{"id":2651350,"date":"2026-08-28T18:24:44","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T22:24:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/appeals-court-rejects-peter-navarro-bid-to-rehear-contempt-challenge\/"},"modified":"2026-08-28T18:34:31","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T22:34:31","slug":"appeals-court-rejects-peter-navarro-bid-to-rehear-contempt-challenge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/appeals-court-rejects-peter-navarro-bid-to-rehear-contempt-challenge\/","title":{"rendered":"Appeals court rejects Peter Navarro bid to rehear contempt challenge"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fappeals-court-rejects-peter-navarro-bid-to-rehear-contempt-challenge%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2651350&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit denied White House trade adviser Peter Navarro\u2019s request to rehear his contempt of Congress case, meaning he will next appeal to the Supreme Court. Navarro\u2019s attorney indicated that the case was always heading to the Supreme Court. Navarro was convicted in 2023 for refusing to testify before the January 6 committee, with his appeal focusing on the interpretation of the word \u201cwillfully\u201d in the federal contempt statute, which requires proof of unlawful intent. His legal team argued that the government should prove Navarro knew his conduct was unlawful or had bad motives, not just that he intentionally did not appear. The appeals court upheld Navarro\u2019s convictions, stating he did not invoke executive priviledge at the direction of President Trump. Navarro maintained he acted on a good-faith belief that executive privilege excused his actions, raising broader concerns about weather White House advisers can be prosecuted for such beliefs. The case is part of wider legal developments involving similar contempt cases, including Steve Bannon\u2019s, whose conviction was vacated by the Supreme Court but questioned in ongoing proceedings.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The full U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit denied White House trade adviser <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/peter-navarro\/\">Peter Navarro<\/a>\u2019s request to rehear his contempt of <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/congress\/\">Congress<\/a> case, leaving the Supreme Court as his next avenue for challenging the conviction.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The appeals court\u2019s <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.courtlistener.com\/docket\/68208736\/01208883079\/united-states-v-peter-navarro\/\">Friday order<\/a> said no judge requested a vote on Navarro\u2019s petition for rehearing <em>en banc<\/em>, meaning review by the full court. Navarro\u2019s attorney, Abhishek Kambli, said in a statement that the case \u201cwas always headed to the Supreme Court.\u201d<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/4704799\/appeals-court-denies-peter-navarro-bid-rehear-contempt-challenge\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Appeals court denies Peter Navarro bid to rehear contempt challenge: \u2018Always headed to Supreme Court\u2019<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/4704703\/trump-administration-appeal-second-block-mail-voting-order-usps\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Trump administration appeals judge\u2019s second block on mail-voting order<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/4704499\/trump-vows-powerful-appeal-federal-court-rejects-transfer-hush-money-case\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Trump vows \u2018powerful appeal\u2019 after another federal court rejects hush money case<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">White House senior counselor Peter Navarro is seen before President Donald Trump arrives for an event to honor the 2025 World Series champions Los Angeles Dodgers in the Rose Garden of the White House, Thursday, July 23, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo\/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)<\/p>\n<p>&#8221; data-large-file=&#8221;https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2026\/08\/localimages\/AP26204742846965.jpg?w=696&#8243; &#8220;https:><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">White House senior counselor Peter Navarro is seen before President Donald Trump arrives for an event to honor the 2025 World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday, July 23, 2026, in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo\/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe D.C. Circuit\u2019s denial simply clears the runway,\u201d Kambli added.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-15\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-1\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Navarro\u2019s petition centered on the word \u201cwillfully\u201d in the federal contempt statute, which criminalizes a witness\u2019s intentional default on a congressional subpoena. His lawyers argued the government should have had to prove that Navarro knew his conduct was unlawful or acted with a bad motive, rather than just that he intentionally did not appear before the now-defunct House <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/january-6\/\">Jan. 6<\/a> committee.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Kambli has argued that a 1961 D.C. Circuit decision, <em>Licavoli v. United States<\/em>, set too low a bar by treating an intentional failure to appear as enough for conviction. He contends that later Supreme Court cases have generally interpreted \u201cwillful\u201d criminal conduct to require a bad or unlawful purpose.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A three-judge D.C. Circuit panel unanimously upheld Navarro\u2019s two felony convictions last month. The panel found that Navarro invoked executive privilege without direction from President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\">Donald Trump<\/a> and did not establish that Trump instructed him to withhold testimony or records. Navarro was convicted in 2023 and served a four<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/3-acquitted-in-connection-with-plot-to-kidnap-kill-michigan-governor\/\" title=\"3 individuals acquitted in Michigan Governor kidnapping and murder plot.\">-month federal prison sentence<\/a> in 2024.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-16\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-2\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Kambli said Navarro should have been allowed to tell jurors that he acted on a good-faith belief that executive privilege excused his noncompliance.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/4674952\/peter-navarro-rehearing-jan-6-committee-contempt\/\">TRUMP TRADE ADVISER SEEKS FULL COURT REHEARING IN JAN. 6 COMMITTEE CONTEMPT CASE<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe issue is bigger than Dr. Navarro,\u201d Kambli said. \u201cWhether a White House adviser \u2014 Republican or Democrat \u2014 can be prosecuted and imprisoned for acting on a good-faith belief that a President invoked executive privilege, while being forbidden from presenting that belief to the jury.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-17\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-3\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The development followed a separate contempt case involving <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/steve-bannon\/\">Steve Bannon<\/a>. U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols this week <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/4702144\/judge-doj-request-steve-bannon-conviction\/\">rejected, for now<\/a>, the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/department-of-justice\/\">Justice Department<\/a>\u2019s request to dismiss Bannon\u2019s case after the Supreme Court vacated his conviction in April. That ruling concerned the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/trump-administration\/\">Trump administration<\/a>\u2019s effort to end Bannon\u2019s case and does not implicate Navarro\u2019s challenge over what he calls an unfair legal standard applied during his separate trial.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Appeals court rejects Navarro\u2019s rehearing request in contempt case<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2633,"featured_media":2651351,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP26198787152648.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651,538],"tags":[32324,84837,32215],"class_list":["post-2651350","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","category-washington-examiner","tag-appeals-court","tag-contempt-challenge","tag-peter-navarro"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP26198787152648.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2651350","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2633"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2651350"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2651350\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2651355,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2651350\/revisions\/2651355"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2651351"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2651350"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2651350"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2651350"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}