Bannon’s actions are an example of what not to do

As predicted earlier in the week, the House of Representatives voted to hold Steve Bannon in contempt of Congress.

The case of the former adviser to former president Donald Trump will be referred to the Justice Department for criminal prosecution. The action came after Bannon refused to cooperate with the bipartisan investigation into the Jan. 6 attack on the Washington capitol.

The House of Representatives’ vote was 202 against and 229 votes in favor of holding Bannon in contempt. Of those who voted in favor, nine Republicans voted for criminal referral. Two of them — Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., and Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo. — are on the House Select Committee that’s investigating the attack.

It’s now up to the Justice Department to decide whether to pursue a criminal prosecution. So far, Attorney

General Merrick Garland has not said either way what he plans to do.

This was a warning to all others who have been subpoenaed to testify: Cooperate or you, too, could be held in contempt of Congress. Whether they will heed the warning remains to be seen. If they continue to act under the influence and advice of Trump, it’s probably safe to say they will refuse to cooperate and will have to face the consequences.

There seems to be some false sense of protection for Trump’s supporters, who continue to follow his advice and refuse to cooperate with the investigation. He has probably told them not to worry about it and all will be fine.

But perhaps they will stop following that advice now that Bannon has become an example. If the rest of those who been subpoenaed are smart, they will cooperate, lest they find themselves sharing a jail cell with Bannon. At the very least, they could all face fines, but jail time isn’t out of the realm of possibilities.