Jan. 6 Panel Threatens to Pursue Charges Against Bannon

WASHINGTON — The prime committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot threatened connected Friday to prosecute transgression charges against Stephen K. Bannon, the erstwhile main strategist to President Donald J. Trump, for refusing to comply with its subpoena, announcing it would see initiating transgression contempt of Congress proceedings.

In a connection aft Mr. Bannon informed the sheet that helium would not cooperate successful the inquiry, the panel’s leaders said they would “swiftly consider” the contempt referral, raising the imaginable of what could beryllium a prolonged ineligible conflict implicit what could beryllium important grounds successful the investigation.

The committee has ordered 4 erstwhile Trump medication officials — Mr. Bannon; Mark Meadows, the White House main of staff; Dan Scavino Jr., a lawman main of unit and Kash Patel, a Pentagon main of unit — to beryllium for depositions and furnish documents and different materials applicable to its investigation.

Mr. Meadows and Mr. Patel person communicated immoderate with the committee, according to the associated connection issued connected Friday by Representatives Bennie Thompson, Democrat of Mississippi and the committee’s chairman, and Liz Cheney, Republican of Wyoming and the vice chair. Mr. Scavino has yet to beryllium served.

In a missive to the sheet connected Thursday, Robert Costello, Mr. Bannon’s lawyer, informed the committee that helium would not comply. Mr. Costello said that Mr. Bannon was abiding by Mr. Trump’s directive for his erstwhile aides and advisers facing subpoenas to invoke immunity and refrain from turning implicit documents that mightiness beryllium protected nether enforcement privilege.

“It is truthful wide to america that since the enforcement privileges beryllium to President Trump, and helium has, done his counsel, announced his volition to asseverate those enforcement privileges enumerated above, we indispensable judge his absorption and grant his invocation of enforcement privilege,” Mr. Costello wrote.

In their statement, the leaders of the prime committee rejected Mr. Bannon’s rationale for stonewalling their investigation.

“While Mr. Meadows and Mr. Patel are, truthful far, engaging with the Select Committee, Mr. Bannon has indicated that helium volition effort to fell down vague references to privileges of the erstwhile president,” the associated connection said. “The prime committee afloat expects each of these witnesses to comply with our demands for some documents and deposition testimony.”

“We volition not let immoderate witnesser to defy a lawful subpoena oregon effort to tally retired the clock,” they added.

While Mr. Bannon worked astatine the White House successful 2017, helium departed successful August of that year, and was not an enforcement subdivision worker successful the lead-up to, oregon on, Jan. 6. It is not wide however executive privilege — which tin shield White House deliberations oregon documents involving the president from disclosure — would use to immoderate interactions helium whitethorn person had with Mr. Trump related to the riot, which occurred astir 4 years aft helium near the administration.

“Steve Bannon was not successful the enforcement subdivision and was not moving for the president,” said Representative Jamie Raskin, Democrat of Maryland and a subordinate of the committee. “Even if you marque the presumption that Donald Trump has adjacent a shred of enforcement privilege, however could that widen to Steve Bannon?”

The Biden medication connected Friday said it would not widen enforcement privilege, which usually applies to a sitting president, to the erstwhile president for the archetypal batch of documents requested by the committee. That means the committee would person entree to a wide scope of documents it requested from the National Archives.

“As portion of this process, the president has determined that an assertion of enforcement privilege is not warranted for the archetypal acceptable of documents from the Trump White House,” Jen Psaki, the White House spokeswoman, said Friday.

The improvement sets up a imaginable ineligible conflict betwixt Mr. Trump’s claims of enforcement privilege and the committee, which is scrutinizing efforts by the erstwhile president to overturn the results of the 2020 predetermination and immoderate connections helium oregon his medication whitethorn person had to the rioters.

Mr. Raskin, who is simply a law instrumentality professor, said enforcement privilege hinges connected whether nationalist information concerns outweigh the request for authorities transparency. In this case, helium said, they are not successful conflict.

“There is nary coup-against-the-government privilege a president tin invoke,” helium said. “They are trafficking successful absurdities.”

Mr. Trump’s and Mr. Bannon’s strategies look clear, Mr. Raskin said: Attempt to dilatory down the committee’s enactment agelong capable to let Republicans to triumph power of the House successful the 2022 midterm elections, erstwhile they could determination to dissolve the committee.

“The full crippled is to resistance this retired arsenic agelong arsenic possible, to spot whether they tin mobilize capable elector suppression to get Congress to alteration hands,” helium said. “We’re not going to fto radical play games and expanse grounds nether the rug.”

In a missive reviewed by The New York Times this week, Mr. Trump’s lawyer asked that witnesses not supply grounds oregon documents related to their “official” duties, and alternatively to invoke immoderate immunities they mightiness person “to the fullest grade permitted by law.”

Mr. Costello, the lawyer for Mr. Bannon, wrote successful his letter, which was besides obtained by The Times, that his lawsuit would “comply with the directions of the courts,” but that for now, “Mr. Bannon is legally incapable to comply with your subpoena requests for documents and testimony.”

It was unclear whether Mr. Bannon was readying to spell to court.

Mr. Bannon’s refusal to comply with the committee came arsenic the sheet issued 3 much subpoenas connected Thursday, targeting organizers of the “Stop the Steal” rally that brought unneurotic galore of Mr. Trump’s supporters who went connected to violently tempest the Capitol.

The latest subpoenas question deposition grounds from Ali Abdul Akbar, besides known arsenic Ali Alexander, and Nathan Martin, some of whom were progressive successful organizing protests astir the state — including successful Washington connected Jan. 6 — based connected Mr. Trump’s lies that helium was the rightful victor of the 2020 predetermination and that it had been riddled with fraud. The committee besides issued a subpoena for Stop the Steal L.L.C., an enactment affiliated with the event.

Mr. Alexander issued a connection successful response, saying helium was “being targeted due to the fact that I americium a Black patriotic antheral peacefully agitating an insecure government.”

Catie Edmondson contributed reporting.