Former President Donald Trump has relieved former White House strategist Steve Bannon of executive privilege, allowing him to testify before the House Democrat-led Jan. 6 Committee.
In a letter sent to Bannon on Sunday, Trump said he’d waive executive privilege to allow his former adviser to testify before the “Unselect” committee, who had previously subpoenaed Bannon.
“I write about the Subpoena that you received in September 2021 from the illegally constituted Unselect Committee, the same group of people who created the Russia Russia Russia scam, Impeachment hoax #1, Impeachment hoax #2, the Mueller Witch-Hunt (which ended in no “Collusion”), and other fake and never-ending yarns and tales,” Trump wrote.
“When you first received the Subpoena to testify and provide documents, I invoked Executive Privilege. However, I watched how unfairly you and others have been treated, having to spend vast amounts of money on legal fees, and all of the trauma you must be going through for the love of your Country, and out of respect for the Office of the President,” he continued.
“Therefore, if you reach an agreement on a time and place for your testimony. I will waive Executive Privilege for you, which allows for you to go in and testify truthfully and fairly, as per the request of the Unselect Committee of political Thugs and Hacks, who have allowed no Due Process, no Cross-Examination, and no real Republican members or witnesses to be present or interviewed. It is a partisan Kangaroo Court.”
Trump went on to call the Democrat-led Jan 6. Committee’s hearings and previous efforts to unseat him via the Russian collusion hoax and impeachment campaigns a “political hit job.”
“Why should these evil, sinister, and unpatriotic people be allowed to hurt and destroy the lives of so many, and cause such great harm to our Country? It has been, from the time I came down the escalator at Trump Tower, a political hit job against the overwhelming majority of Americans who support the concept and policy of Making America Great Again and putting America First. Good luck in all of your future endeavors,” Trump concluded.
Bannon was scheduled to be tried for contempt of Congress in a few weeks over his refusal to testify before the Jan. 6 Committee, but with Trump’s waiver of executive privilege, Bannon is now free to testify and avoid a contempt trial.
Bannon’s lawyer Robert Costello issued a letter to Jan. 6 Committee Chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) in the wake of Trump’s action.
“Mr. Bannon has not had a change of posture or of heart,” the letter stated, but said that the former president “decided that it would be in the best interests of the American people to waive executive privilege for Stephen K. Bannon, to allow Mr. Bannon to comply with the subpoena issued by your Committee.”
Bannon had subpoenaed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and members of the House select committee last month ahead of his upcoming criminal contempt trial.
Russia collusion hoaxer and former FBI general counsel Andrew Weissmann claimed Saturday that if Trump did attempt to waive executive privilege, it wouldn’t derail Bannon’s contempt trial coming up on July 18.
“Nothing he does now is going to change that. So this strikes me as a Hail Mary to put off a very strong criminal case against him that is upcoming,” he said on MSNBC.
Reporting from NewsWars.
