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Corruption & Accountability · Report · File No. 261111-073

DOJ drops Bannon case with no one opposing it; critics cite Jan. 6 pattern

The Justice Department wants a judge to erase Steve Bannon's contempt conviction, and his lawyers do not object. Critics say the move, like earlier Jan. 6 dismissals, leaves no one to defend the verdict in court.

By the Investigations Desk · · 2 min read

Every quote in this story (2) was matched word for word against its source. How we work

My clippings
Todd Blanche
Todd Blanche. Photo: Ryan M. Biller, Public domain

The Justice Department is asking a federal judge to drop the contempt of Congress case against Steve Bannon and erase his conviction "in the interests of justice." Bannon's lawyers do not oppose the move, NPR reported Wednesday 1. Legal experts say it fits a pattern of the department helping to wipe the slate clean for allies of President Trump, with no one arguing the other side 1.

Bannon, a former Trump adviser, defied a subpoena from the House committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. He also refused to sit for an interview 1. A Washington jury took less than three hours to convict him, and a federal appeals court upheld the verdict 1.

'No adversity remains'

Bruce Searby, a Washington defense attorney and former federal prosecutor, said the case has lost its opposing sides 1. The Justice Department did not respond to NPR's request for comment, and Bannon's lawyers did not return messages 1.

No adversity remains in this serious and high-profile criminal matter between, on the one hand, the U.S. Department of Justice overtly acting at the behest of the president of the United States, and on the other hand, Bannon, the defendant, who is a close political ally and adviser to the same president
Bruce Searby, Washington defense attorney and former federal prosecutor1

In a court filing last week, the department said it would use its prosecutorial discretion to dismiss the indictment. Deputy Associate Attorney General Michael Weisbuch wrote that pursuing the case was not appropriate because Bannon said he believed executive privilege protected him 1. Executive privilege is a president's claimed power to keep some advice confidential. Weisbuch also argued the judge lacks authority to reject the unopposed motion 1.

From Channel GOPBlanche admits recusal, then boasts 200+ staff goneTodd Blanche · 38K plays · captioned, with the source named

This is not the first try. On Aug. 26, Judge Carl Nichols refused an earlier request because prosecutors had not explained why they wanted dismissal 2. He left room for a renewed motion 2. Bannon was convicted in 2022 and served a four-month prison term 2.

The Oath Keepers and Proud Boys cases

NPR said the same reasoning was used in April, when the department asked to vacate the convictions of about a dozen leaders and deputies of the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys 1. Juries in those seditious conspiracy trials heard how some members gathered weapons, recruited followers and breached the Capitol 1. Trump pardoned most Jan. 6 defendants on his first day back in office, calling them "patriots" 1.

Lawyers for Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Maryland Democrat who served on the House Jan. 6 committee, urged an appeals court last spring to appoint an outside "amicus," or friend of the court, to defend the verdicts 1. Judges have named such lawyers before, in the Michael Flynn and Eric Adams cases 1. The Jan. 6 charges were dismissed without one 1.

Today's epilogue diminishes the gravity of that day, denigrates the work of the prosecutors and law enforcement officers who secured these convictions, and excuses criminal acts that caused a centuries-long pillar of our democracy—the peaceful transfer of presidential power—to buckle
Amit Mehta, U.S. District Judge, Washington, D.C.1

What happens next

Judge Nichols, who presided over Bannon's trial, now decides whether to grant the request 1. Searby said dismissal should not be a "foregone conclusion." He said an outside lawyer could weigh whether the department abused its discretion by acting in bad faith or against the public interest 1.

That matters because courts normally rely on two opposing sides. NPR noted that Trump sued his own government over the leak of his tax returns and settled, a deal that gave him and his sons immunity from tax audits 1. Attorney General Todd Blanche, once Trump's defense lawyer, faced questions about that deal and was confirmed in August by a single Senate vote 1.

The Record

  1. Judge Carl Nichols refused the Justice Department's first request to dismiss Bannon's conviction, saying prosecutors had not explained their reasons 2.
  2. NPR reports the department's renewed, unopposed bid to drop Bannon's case, with legal experts criticizing the lack of an opposing party 1.
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Sources

  1. NPR, “Both sides now? Critics slam DOJ moves to dismiss convictions of Trump allies” (2026-11-11). npr.org/2026/11/11/g-s1-152713/doj-abandons-convictions-trum
  2. Spectrum News, “Judge Nichols declines, for now, to dismiss Steve Bannon's conviction” (2026-08-26). spectrumlocalnews.com/us/snplus/politics/2026/08/26/steve-ba

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