Adam Schiff Tells Trump And His Cronies It’s A New World Now And Criminal Charges Are Coming

1/6 Committee member Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) said that criminal prosecutions are faster than civil cases and warned Trump and his cronies that it is a new world now.

Video of Chairman Schiff:

Schiff told CNN’s Jim Acosta when asked about the chances of getting to question Steve Bannon:

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I think the chances are actually very good. And if we were going the route of civil litigation, as we had to do during the last administration because during the last administration, the Justice Department was essentially serving the needs of Donald Trump, not representing the public interest. And they were not about to prosecute people for covering up for Donald Trump.

 But it’s a new world now. We’re not going to be choosing to go the civil route. We are right now on Tuesday night going to be taking up a criminal contempt report. It’ll be taken up subsequently in the House of Representatives. It will be sent to the Justice Department for prosecution.

And that is a far swifter, far more serious remedy. And the fact that if the justice department prosecutes Steve Bannon, other witnesses will see they will face real consequences including jail time and potentially stiff fines. That is a way of getting people’s attention. Bannon’s an important witness in his own right, but it’s also important to send a message that the rule of law is back and people are going to need to pay attention. 

Chairman Schiff is an expert. He brought up an important point that most of the media coverage is leaving out. Criminal prosecution is faster. It is a different process. If the Justice Department acts quickly and every early indication is that they will, it won’t be months or years before Steve Bannon is criminally charged, but weeks.

A US Attorney will take the case to a grand jury and they will issue an indictment.

There will be no dragging out of arguing motions and court dates.

One suspects that once Bannon is looking at sitting in a jail cell, he is going to sing.

There is no DOJ to run interference for Trump and his pals anymore.

It is a new world, and the 1/6 Committee is about to bring back the rule of law.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association