A Trump White House official, Peter Navarro, has filed an appeal with the Supreme Court in a bid to delay reporting to federal prison next week. Navarro was convicted of contempt of Congress for refusing to cooperate with a congressional investigation into the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Navarro's appeal was denied by an appeals court, which deemed it unlikely to overturn his conviction. He argued that he couldn't cooperate with the committee due to former President Donald Trump invoking executive privilege. However, the trial judge ruled that Navarro failed to demonstrate that Trump had actually invoked executive privilege.
This emergency application to the Supreme Court comes amidst a separate case involving Trump's potential presidential immunity from charges related to alleged interference in the 2020 election.
Navarro is the second Trump aide to be convicted of misdemeanor contempt of Congress. Former White House adviser Steve Bannon received a four-month sentence for a similar charge but was allowed to remain free pending appeal.
Navarro was found guilty of defying a subpoena for documents and a deposition from the House January 6 committee. He served as a White House trade adviser under then-President Donald Trump and later promoted baseless claims of mass voter fraud in the 2020 election won by Democrat Joe Biden.
