The U.S. House of Representatives voted on Thursday to hold former Trump advisor Steve Bannon in criminal contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena from the House select committee investigating the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol.
The full House voted 229-202 with all Democrats voting in favor, and all but nine Republicans voting against the resolution.
“The House must vote to hold Steve Bannon in Contempt of Congress for refusing to answer a Congressional subpoena and in doing so, also make clear our unwavering dedication to truth, transparency, and the rule of law,” said Congressman David Cicilline, D-RI. “an 6 was one of the most heinous attacks on American democracy that our country has ever seen. We have mountains of evidence that these rioters, encouraged by & organized by some of our country’s highest officials, intended to overthrow our democracy at the urging of Trump.”
“We must get to the bottom of what happened, not only to hold these insurrectionists accountable, but to prevent something like this from ever happening again,” Cicilline continued. “Steve Bannon clearly had inside knowledge of what was going to happen that day. He even said on January 5 that ‘all hell was going to break loose’ on January 6. He has information that must be shared. The January 6 commission is a bipartisan effort to get the truth. This goes beyond party politics – this about the safety and security of our democracy.”
“Mr. Bannon’s willful disregard for the select committee’s subpoena demonstrate his utter contempt for the American people’s right to know how the attacks on January 6 came about,” Republican congressman Kinzinger said. “His own words strongly suggest that the actions of the mob that stormed the Capitol and invaded this very chamber came as no surprise to him. He and a few others, were by all accounts, involved in planning that day’s events and encouraged by those who attacked the Capitol, our officers and our democracy.”
“I have no doubt that Mr. Bannon’s scorn for our subpoena is real. But no one, and I repeat, no one is above the law,” Kinzinger said. “And we need to hear from him.”
Bannon could face up to a year in jail and fines of up to $100,000.
The House adopted H. Res. 730 – contempt resolution regarding Stephen K. Bannon’s refusal to comply with a subpoena issued by the Select Committee to Investigate the Jan 6th Attack on the US Capitol on a vote of 229-202.
— House Press Gallery (@HouseDailyPress) October 21, 2021
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