Hours After Sentencing, Steve Bannon Predicts Merrick Garland Impeachment

Steve Bannon is maintaining his defiant posture after being sentenced to prison for brushing off a subpoena, saying Republicans will retake the House and impeach Attorney General Merrick Garland for politicizing the Department of Justice.

Bannon, an ex-adviser to former President Donald Trump, made the remarks Friday night during an appearance on Tucker Carlson's prime-time Fox News show. A federal judge had earlier in the day sentenced Bannon to four months in prison for refusing to comply with a subpoena from the House committee investigating the January 6 insurrection. As the midterm election nears, some Republicans appeared interested in making Bannon's prediction a reality.

"I strongly believe you'll see Merrick Garland impeached next year by the new Congress," Bannon told Carlson, saying that the DOJ under Garland has become "radically partisan."

Bannon, currently free while he appeals his case, urged Republicans to focus on prevailing in the November 8 elections as polling suggests Republicans have a strong chance of taking control of the House and possibly the Senate.

"We have a very good opportunity here to shatter the Democratic Party as a national political institution," Bannon said, while predicting the GOP would win the House by 40 or 50 seats, as well as down-ballot races.

"What I want Republicans to do in the new Congress is to focus on cleaning out the rat's nest at DOJ and the rat's nest at FBI," he added.

The House January 6 committee has increasingly turned its attention to links between the pro-Trump mob that overran the Capitol and actions taken by allies of the former president. The committee subpoenaed Bannon last year, demanding he produce documents and sit for sworn testimony.

Bannon rebuffed the committee, saying he was protected by executive privilege. DOJ lawyers, however, have argued that Bannon's refusal was in "bad faith," having been told by Trump's legal team he was not protected by executive privilege as he lobbed attacks at the committee.

Many Republicans reacted with outrage when the FBI in August carried out a court-approved search warrant on Trump's Mar-a-Lago home in Florida as part of its investigation into the former president possibly hoarding sensitive government documents.

As Bannon's contempt of Congress case played out, elected Republicans and others running for office rallied to his cause.

Florida Representative Matt Gaetz on Twitter called Bannon "a proud dissident" who had experienced a "clear political prosecution."

Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted her support for Bannon on Friday alongside video of her appearance on Real America's Voice describing how she and her allies will open a series of investigations in the new Congress.

"Joe Biden and his family will be a top target. And so will the CDC, FBI, DOJ, DOE, Homeland Security, and many other government entities that have abused power," she said.

The Republican minority of the House Judiciary Committee shared a tweet from California Representative Darrell Issa, who called out Obama administration officials for not being punished after ignoring congressional subpoenas.

Joe Kent, a Trump-endorsed candidate running for a Republican-leaning seat in Washington state, tweeted his support for Bannon.

"This is bigger than Bannon, our corrupt government is jailing political dissidents & weaponizing the national security state against law abiding citizens," he said.

Newsweek reached out to House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy for comment.