The committee issued a subpoena to Bannon saying it wanted to question him about activities at the Willard Hotel the night before the riot, when supporters of President Donald Trump sought to persuade Republican lawmakers to overturn the 2020 election results. The committee said Bannon spoke with Trump by telephone that morning and evening, the last time after Bannon predicted “hell is going to break loose” on Jan. 6. The committee’s report recommending that he be found in contempt said the comments indicated he “had some foreknowledge about extreme events that would occur the next day.”
In declining to testify and turn over records, Bannon claimed executive privilege, and his lawyer said he was contacted by Trump lawyer Justin Clark and instructed not to respond.
However, arguments over executive privilege are not expected to be the focus of the trial. During a pretrial hearing this month, U.S. District Judge Carl J. Nichols rejected several of Bannon’s defenses, including the executive privilege claim, and narrowed Bannon’s defenses at trial mainly to whether he understood the deadlines for answering lawmakers’ demands.
