Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) said he has “no sympathy” for Peter Navarro after the former adviser to Donald Trump was convicted on Thursday for contempt of Congress.
“We were just asking for information as to what they knew, and they decided to turn against Congress,” Kinzinger said on CNN on Thursday. “I have no sympathy for Mr. Navarro right now.”
Kinzinger was one of two Republicans who served on the House panel investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. He opted not to run for reelection in 2022.
“We tried over and over to set up, you know, different times, different meetings, different opportunities, and he refused,” he said of Navarro. “And so this is justice. We’ll see what he ends up getting, but I think certainly it’s vindicating for the committee.”
Navarro, who served as Trump’s White House trade adviser and pushed the former president’s conspiracy theories about the 2020 election, was found guilty on two counts for defying a congressional subpoena to produce documents and sit for a deposition about Trump’s attempted coup.
Both counts are punishable by up to a year behind bars. Navarro’s sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 12.
Another former Trump White House adviser, Steve Bannon, was convicted on the same two counts in October. He was sentenced to four months in prison, but has remained free pending appeal.
“I think jail time would certainly be appropriate,” Kinzinger said of consequences for the two men.
“It’s not like somebody made a mistake here and now they’re having to pay the price. … They proactively, over and over, repeatedly ― and in some cases, either fundraised or bragged about it ― ignored a legal subpoena of Congress,” he said.
“So I think they deserve frankly, any jail time they get,” he added.