Former President Donald Trump told The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) that he “would absolutely” hire back a former aide whom President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice (DOJ) jailed.
A judge sentenced 74-year-old Peter Navarro to federal prison for four months after he defied a Jan. 6 congressional subpoena and Congress held him in contempt. Despite the sentencing, Trump told The WSJ that he would rehire Navarro should he return to the White House, to which Navarro said he wasn’t looking for work but would return “if the boss needs me.” (RELATED: Ex-Trump Aide Accuses Wall Street Elites Of Working Behind The Scenes To Sabotage MAGA Agenda)
“I would absolutely have Peter back. This outrageous behavior by the Democrats should not have happened,” the former president told The WSJ.
Navarro added that he wasn’t interested in a pardon from Trump if he returns to the White House, but he wouldn’t change a thing about what he did.
“I have no regrets,” Navarro, who is two months into his sentencing, told the outlet. “I didn’t choose this fight; this fight chose me.”
Navarro’s imprisonment for contempt is the first of a White House official. Steve Bannon, a former advisor to Trump, could be next after a federal appeals court upheld the contempt of Congress conviction against him. (RELATED: Biden-Appointed Prosecutor Asks Judge To Jail Steve Bannon)
Former Donald Trump adviser Peter Navarro holds a press conference before turning himself in to a federal prison on March 19, 2024, in Miami, Florida. Mr. Navarro, who was convicted of contempt of Congress last year, surrendered at a federal Bureau of Prisons facility to begin serving his four-month sentence after speaking to the media. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
The WSJ report detailed Navarro’s time in jail, noting that he does exercise in the morning, work throughout the day and more exercise in the evening. Navarro has penned op-eds to the Washington Times during his time in prison,.
“This is prison, plain and simple, no country for old men,” Navarro told the outlet. “Don’t fall into that pastoral zoo bullshit.”
“Protein MIA. Haven’t seen a fresh orange or grapefruit in the heart of citrus country since I got here,” he added.
