Steve Bannon, the Trump ally, defied a Congressional subpoena on Thursday by failing to show up for a scheduled deposition with the House committee investigating the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Last week, Bannon indicated that he wanted to wait for Trump’s dubious attempt to invoke executive privilege to be settled before he cooperated with the investigation.

The committee’s chairman, Bennie Thompson (D-MS), issued a statement Thursday saying “we reject [Bannon’s] position entirely.” Thompson said that Bannon is “hiding behind the former President’s insufficient, blanket, and vague statements regarding privileges he has purported to invoke.”

“The Select Committee will not tolerate defiance of our subpoenas, so we must move forward with proceedings to refer Mr. Bannon for criminal contempt. I’ve notified the Select Committee that we will convene for a business meeting Tuesday evening to vote on adopting a contempt report,” Thompson added.

The Washington Post explains:

After a committee approves a contempt charge, the House must then vote on the matter. Once passed, the contempt referral would then be sent to the Justice Department. It would then be up to the Biden administration — namely, Attorney General Merrick Garland — to decide whether to criminally prosecute an individual for failing to comply with the congressional subpoena.

A successful contempt prosecution could lead to Bannon’s incarceration, a fine, or both. He could face up to $100,000 in fines and a one-year sentence in federal prison. Still, a conviction on this misdemeanor offense may not necessarily result in the committee receiving the information it wants and a criminal prosecution could also take years.

According to Axios, “Democrats are hopeful that Attorney General Merrick Garland, who vowed to make investigating Jan. 6 his top priority, will strengthen Congress’ oversight ability by making an example out of Bannon and others who defy subpoenas.”

CNN adds:

Three other Trump allies also face subpoena deadlines this week. Two of them, Trump’s former chief of staff Mark Meadows and former administration official Kash Patel, have been “engaging” with the committee, according to the panel, though it remains unclear if that contact amounts to any form of cooperation. Patel is not expected to appear for his scheduled deposition with the committee on Thursday, multiple sources familiar with the plans tell CNN.