House GOP votes to file legal brief supporting Steve Bannon's appeal of conviction

The House’s Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group (BLAG) voted on Tuesday morning to file an amicus brief in the case of War Room host Steve Bannon in the DC Circuit Court, as the former Trump advisor appeals his sentence. Bannon has been ordered to report to prison on July 1 to begin serving his four-month prison sentence for refusing to comply with a subpoena from the January 6 committee, which the House GOP says is illegitimate.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, and Majority Whip Tom Emmer wrote in a statement on Wednesday morning that the BLAG "voted 3-2 to file a brief with the DC Circuit in the case against Steve Bannon."

"The amicus brief will be submitted after Bannon files a petition for rehearing en banc and will be in support of neither party. It will withdraw certain arguments made by the House earlier in the litigation about the organization of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6 Attack on the US Capitol during the prior Congress. House Republican Leadership continues to believe Speaker Pelosi abused her authority when organizing the Select Committee."

According to Politico, the closed-door vote occurred on Tuesday. The vote occurred along party lines. Along with Johnson, Scalise, and Emmer, the group includes Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Minority Whip Katherine Clark.

A Republican aide told the outlet that Georgia Rep. Barry Loudermilk also plans to file an amicus brief with the Supreme Court in support of Bannon, arguing that the January 6 committee did not have the authority to conduct depositions. The brief will reportedly cite the requirement by the committee to consult a minority-ranking member and argue that this requirement was not met.

Johnson, on Tuesday evening, told Fox News that the House was planning on filing an amicus brief in Bannon’s case. "We're working on filing an amicus brief in his appellate work there in his case because the January 6 Committee, we think, was wrongfully constituted, we think the work was tainted, we think that they may very well have covered up evidence and maybe even more nefarious activities," Johnson said.

House GOP members have also co-sponsored a resolution to rescind the J6 committee subpoenas against Bannon, Peter Navarro, Mark Meadows, and Dan Scavino. The move would immediately remove the contempt of Congress convictions.