Overview
- The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit unanimously affirmed Navarro’s two-count contempt-of-Congress convictions in a decision issued Tuesday.
- The court said only President Trump or an authorized designee may validly invoke executive privilege and found Navarro offered no evidence that privilege was invoked for his subpoena.
- Navarro was convicted in 2023 for refusing to turn over documents and to testify before the House Jan. 6 committee and he served a four-month federal sentence in 2024.
- The Trump administration declined to defend the appeal, forcing Navarro’s lawyers to argue alone before the D.C. Circuit, and Navarro is expected to consider seeking Supreme Court review.
- Legal experts say the decision clarifies limits on privilege for senior advisers and could change how future witnesses and administrations handle congressional oversight and subpoenas.