlier this month, the Justice Department revealed in court documents that Trump’s attorney never said that the former president intended to invoke executive privilege that would shield Bannon from the committee.
Until Costello’s October communication with the committee, Amerling said Bannon made no contact seeking an extension of time to comply or suggest that he had no relevant documents to share.
“Did the committee get anything more than radio silence by 10 in the morning on Oct. 7?” Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Vaughn asked the witness, referring to document deadline.
“No,” Amerling said, adding that Bannon also did not appear for the scheduled Oct. 14 deposition.
The witness was ultimately notified the committee had voted to hold Bannon in contempt Oct. 19, prompting a subsequent referral to the Justice Department for prosecution after a full House vote two days later.
Asked whether Bannon had made any additional contact following the notification.
“I didn’t hear anything from him,” Amerling said.
In cross examination, Bannon attorney Evan Corcoran closely questioned the witness about possible political considerations related to the House committee’s pursuit of Bannon. At one point, he appeared to suggest that Congress was operating on a timeline driven by lawmakers’ personal interests when he asked about the scheduling of document production and the deposition, asking whether members of Congress were directly involved in setting the deadlines.
Amerling said the urgency of the investigation dictated that the committee’s move to obtain information “as expeditiously as possible.”
Corcoran later turned to Amerling’s own longtime work for Democratic lawmakers, and familiarity with a member of the prosecution team, Assistant U.S. Attorney Molly Gaston.
Amerling testified that he had known Gaston for about 15 years when they overlapped as staffers for former Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif. More recently, she said the two have been members of the same book club whose members include a number of former Waxman staffers.
“Do you ever discuss the politics of the day?” Corcoran asked.
“To best of my recollection, the conversations cover a whole variety of topics,” Amerling said. Given the members’ careers, she said it was “not unusual to talk about politics in some way or another.”
Corcoran also pressed the witness on why the committee had not sought to resolve Bannon’s executive privilege claim, short of pursuing a contempt resolution.
Amerling said the committee had never received such a notice from Trump.
“There hadn’t been an assertion—formal or informal—of exec privilege,” Amerling said.
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Amerling’s testimony came after federal prosecutors opened their case Tuesday, arguing that Bannon had “decided he was above the law” when he defied the subpoena from the committee.
“It wasn’t an accident; it wasn’t a mistake,” Vaughn told the jury. “It was a decision; it was a choice.
“This case is about the defendant thumbing his nose at the orderly process of our government. It is that simple,” Vaughn said.
Bannon’s attorneys continued to claim that Bannon did nothing wrong, arguing that the case has been driven by politics.
“This is Steve Bannon, and he is innocent of the charges,” Corcoran told the jury Tuesday.
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“Politics is the lifeblood of the U.S. House of Representatives,” Corcoran said. “Politics invades every decision that they make. It’s the currency of Congress.”
Corcoran denied that Bannon ignored the subpoena, arguing that there was no set time for Bannon to appear for a deposition and provide documents as his attorneys and the committee engaged in negotiations.
“No one ignored the subpoena,” Corcoran said. “Quite the contrary, there was direct engagement (with the committee). The evidence will be crystal clear. No one expected that Steve Bannon would appear… There will be no evidence that anyone ordered Steve Bannon to do anything.”
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In her testimony Tuesday and Wednesday, Amerling, directly challenged the defense claims.
In her role as counsel, Amerling said she was personally involved in advising the committee related to the Bannon subpoena.
Amerling said the committee had established specific deadlines for Bannon’s compliance to produce documents by Oct. 7, 2021, and appear for a deposition on Oct. 14.
Asked whether Bannon had satisfied those demands, Amerling told the prosecutor: “He did not.”
Bannon faces two counts of contempt, one for his refusal to appear for the deposition and another involving his failure to produce documents.
Each count could carry a minimum of 30 days and a maximum of one year in jail, as well as a maximum fine of $100,000.
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