This very week as we celebrate our nation’s Independence Day, hundreds of political prisoners are being denied their freedom in the United States of America. These citizens serving prison time for trumped-up (no pun intended) charges, mainly misdemeanors such as unlawful entry (although the Capitol Police held the doors open and encouraged entry) and trespassing, just received some encouraging news. Last week’s Supreme Court decision in Fischer vs. U.S. held that the most severe law cited in the January 6 prosecutions -- insurrection -- does not apply to riots or protests, which means the accusations of “insurrection” have been downgraded to mere trespassing.

As you enjoy the most expensive hotdogs and beer in the history of our Republic (thanks to Bidenomics!), don’t forget the men and women who are locked up for the crime of exercising their First Amendment right to assemble and express their opinions at the January 6 rally.

Violent Antifa and BLM protestors destroyed buildings and set fires in Minneapolis, Portland, New York City, Kenosha, and Chicago with little to no consequences, while conservatives are being rounded up and imprisoned solely because of their political persuasion.

Then there is Peter Navarro, former Director of the White House Trade Council in the Trump administration, who has been in prison for four months because he asserted executive privilege and ignored a congressional subpoena, which is a misdemeanor. Peter is a 74-year-old man whom the FBI handcuffed and shackled as he attempted to board a flight. In America.

Even U.S. District Court judge Amit Mehta admitted, “It is curious... at a minimum why the government treated Mr. Navarro’s arrest in the way it did. It is a federal crime, but it is not a violent crime.”

Why wasn’t Navarro allowed to walk into an FBI office, as most white-collar defendants are permitted to do?

“It is a surprise to me that self-surrender was not offered,” Judge Mehta said.

This blatant use of intimidation and humiliation by the Department of Justice in the case of a non-violent white-collar offense should concern every American.

This week Steve Bannon, former Special Counselor to President Trump and founder of Bannon’s War Room Podcast, reported to prison and will serve a four-month sentence for the same charge of asserting executive privilege and ignoring a congressional subpoena, which is, again, a misdemeanor.

Meanwhile, Attorney General Eric Holder faced zero consequences for ignoring a congressional subpoena and was never prosecuted. Attorney General Merrick Garland recently ignored a congressional subpoena. The Justice Department has declined to pursue a criminal case against AG Garland, just days after House Republicans voted to hold him in contempt for defying a congressional subpoena that asked him to produce audiotapes of President Biden. Two different standards of justice are on full display.

House Speaker Mike Johnson will supposedly make a motion in federal court to enforce the subpoena against Garland to obtain audio recordings of President Biden after the Justice Department declined to act on the House’s contempt referral. We shall see.

From Mike Davis, Article3Project.org:

“We’ve had Constitutional Executive Privilege for 250 years going back to George Washington, so presidents can get candid and confidential advice from their presidential advisors both inside of the white house and outside of the white house without fear that their advisors will get hauled before courts or Congress to reveal those discussions, and the whole point is if you don’t keep it confidential, if you don’t have that executive privilege, you’re going to destroy the president’s ability to get good advice; you’re going to destroy the presidency; you’re going to destroy our country.

There was a Constitutional Executive Privilege with both Peter Navarro and Steve Bannon. The Biden Justice Department eviscerated that to get Trump, and at the same time that they put Navarro in prison and they’re sending Bannon to prison now, they turned a blind eye to Hunter Biden, who did a drive-by political press conference at the capitol and ignored a congressional subpoena. They ignored, Merrick Garland ignored a congressional subpoena and said he had a get-out-of-jail-free card because he has Constitutional executive privilege, which is absolutely nonsense. Merrick Garland released the transcript of special counsel Rob Hurr’s conversation with President Biden but he’s refusing to release the tape. How can you release the transcript but not release the tape, so Garland is making a legally frivolous claim of executive privilege and refusing to cooperate with Congress, contempt of Congress, yet Garland is sending Navarro and Bannon to prison. There must be consequences to this. The House Republicans must hold Merrick Garland in inherent contempt of Congress and send the House sergeant at arms to go get him and arrest him and put him in the capitol jail until Garland turns over those tapes.”

So enjoy your fireworks, your barbecue, and your family. But remember those who are being politically persecuted, and pray that our Justice Department will be restored to a fair and impartial system under the 2025 Trump administration. If it is not, we will no longer be a free and independent nation.

As President Trump said, "They're not after me. They're after you. I'm just standing in the way."

Image: Spurekar