Steve Bannon will testify before Jan 6 committee, panel member says

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Former White House strategist Steve Bannon, one of Donald Trump’s closest advisers and top supporters, will give testimony to the January 6 committee, a panel member revealed on Sunday.

Rep Zoe Lofgren confirmed during an interview with CNN that Mr Bannon’s attorney had sent a letter to the committee, delivered around midnight on Saturday evening, stating Mr Bannon’s willingness to drop his opposition to the committee’s subpoena.

Mr Bannon’s testimony will likely occur behind closed doors over the course of several hours, as was the case with previous witnesses called by the committee, according to the congresswoman.

The January 6 committee is set to hold two more hearings this week. It isn’t clear yet whether Thursday’s hearing will be held during the day or will be the final primetime conclusion hearing that lawmakers have promised will wrap up the hearings. But no mention of the committee wrapping up has yet been made, hinting that it will meet again after this week.

Among the testimony listeners will hear from witnesses this week are excerpts from the hours-long deposition of Pat Cipollone, the ex-White House counsel, who reportedly attempted to warn Donald Trump against taking a number of illegal actions related to Jan 6 including arguing against the idea of him joining the riot in person.

Lawmakers have said that Tuesday’s hearing will focus on Donald Trump and his team’s efforts to lure thousands of his supporters to Washington DC to pressure lawmakers on the day of the election’s certification itself (6 January, 2021). That will include, according to Ms Lofgren, efforts to tie Donald Trump’s team and allies to far-right militia groups like the Proud Boys and Oathkeepers who were present and armed on the day of the attack.

“We do think that this story is unfolding in a way that is very serious, and quite credible,” she said on Sunday.

“We will be connecting the dots,” between Mr Trump’s team and the far-right groups whose members have been charged with seditious conspiracy following the attack, the congresswoman continued.

As of yet no formal evidence has been uncovered proving that the White House directly conspired with militia groups to have them present for Jan 6, but in recent testimony an aide to ex-Chief of Staff Mark Meadows testified that Mr Meadows and others knew that the likelihood for violence as a result of their efforts was high, even days before the attack took place.

Mr Meadows and others also sought pardons after the attack took place and the significance of their actions was laid bare, the aide also testified.