The only justification for Bannon’s bitterness right now is that he believes that there either shouldn’t be laws at all or that they shouldn’t apply to him. Yesterday, Bannon was sentenced to four months in jail, sixty days less than the prosecution requested, and a $6,500 fine or $193,500 less than the prosecution requested. All of it could have been avoided had Bannon simply honored the subpoena and plead the Fifth or whatever it took. Instead, he was easily found guilty and was modestly sentenced. He then went on to Tucker Carlson’s show to dangerously and arrogantly lash out:
“The whole Justice Department under Merrick Garland has become radically partisan,” Bannon told Tucker Carlson on Friday night. “I strongly believe you’ll see Merrick Garland impeached next year by the new Congress.”
He will think of a crime later.
“What do you think this says about our system more broadly?” Carlson asked. “You are saying you’re being sent to prison because you advised Donald Trump, politically. I mean, that doesn’t sound like a free country where something like that could happen.”
No, he is not being sent to prison because he advised Donald Trump politically. Jared Kushner advised Donald Trump politically, went and testified, and isn’t going to jail. Bannon is going to jail because he doesn’t want to talk about his advice.
“It’s not free right now,” Bannon replied. “The Justice Department is completely and totally out of control, and the FBI’s out of control. That’s why I’m a big believer in ‘defund the FBI.’ Use the appropriations process to defund both these apparatuses until they come to the table and we start cleaning out the rat’s nest.
Child trafficking, fentanyl trafficking, cybercrime, it all has to be allowed to run wild while we defund the FBI because the FBI keeps arresting Trumpers. It would be interesting to hear what it is that Bannon believes needs cleaning out.
But his message is more dangerous than it is amusing. He, along with Tucker Carlson, continues to delegitimize the one law enforcement agency we have equipped to deal with crimes at the presidential level. Additionally, seemingly like everything else, the FBI is the agency that protects the nation’s secrets. Yesterday, we learned that Trump had classified information on Iran and China at Mar-a-Lago. The FBI is the agency charged with counterintelligence duties, and Bannon wants to delegitimize the Bureau further?
He was subpoenaed to answer questions in an investigation. Without any excuse, he continued to ignore the subpoenas. This is the guy who, on January 5th, said that “All hell is going to break loose tomorrow…” Perhaps that is why he never showed up. But there is no grand deep-state conspiracy to get Steve Bannon here. Jared Kushner showed up and isn’t going to jail. Bannon ignored the subpoena and will report after his appeal.
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@JasonMiciak believes a day without learning is a day not lived. He is a political writer, features writer, author, and attorney. He is a Canadian-born dual citizen who spent his teen and college years in the Pacific Northwest and has since lived in seven states. He now enjoys life as a single dad of a young girl, writing from the beaches of the Gulf Coast. He loves crafting his flower pots, cooking, and currently studies philosophy of science, religion, and non-math principles behind quantum mechanics and cosmology. Please feel free to contact for speaking engagements or any concerns.