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Former President Trump adviser Peter Navarro rejected a plea deal offered by the government in relation to two counts of criminal contempt of Congress charges following his refusal to comply with a subpoena that was issued by the U.S. House of Representatives’ Jan. 6 committee.
John Rowley, counsel for Navarro, said that the offer made by the government was “perfunctory.”
“The government made a perfunctory offer to allow Mr. Navarro to plead guilty and serve time in jail as the penalty for following instructions from the President he served. For more than 50 years, the U.S. Justice Department has recognized that a Senior Advisor to the President has testimonial immunity and cannot be compelled by Congress to testify about the performance of his official duties. The government has never before leveled criminal charges against a Presidential advisor in circumstances such as these — and we wonder why it has chosen to ignore that well-established precedent now. This is a dispute between the Office of the President and Congress and Mr. Navarro has been unfairly caught in the cross-fire. The government’s offer is unacceptable and Mr. Navarro is determined to aggressively defend his rights in court,” Rowley said.
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Former Trump White House adviser Peter Navarro speaks to the media outside U.S. District Court. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Navarro has claimed executive privilege in refusing to comply with the subpoena.
Fox News’ Jake Gibson and Paul Conner contributed to this report.