July 11, 2022

With his criminal trial for contempt of Congress approaching, the Jan. 6 committee received a letter from Steve Bannon's attorney saying he would testify. It appears that Bannon prefers not to go to prison. Bannon was involved in former President Donald Trump's attempt to overturn the 2020 election. How many times will he plead the Fifth?

Democratic Rep. Zoe Lofgren confirmed to CNN's Jake Tapper that he is expected to testify, and she said, "We have many questions" for Bannon.

Via The New York Times:

His decision is a remarkable about-face for Mr. Bannon, who until Saturday had been among the most obstinate and defiant of the committee's potential witnesses. He had promised to turn the criminal case against him into the "misdemeanor from hell" for the Justice Department.

But with the possibility of two years in jail and large fines looming on the horizon, Mr. Bannon has been authorized to testify by Mr. Trump, his attorney told the committee in a letter late on Saturday.

The former president had previously instructed Mr. Bannon and other associates not to cooperate with the panel, claiming that executive privilege — a president's power to withhold certain internal executive branch information, especially confidential communications involving him or his top aides — compelled them to stay silent. But in recent days, as several witnesses have come forward to offer the House panel damning testimony about his conduct, Mr. Trump has grown frustrated that one of his fiercest defenders has not yet appeared before the committee, people close to him said.

Ohhhhh. So, Trump just wants someone to say nice things about him. Well, that would be Kevin McCarthy's fault, and maybe, just maybe, Trump shouldn't have attempted a coup.

If we take a shot every time Bannon pleads the Fifth, we'll all die of alcohol poisoning. Be careful, fam. Besides, I'm sure Bannon will be drunk enough for all of us.

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