Rep. Terri Sewell voted to hold Steve Bannon in contempt of Congress for failing to comply with a congressional subpoena. The subpoena, which the Select Committee issued to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol, required Bannon to produce both documents and testimony relevant to the attack. The House found Bannon in contempt of Congress in a bipartisan 229 to 202 vote.
On September 23rd, Chairman Thompson signed and transmitted a subpoena to Bannon, ordering the production of documents on October 7th and requiring his presence for deposition testimony on October 14th. Bannon failed to produce the documents on October 7th and failed to show up for the deposition on October 14th.
“We need to make it clear that no person is above the law; we need to take a stand for the committee’s investigation and for the integrity of this body,” said the committee chair, Bennie Thompson.
“Steve Bannon appears to have played a multi-faceted role in the events of the January 6th attack. The American people are entitled to hear his testimony,” stated Sewell in a press release. “His refusal to comply with a congressional subpoena is completely unacceptable and demonstrates that he believes he is above the law.”
Sewell continued, “Today’s vote shows that the United States House of Representatives will not be intimidated or deterred. We have a responsibility to get to the bottom of this horrific attack in order to prevent future threats to our democracy, and that is exactly what we will do.”
On Twitter, Sewell commented, “Steve Bannon is not above the law. The U.S. House of Representatives will not be intimidated or deterred. We have a responsibility to get to the bottom of the horrific Jan. 6th attack in order to prevent future threats to our democracy, and that is exactly what we will do.”
The Justice Department will now decide what happens to Bannon. Attorney General Merrick Garland has not said whether he will move forward with charges.
“We’ll apply the facts in the law and make a decision, consistent with the principles of prosecution,” he told the House Judiciary Committee during an oversight hearing on Thursday.
