Former Trump Adviser Appeals to Supreme Court to Keep Him Out of Prison – Peter Navarro, a former official in the Donald Trump administration, has sought relief from the US Supreme Court on Friday, requesting to delay his prison sentence pending his appeal of a contempt of Congress conviction. Navarro faces reporting to a federal prison next Tuesday following a decision by an appeals court, which determined that his appeal was unlikely to reverse his conviction.
He was found guilty of failing to cooperate with a congressional inquiry into the January 6, 2021, assault on the US Capitol by supporters of Trump. Navarro has consistently asserted his inability to comply with the committee’s demands, citing Trump’s assertion of executive privilege. However, Federal Judge Amit Mehta, appointed during Barack Obama’s presidency, disallowed Navarro from presenting this defense during his trial, ruling that Navarro failed to demonstrate Trump’s actual invocation of executive privilege.
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The emergency request coincides with the Supreme Court’s separate preparations to consider arguments regarding whether Trump, himself, holds presidential immunity against allegations of interference in the 2020 election, which he lost to Joe Biden.
Navarro becomes the second Trump associate to be convicted of misdemeanor contempt charges by Congress. Former Trump White House chief strategist Steve Bannon previously received a four-month sentence but was granted release pending appeal by Federal Judge Carl Nichols, appointed by Trump.
Navarro, an economist and former trade adviser to Trump, was convicted of disobeying a subpoena for documents and testimony from the House committee investigating the January 6 attack. He also propagated Trump’s false claims regarding election fraud that purportedly denied him victory over Biden, resulting in a four-month prison term.
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