Bannon attorneys call no witnesses, contempt trial headed for closing arguments

July 21 (UPI) -- The trial of former presidential adviser Steve Bannon for contempt of Congress now heads to closing arguments, after defense attorneys closed Thursday without calling any witnesses to the stand.

Closing arguments in the trial are now expected Friday morning, with the case being sent to the jury for deliberations expected by the end of the day, the Washington Post reported.

Federal prosecutors say Bannon, former chief strategist to President Donald Trump, "decided he was above the law" and refused a subpoena from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrectionist attack on the U.S. Capitol.

"It wasn't an option, it wasn't a request and it wasn't an invitation -- it was mandatory," Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Rose Vaughn said in court. "He didn't get stuck on a broken-down Metro car. He just decided not to follow the rules."

If convicted, he faces up to a year in jail and a fine of $100,000 for each of his two counts of contempt of Congress.

Bannon's defense team says the indictment is politically motivated and denies he actively skirted the subpoenas. They provided no witnesses in court on Thursday, and the trial now heads to closing arguments and jury deliberations.

One of his lawyers, Evan Corcoran, said during the trial that Bannon was in conversations with the committee and thought a deadline set for compliance was malleable.

"This was an ongoing negotiation," Corcoran said on Thursday, as reported by the Wall Street Journal. "No reasonable juror could find Mr. Bannon refused to comply with dates that we now know were in flux."

Bannon has also attempted to assert executive privilege, relying on the legal principle that protects from public scrutiny of certain communications between high-ranking White House officials and the presidents they advise.

U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, a Trump appointee, last week ruled that Bannon's legal team cannot make the executive-privilege argument to the jury because they are not rooted in legal fact.

"What's the point in going to trial here if there are no defenses?" Schoen said in courtreported by the WSJ.

Bannon has attempted to delay the proceedings multiple times. And in a stunning reversal, just last week he offered to testify to the very committee he allegedly rebuffed.

Nicholas ruled the offer would not change the contempt charges.