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JUST IN: Judge orders Trump advisor, Bannon to report to prison by July 1
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
Former top Donald Trump advisor Steve Bannon was ordered by a federal judge yesterday to report to prison by July 1 to begin serving his four-month sentence for contempt of Congress.
Bannon, 70, was convicted of contempt in July 2022 for defying a subpoena to testify before the congressional panel that investigated the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol by Trump supporters, reports AFP.
One of the masterminds behind Trump’s successful 2016 presidential campaign, he was sentenced to four months in prison in October 2022, but has remained free while appealing his conviction.
A US federal appeals court upheld the conviction last month. US District Judge Carl Nichols revoked his bail at a court hearing Thursday and ordered him to report to prison by July 1.
A defiant Bannon addressed reporters outside the Washington courthouse after the judge’s order, saying “there’s nothing that can shut me up and nothing that will shut me up.”
“There’s not a prison built or a jail built that will ever shut me up,” he said.
“We’re going to win on November 5th in an amazing landslide,” he added in a reference to the date of the White House election expected to be a rematch between Trump and Democratic President Joe Biden.
Another top Trump advisor, Peter Navarro, was also convicted of contempt of Congress and began serving a four-month sentence in a Florida prison in March.
Navarro, 74, is the highest-ranking former member of the Trump administration to spend time behind bars for actions stemming from the Republican former president’s efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
Bannon served in the White House as chief strategist for the first seven months of Trump’s term, leaving reportedly due to conflicts with other top staffers.
In 2020, he was charged with wire fraud and money laundering for taking for personal use millions of dollars contributed by donors toward the construction of a border wall with Mexico.
While others were found guilty in the scheme, Trump issued a blanket pardon to Bannon before leaving office in January 2021, leading to the dismissal of the charges against him.
Trump was scheduled to go on trial in Washington on March 4 on charges of conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 election won by Biden, but his trial has been put on hold until the US Supreme Court rules on Trump’s claim that as a former president he is immune from prosecution.
Trump, 77, was impeached for a second time by the House of Representatives after the Capitol riot — he was charged with inciting an insurrection — but was acquitted by the Senate.
Federal Capital Territory FCT minister Nyesom Wike is set to inspect Karu Township road due for completion by May 2026 in the next few minutes.
The minister has been monitoring projects in the Territory bumper to bumper to ensure completion in due time.
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The African Democratic Congress (ADC) Legislators’ Forum has strongly condemned the latest move by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to secure Senate approval for an additional external loan of $516,333,070, ostensibly for the Sokoto–Badagry Super Highway project.
This was contained in a statement issued and signed by the regional leaders of the Forum: Hon. Uko Ndukwe Nkole ,PhDChairmanADC -National Legislators’ Forum African Democratic Congress (ADC)
Hon Nnenna Ukeje-SEHon Sergius Ogun-SSHon Ajagbe H -SWHon Zakari Mohammed -NCHon Koko Shehu -NWHon Maigari Bello M-NE stating that:
“This request is not only alarming but emblematic of an administration that has made reckless borrowing its default economic policy, with little regard for sustainability, accountability, or the wellbeing of future generations.
“While no responsible opposition undermines the importance of infrastructure development, we must ask: at what cost, and under what conditions? This government has failed to convincingly demonstrate that its endless appetite for loans is guided by a coherent, transparent, and economically viable repayment strategy.
“Instead, Nigerians are witnessing a troubling pattern; one where debt accumulation is prioritized over prudent fiscal management, innovation, and domestic resource mobilization.
“Nigeria is already weighed down by a crushing debt burden, with debt servicing swallowing a staggering proportion of national revenue. Yet, rather than confronting this reality with discipline and reform, the Tinubu administration continues to plunge the country deeper into what can only be described as a looming debt catastrophe. Each new loan tightens the noose around the nation’s economic sovereignty, leaving future generations to pay for today’s lack of foresight.
“Even more disturbing is the timing of this request. As the nation inches closer to a major general election cycle, Nigerians are right to question the motives behind this borrowing spree.
” Is this truly about development, or is it another attempt to create avenues for political patronage and electoral advantage? History has taught us to be wary of last-minute, large-scale financial commitments made under the guise of national interest.
“The ADC Legislators’ Forum insists that the National Assembly must not act as a rubber stamp or Pro group of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in this matter.
“The Senate, in particular, must rise to its constitutional responsibility by demanding full disclosure of the project’s financial details, procurement processes, cost-benefit analysis, and a credible repayment plan.
“Anything short of this would amount to a betrayal of public trust.
“Furthermore, we call on the administration to redirect its focus toward policies that can genuinely strengthen Nigeria’s economy; policies that promote productivity, industrial growth, job creation, and the plugging of revenue leakages.
“Borrowing should never be a substitute for leadership, creativity, and accountability.
“We must clearly state that governance is not a free ride without consequences. Those who make decisions today that endanger the economic future of millions of Nigerians must understand that a day of reckoning will inevitably come. The Nigerian people will demand answers, accountability, and justice for policies that have deepened hardship and mortgaged the nation’s destiny.
“Nigeria stands at a critical crossroads. We can either choose the path of responsibility, discipline, and sustainable growth, or continue down this perilous road of debt dependency and economic vulnerability. The Tinubu administration must decide where it stands; but Nigerians are watching, and history will not be kind to those who fail this nation.
At least one ISWAP fighter has been captured alive while top commander identified as Abu Umar Bundi Munzir has been neutralised alongside 24 other insurgents in Borno.
The development followed a foiled coordinated attack on Kukareta community in Borno by troops of Operation HADIN KAI.
Maj.-Gen. Abdulsalam Abubakar, Theartre Commander, North East Operation Hadin Kai, disclosed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in Maiduguri on Thursday, while providing situational update on the failed attack by ISWAP terrorists.
NAN report that the insurgents launched the attack in the early hours of Thursday, shortly after midnight, in an attempt to overrun the location but were decisively engaged by troops of Sector 2 in a sustained counter-offensive that lasted till about 3;00 a.m.
Abubakar said that during the encounter, the terrorists’ commander, Abu Umar Bundi Munzir, was reportedly among those neutralised as troops repelled the assault and forced the remaining attackers into a disorganised withdrawal.
The theartre commander also confirmed that a total of 24 other terrorists were killed in the operation, bringing the overall neutralised figure to 25.
”Troops subsequently conducted exploitation of the battlefield, leading to the recovery of a large cache of arms and ammunition, including 18 AK-47 rifles, three General Purpose Machine Guns, two PKT automatic anti-aircraft guns and three RPG tubes.
”Others include two mortar tubes, four hand grenades, 18 AK-47 magazines, and large quantities of belted 7.62mm ammunition,” he said.
According to him, two soldiers sustained gunshot wounds during the encounter and have since been stabilised, while an armoured reinforcement vehicle had its tyres damaged during the firefight.
He added that further exploitation operations were ongoing to recover fleeing terrorists bodies, and abandoned equipment along withdrawal routes reportedly marked by blood trails and medical items.
The commander described the operation as a significant success in ongoing counter-insurgency efforts, noting that sustained pressure would be maintained to deny terrorist elements freedom of action in the North-East theatre.
(NAN)
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