Trump law firm interviewed with FBI about Bannon contempt situation

“The Defendant’s timing indicates that the only issue that has really improved since he refused to comply with the subpoena in Oct 2021 is that he is finally about to face the effects of his final decision to default,” Vaughn wrote.

“All of the over-described situation propose the Defendant’s sudden desire to testify is not a legitimate effort and hard work to meet up with his obligations but a last-ditch endeavor to steer clear of accountability.”

According to Vaughn, Clark contradicted multiple claims by Bannon and his protection team, which experienced extensive cited correspondence with Clark as the foundation for Bannon’s contention that Trump had claimed executive privilege above Bannon’s testimony and data.

In its place, Vaughn reported, Clark told DOJ “that the previous President never invoked govt privilege over any particular facts or resources that the former President’s counsel never questioned or was questioned to go to the Defendant’s deposition ahead of the Decide on Committee that the Defendant’s legal professional misrepresented to the Committee what the former President’s counsel experienced advised the Defendant’s legal professional and that the former President’s counsel produced apparent to the Defendant’s legal professional that the letter furnished no basis for full noncompliance.”

Vaughn observed that DOJ delivered Bannon’s crew with an FBI report of Clark’s interview on June 30, the day after it was performed. Two resources acquainted with Clark’s FBI interview stated the session lasted 45 minutes and was constrained to a dialogue of Bannon’s circumstance. In addition, the resources mentioned, Clark did not talk about any of his discussions with Trump, which ended up dealt with as legal professional-client privileged.

Clark and Bannon legal professional Robert Costello did not right away return a ask for for remark.

The Jan. 6 choose committee just lately exposed that Clark interviewed with them as effectively, boosting uncertainties about the Trump camp’s exertion to ship false slates of electors to Congress in December 2020, portion of a multifaceted plan to strain then-Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the election.

Bannon’s attorneys indicated they ended up informed of Clark’s interview past week, citing it — without pinpointing Clark — as a rationale to delay Bannon’s demo until eventually October.

In a separate submitting, DOJ also rejected extra arguments by Bannon to hold off his trial, including a freshly lodged argument that a single of the prosecutors on the case, Molly Gaston, at the time worked with a top rated select committee staffer, Kristin Amerling, on Capitol Hill and had been in a e book club alongside one another.

“In his hard work to create panic, the Defendant also mischaracterizes the data the Govt offered relating to Kristin Amerling,” Vaughn wrote. “As the Authorities knowledgeable the Defendant on July 8, she and Ms. Gaston worked collectively over a decade back and were being in a book club that Ms. Gaston has not attended in practically two many years. At no issue did the Govt signify that Ms. Amerling and Ms. Gaston have a close personalized romantic relationship, simply because they do not.”