Former Trump Adviser Bannon Indicted in NY
On Thu., former White House strategist Steve Bannon was charged in N.Y. with defrauding donors to the ‘We Build the Wall’ organization, which was supposed to help pay for erecting the wall on the southern border of the U.S.
Facts
- On Thu., former White House strategist Steve Bannon was charged in N.Y. with defrauding donors to the ‘We Build the Wall’ organization, which was supposed to help pay for erecting the wall on the southern border of the U.S.
- Bannon, who surrendered to authorities in Manhattan on Thu, has been charged with two felony counts of money laundering, two counts of conspiracy, and a felony count of scheming to defraud. He could face up to 15 years in prison.
- The charges echo a federal case brought against Bannon two years ago. Federal prosecutors in 2020 accused him and three other men of taking donations from the crowd-funded border wall project, which raised $25M, and was used to pay for personal expenses.
- Bannon was charged with siphoning off more than $1M in wall donations, but after he plead guilty he was pardoned on Trump’s last day in office in Jan. 2021. Presidential pardons don’t apply to state charges.
- A defiant Bannon told reporters outside the N.Y. district attorney’s office, “this is an irony, on the very day the mayor of this city has a delegation down on the border, they are persecuting people here, that try to stop them at the border.”
- Earlier this summer, Bannon was convicted on two counts of contempt of Congress after refusing to respond to a subpoena by the House special committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riots. He will be sentenced in October.
Sources: Abc, New York Times, Snopes, CNN, and MSNBC.
Narratives
- Left narrative, as provided by MSNBC. Bannon received a ‘get out of jail free’ card from his former boss for federal charges, but Trump can’t save him now. With Bannon’s partners having already pleaded guilty to similar charges, it’s not looking good for the former White House advisor.
- Right narrative, as provided by Gateway Pundit. Silencing Bannon before this fall’s crucial midterms is a top goal of the left. Now they’re ignoring Trump’s pardon and pushing out false charges against Bannon, which are even more unfounded when you consider the success of We Build the Wall.
