Steve Bannon, a right-wing podcast host and former campaign official for Donald Trump, was released from federal Bureau of Prisons custody just days before the 2024 presidential election. Bannon had been sentenced to four months in prison for defying subpoenas from the House Jan. 6 committee but had delayed serving his sentence for nearly two years. He was convicted of contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with subpoenas related to the investigation into the Capitol attack on January 6, 2020.
Upon his release, Bannon returned to hosting his “War Room” podcast, where he claimed that Democrats had sent him to prison as a political prisoner in an effort to suppress his show. Bannon urged his listeners to vote in the upcoming election, saying that everything was coming to fruition and they needed to crush Democrats at the ballot box.
Bannon’s release comes amidst ongoing legal issues for former President Trump, who faces criminal charges related to his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election. Bannon, who had attempted to claim executive privilege to avoid testifying before the Jan. 6 committee, ultimately agreed to testify before his contempt of Congress trial. He was convicted, and his convictions were upheld on appeal.
In a parallel case, former White House official Peter Navarro, who was also convicted of contempt of Congress, served a four-month sentence alongside Bannon. Navarro was released during the Republican National Convention and received a hero’s welcome. Biden had announced his decision to drop out of the 2024 presidential race just days after Bannon reported to prison, leading to Kamala Harris becoming the Democratic nominee.
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