Court rejects Peter Navarro’s bid to dismiss Jan. 6 contempt charges
Ryan King
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A federal judge denied former White House adviser Peter Navarro’s last-ditch bid to toss out contempt of Congress charges levied against him for defying a Jan. 6 committee subpoena.
U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled that Navarro did not adequately supply evidence that former President Donald Trump’s assertion of executive privilege shielded him from complying with the subpoena demand, paving the way for his trial to commence later this month.
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“[Navarro] has offered neither a sworn affidavit nor testimony from him or the former President. His contention rests only on his counsel’s representations, which are not evidence,” Mehta wrote in the ruling. “Defendant has failed to come forward with any evidence to support the claimed assertion of privilege. And, because the claimed assertion of executive privilege is unproven, Defendant cannot avoid prosecution for contempt.”
If convicted, Navarro could face up to a year in prison and fines of up to $100,000 for each of the two contempt charges against him for declining to produce documents and refusing to show up for a deposition. An unabashed supporter of Trump, Navarro helped craft the “Green Bay Sweep” to overturn the 2020 election. He boasted about his efforts and dared the committee to target him.
“They don’t want any part of me. I exonerate Trump and Bannon,” Navarro told the Daily Beast in late 2021, weeks before he was subpoenaed.
Mehta also rejected Navarro’s argument that the Jan. 6 panel was illegitimate because its vice chairwoman, the highest-ranking panel member from the minority party, was appointed by former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) instead of then-House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA). While refraining from opining whether Navarro’s gripe was valid, Mehta insisted that he failed to file a rules complaint with Congress over the matter.
Navarro was one of a handful of Trump allies who defied a Jan. 6 committee subpoena demand alongside Steve Bannon, former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, and former deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino.
Bannon was found guilty for similarly bucking a subpoena and sentenced to four months in prison as well as a $6,500 fine, though he is appealing that conviction. Unlike Bannon, Navarro was technically a member of the Trump administration during the time frame in question.
Meanwhile, both Meadows and Scavino have not been prosecuted by the Justice Department. But those men presented letters from Trump to buttress their executive privilege claims, while Navarro did not, according to Mehta.
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The Jan. 6 committee concluded its work late last year and released a sweeping report on the Capitol riot and coinciding efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Navarro’s trial is slated to commence on Jan. 30.
The Washington Examiner contacted a Navarro representative for comment.