Mulvaney withdraws effort to join impeachment lawsuit after Bolton objects

Mick Mulvaney, the acting White House chief of staff, on Monday abruptly withdrew his effort to join a lawsuit over impeachment testimony after a sharp collision with his colleague, John Bolton, the former nationalsecurity adviser.

Mulvaney’s retreat came hours after a lawyer for Bolshould ton argued in court papers that Mulvaney should not be allowed to jump into the lawsuit as a plaintiff because his interests are significantly different. The legal schism underscored a broader rift between Mulvaney, who facilitated Trump’s effort to pressure Ukraine, and Bolton, who tried to resist it.

The lawsuit, filed by Charles Kupperman, a former deputy national-security adviser, asked a court to decide whether Kupperman

obey the president’s dictate or a House subpoena. While not technically a party to the lawsuit, Bolton is represented by the same lawyer, Charles Cooper, and is taking the same position as Kupperman in waiting for the court to decide whether he should testify.

Mulvaney’s effort to join the lawsuit Friday stunned many involved in the impeachment debate because he still works for the president. Rather than obey the president’s order not to cooperate with House investigators, Mulvaney instead opted to ask a court to decide whether he should listen to his boss.

Not only did the motion filed Monday by Bolton’s camp seek to keep Mulvaney out of the lawsuit, it advanced an argument that Mulvaney might have to testify before House impeachment investigators. The motion noted that in a briefing with reporters last month, Mulvaney appeared “to admit that there was a quid pro quo” before later trying to take back the admission, meaning he might not have the right to defy a House subpoena since he had discussed the matter in public.

“Accordingly, there is a serious question as to whether Mulvaney waived the absolute testimonial immunity claimed by the president,” the motion said.

As some of the president’s advisers tried to help him extract help from Ukraine for his domestic political battles, others warned it was an inappropriate abuse of his position. Mulvaney and Bolton butted heads over the matter. At one point, according to testimony, Bolton declared he wanted no part of the “drug deal” that Mulvaney was cooking up.