Trump should fear Bannon flipping because he no longer has a 'get out of jail free card': legal expert

Trump adviser Steve Bannon is facing a "classic prisoner's dilemma," according to former acting U.S. solicitor general Neal Katyal.

Bannon, indicted Friday on two counts of contempt, could reverse course and agree to cooperate with the House Select Committee investigating the Capitol insurrection. Or, he could continue to defy the committee and potentially face jail time.

"The most important point here is that if you're Trump, or if you're frankly anyone else in [the] Jan. 6 [probe], you've got to worry that Bannon could turn against you," Katyal told MSNBC on Friday night. "This is not a guy known for his loyalty. It's always about what's in it for himself. There's no underlying principle. So that's the kind of classic prisoner's dilemma situation that prosecutors use all the time."

He added that Trump and his former chief of staff Mark Meadows, as well as less prominent administration officials linked to the Jan. 6 attack, are now faced with the risk that Bannon "might be thinking about trying to make a deal."

"(Bannon) didn't have to worry about that in the last administration," Katyal said. "Yes, he was indicted before for cheating on his 'Build the Wall' campaign and ultimately convicted, but he knew at the end of the day he had a get out of jail free card, because president Trump could pardon him. There's no get out of jail free card anymore, so a self-interested and frankly evil person like Bannon is probably going to think about what's best for him, and not anyone else."

Watch below.

Neal Katyal on Bannon flippingwww.youtube.com