Steve Bannon's contempt of Congress trial will not be delayed, judge rules

Steve Bannon, former Trump White House chief strategist, declined to appear in person for a pretrial hearing in Washington, D.C., Monday, in his contempt of Congress case. His legal team suffered a series of defeats during the hearing, losing nearly every argument. 

D.C. District Judge Carl Nichols ruled that Bannon's trial will not be delayed, despite Bannon's claims of potential jury bias because of the ongoing Jan. 6 House select committee hearings. His trial is still set to begin next week, on July 18. 

Bannon had argued that as a former White House official, he did not have an obligation to comply with the select committee's subpoena when executive privilege has been asserted by the president. The panel subpoenaed him in September 2021 because of news reports that he had urged former President Trump to focus on Jan. 6 and had tried to coax members of Congress to vote against certifying the 2020 presidential election.