Senate Intelligence Committee Investigating Steve Bannon Over Activities During Trump 2016 Campaign

The U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee is investigating Steve Bannon over the former chief White House strategist’s activities with President Donald Trump‘s campaign in 2016.

On Tuesday, it was reported that the panel is specifically seeking to determine what Bannon may know about communications during the election between the Russian government and two former Trump advisers, Carter Page and George Papadopoulos. 

William Burck, a lawyer for Bannon, told Reuters: “The Senate Intelligence Committee has expressed an interest in interviewing Mr. Bannon as a witness, just as they have many other people involved in the Trump Campaign. But the Committee has never suggested that he’s under investigation himself and to claim otherwise is recklessly false.”

In October 2017, Papadopoulous — who previously worked as a consultant — became the first Trump aide to plead guilty in special counsel Robert Mueller‘s Russia inquiry. In August, Mueller recommended a six-month prison sentence for 31-year-old Papadopoulos for lying to federal investigators about his knowledge of communications between Trump’s campaign team and Moscow, including his own contacts with Russia. Papadopoulos was ultimately sentenced to 14 days in prison on Sept. 7.

No charges have yet been filed against Page.

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According to Reuters, the Senate committee will also look into Bannon’s involvement with Cambridge Analytica, a British consulting firm tied to Trump that was used by his presidential campaign to influence the 2016 election. Earlier this year, the company became embroiled in a major scandal involving harvesting millions of Facebook users’ private information, and eventually filed for bankruptcy in New York after CEO Mark Zuckerberg testified before lawmakers.

Bannon worked as Cambridge Analytic’s vice president from June 2014 to August 2016 and then joined Trump’s campaign team as a strategist. He also previously served as executive chairman of far-right website Breitbart News.

Bannon was recently banned from speaking at several events llike the New Yorker Festival after many celebrities voiced opposition to his appearance.