Commentary

One of my best sources on California, China, and other issues has been Peter Navarro, a business professor at the University of California–Irvine. Now, he could go to jail for four months on absurd “contempt of Congress” charges.

In 2006, he wrote, “The Coming China Wars: Where They Will Be Fought and How They Can Be Won.” Which was followed by other books on communist China still worth reading.

Over the years, he has warned that the People’s Liberation Army is more powerful than common assessments indicate. In particular, almost two decades ago, he warned it wielded a lot more than the 300 nuclear weapons then estimated. That was finally confirmed last year, when the Pentagon released a report estimating that China has at least 500 bombs and could have 1,000 by 2030. By comparison, Russia is estimated to hold 5,889 warheads, and the United States has 5,428.

In 2017, Mr. Navarro joined the Trump administration as an adviser on China issues, especially trade. He violated no laws on Jan. 6, 2021, when mostly peaceful protesters rallied at the U.S. Capitol.

The Associated Press on Jan. 25 reported the following (notice the biased reporting): “Trump White House official Peter Navarro, who was convicted of contempt of Congress for refusing to cooperate with a congressional investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, was sentenced on Thursday to four months behind bars.

“He was the second Trump aide convicted of contempt of Congress charges. Former White House adviser Steve Bannon previously received a four-month sentence but is free pending appeal.

“Navarro was found guilty of defying a subpoena for documents and a deposition from the House Jan. 6 committee.”

Ongoing appeals will likely push both convictions beyond this year. If former President Donald Trump is elected president again, he obviously would pardon both men.

Joke Committee

It’s worth remembering that the Jan. 6 Committee itself was illegitimate. For such investigations, members are appointed by the House speaker of one party and the minority leader of the other party.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) appointed the Democratic members, such as Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who now is running for U.S. Senate from California. Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) then picked five Republican members, including Reps. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Jim Banks (R-Ind.), both outspoken supporters of President Trump.

Violating precedent and decency, Ms. Pelosi then abused her power and rejected the above two appointments, instead imposing Republican Reps. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.). Doing so turned the Jan. 6 Committee into a kangaroo committee. At the time, Mr. McCarthy branded Ms. Pelosi’s action “an egregious abuse of power” and pulled all of his other nominees from the committee in protest.

Both Ms. Cheney and Mr. Kinzinger have since made careers out of their tenure being Pelosi stooges. Their own voters reacted with outrage against them. Mr. Kinzinger saw the writing on the billboard and didn’t run for reelection. Ms. Cheney ran anyway and lost the GOP primary in a landslide by more than 32 points to Harriet Hageman.

EpochTV has produced a two-part documentary on what really happened that fateful day, titled “The Real Story of Jan. 6.” The summary of part 2 reads: “While ‘The Real Story of January 6 Part 1’ tells the real story of what happened that day, Part 2 reveals the untold stories of the Jan. 6 defendants whose liberties were infringed upon and the truth of how they’ve been treated with injustice in the prosecution process.

“With shocking evidence of Jan. 6 defendants and exclusive Capitol Hill security footage, Epoch Times Senior Investigative Reporter Joseph Hanneman exposes the two-tier system of justice and how January 6 has changed American life. After 3 years of investigations, the new findings challenge established narratives and give voices to silenced political prisoners.”

The next political prisoner could well be Mr. Navarro.

Holder Never Held to Account

The Navarro persecution also contrasts sharply with the real contempt of Congress by Attorney General Eric Holder during the Obama administration. The Republican House investigated the Operation Fast and Furious fiasco, which was summarized in December 2022 by the House Judiciary Committee as follows: “Operation Fast and Furious was a high-profile scandal that ensnared former President Barack Obama’s Justice Department, the ATF, and ex-Attorney General Eric Holder. The imbroglio saw federal agents allow more than 2,000 firearms to be sold illegally to known or suspected straw purchasers.

“At the time, the federal government hoped the weapons could be used to track and ultimately arrest the high-ranking leaders of drug cartels in Mexico. The sting operation backfired, however, with the guns being used to facilitate crimes along the U.S.–Mexico border.

“The scandal came to light in 2011 shortly after two firearms involved in the sting were found at a crime scene where a U.S. Border Patrol agent was killed.”

That Border Patrol agent was Brian Terry.

Mr. Holder was never held to account for the firearms being sent to the Mexican cartels or for Mr. Terry’s murder. Mr. Holder’s boss and close friend, President Obama, made sure Mr. Holder suffered no consequences for his malfeasance.

In July 2012, four months before President Obama was reelected, CNN reported: “The White House and the Justice Department made clear Friday what had been expected all along: Attorney General Eric Holder will not face criminal prosecution under the contempt of Congress citation passed by the U.S. House.

“Legal experts noted this week in the runup to Thursday’s House vote that President Barack Obama’s assertion of executive privilege in the case would prevent a criminal prosecution under a practice dating to the Reagan administration.

“The House also cited Holder for civil contempt to give it the option of filing a lawsuit compelling Holder to turn over documents sought by Oversight Committee investigators linked to the failed Operation Fast and Furious weapons crackdown.”

Selective Justice Is Injustice

The double standard is clear. Contempt of Congress applies only to Republicans. Ms. Pelosi made sure Mr. Navarro would go to jail, pending an appeal and possible pardon, for standing up to her kangaroo committee. Selective justice is injustice.

Also note who died here. Mr. Terry died because the nutty Obama–Holder Operation Fast and Furious scheme predictably went awry. And peaceful protester Ashli Babbitt was the only person killed on Jan. 6, 2021—by Capitol Police Lt. Michael Byrd. Not only was Mr. Byrd not prosecuted, but last year, he was promoted to captain.

Finally, lost in all this is the fine work Mr. Navarro did for President Trump on China policy, which was more realistic than the illusions President Joe Biden has advanced. Defending Taiwan and other crises have festered.

When he was indicted, Mr. Navarro called it “a crossing of the Rubicon kind of event,” referring to Julius Caesar’s advance to Rome as dictator and the end of the Roman Republic.

At the time, Rome had become the master of Europe and the Mediterranean Sea. In 2024, the United States, facing communist China and other global rivals, has no such luxury to end the constitutional freedoms that make her a beacon of freedom to the world.