President Joe Biden’s Justice Department has made it unequivocally clear that they are adamant about seeing former President Donald Trump, his allies, and his followers face legal consequences for a range of bogus offenses.
This stance was once again underscored on Tuesday when the Biden administration pushed for former Trump adviser Steve Bannon to be immediately imprisoned following his contempt of Congress conviction, as reported by Axios.
Bannon, a prominent podcast host who previously held a key advisory role in the Trump administration, was found guilty in 2022 on two counts of contempt of Congress for defying subpoenas issued by the House Jan. 6 Select Committee.
Despite Judge Carl Nichols initially sentencing Bannon to serve four months concurrently for each count, he had imposed a stay on the sentence to allow Bannon to pursue an appeal process. However, a recent unanimous decision by a three-judge panel at the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Bannon’s appeal on all grounds.
In response to this ruling, Bannon’s attorney expressed intentions to escalate the appeal process either through requesting an “en banc” review by the full 11-member D.C. Circuit Court or by seeking intervention from the Supreme Court.
Nevertheless, President Biden’s DOJ wasted no time in urging Judge Nichols to lift the stay on Bannon’s sentence and enforce his immediate imprisonment, arguing that there were no legal grounds for further delay based on the appellate panel’s decision.
The prosecutors pointed out that since the D.C. Circuit panel had affirmed Bannon’s conviction and dismissed all grounds of his appeal, including his defense that he acted based on legal advice, there was no longer any substantial legal question warranting a stay on his sentence.
The DOJ motion emphasized that with Peter Navarro, another former Trump adviser convicted of contempt before the same committee, also failing to secure relief from higher courts despite procedural issues, there was precedent for prompt enforcement of such convictions.
Despite Bannon’s intentions to seek additional reviews and appeals at higher levels, including a potential en banc hearing or Supreme Court petition along with an ongoing temporary stay granted by the D.C. Circuit itself pending further proceedings, the DOJ urged Judge Nichols not to wait any longer and enforce immediate imprisonment as mandated by law.
In response to this motion from the DOJ pushing for immediate incarceration, Judge Nichols granted Bannon a brief extension until Thursday to present arguments regarding whether he retains authority to act upon the motion given existing legal procedures and stays issued by higher courts.
The case involving Steve Bannon serves as just one example of President Biden’s Justice Department aggressively pursuing legal actions against individuals associated with former President Trump over various allegations.
The swift push for imprisonment following appellate court rulings underscores the administration’s commitment to holding accountable those deemed responsible for obstructing congressional investigations or other perceived offenses.
As this high-profile case continues to unfold amidst ongoing political tensions and legal battles between supporters and critics of both administrations involved, it remains uncertain how far-reaching implications from these confrontations might shape future interactions between branches of government and their respective supporters across party lines.
