Prosecutors say Clarke confirmed in the interview that at no point did Trump ever invoke executive privilege over Bannon’s testimony — and directly contradicted Bannon’s defense team’s other claims in their case. Bannon was charged last year with two counts of criminal contempt of Congress after defying a Jan. 6 subpoena, though he argued that Trump’s claim of privilege protected him. He pleaded not guilty and is due in court next week. Prosecutors say in Monday’s filing that they believe Bannon’s recent efforts in conjunction with Trump to finally offer to testify before the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack are nothing more than an attempt to make Bannon more likable figure for the jury to face next week. “All of the aforementioned circumstances suggest that the defendant’s sudden desire to testify is not a genuine attempt to fulfill his obligations, but a last-ditch effort to avoid accountability,” prosecutors say. Former President Donald Trump speaks during an event with Joe Lombardo, Clark County Sheriff and Nevada Republican gubernatorial candidate, and Nevada Senate Republican candidate Adam Laxalt, July 8, 2022, in Las Vegas. John Locher/AP Photo “The defendant’s timeline suggests that the only thing that has really changed since he refused to comply with the subpoena in October 2021 is that he is finally going to face the consequences of his decision to default,” prosecutors said in the filing. Regarding Bannon, the filing also said Clark told investigators that he “never requested or was asked to attend the defendant’s testimony before the Select Committee; that the defendant’s attorney misrepresented to the Commission what counsel had said of the former President to the defendant’s attorney; and that counsel for the former President made it clear to the defendant’s attorney that the letter provided no basis for total noncompliance.” Neither representatives of Bannon nor the Jan. 6 committee immediately responded to ABC News’ request for comment. Bannon remained an outside adviser to Trump after helping lead Trump’s first presidential campaign and serving a brief stint in the White House. It was at a meeting at the Willard Hotel where lawmakers were encouraged to challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election before Jan. 6, the House committee on Jan. 6 claimed in a 2021 letter to Bannon that accompanied his subpoena. On his final night in office, Trump pardoned Bannon, who had been indicted for alleged conspiracy to commit fraud and money laundering related to a crowdfunding effort to build a wall along the US-Mexico border. Steve Bannon speaks to reporters before entering U.S. District Court in Washington, June 15, 2022. Elizabeth Franz/Reuters Prosecutors had accused Bannon of defrauding hundreds of thousands of donors to the “We Build the Wall” fundraising campaign by falsely claiming that he and other organizers would not take a cut of donations. Prosecutors alleged that the group’s organizers, including Bannon, appropriated at least $1 million for their own personal expenses. Two of Bannon’s co-defendants in the case, Brian Colfage and Andrew Badolato, who were not pardoned by Trump, have pleaded guilty. The trial for a third co-defendant, Timothy Shea, ended in a mistrial after the jury could not reach a verdict.
