With increasing frequency, the people around Donald Trump — the very same people who leveraged him into office — are finding themselves on the wrong side of the law.
As it turns out, a lot of illegal dealings went on behind the scenes ahead of, during, and even following Trump’s term in office, but easily among the most severe was the attempted insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021. Republicans have been trying to sweep it under the rug, but thankfully the people in charge are well aware of how serious the incident was. Make no mistake, this was an outright attack on our democracy. No amount of whataboutism will ever change that.
Steve Bannon, former Trump strategist, former executive chairman of Breitbart News, habitual wearer of an unreasonable number of layered shirts at any given moment, and current Jabba the Hutt impersonator, is chief among Trump’s one-time inner circle facing harsh consequences. He was a major player in the attempted insurrection, and his refusal to face the music for his actions could land the one-time Trump advisor in prison.
Could Steve Bannon go to prison?
Steve Bannon’s been dodging accountability over his involvement in the Jan. 6 Capitol Attack for years now, but it seems his time evading responsibility is at an end. On May 10, a federal appeals court upheld a contempt-of-Congress conviction against Bannon, who failed to comply with a subpoena from the House January 6 committee. He was found guilty some time ago, but the upholding of his conviction could lead to hard time for the 70-year-old.
The DC Circuit’s official affirmation of that conviction, even as they slapped aside Bannon’s attempted challenges, landed Bannon with a short — but still satisfying — conviction. He officially faces four months in federal prison. The decision could well lead to real jail time for Trump’s formerly sycophantic seditionist, but the timing on when he’d be expected to report to prison is still unclear.
There’s room for Bannon to appeal the decision, something he’ll absolutely opt to do. Echoing Trump’s tactics in his own criminal trial, Bannon will do everything he can to avoid jail time, including muddying up the process for as long as possible to avoid consequences.
That may not be enough, with the court’s most recent decision, however. All of Bannon’s dereliction of liability may suspend his sentence, but it won’t eliminate it. He’ll have no choice but to face the music eventually, and what sweet music it is.
