Reports: Bolton book may come before election
President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser John Bolton has suggested he has a lot to say about the impeachment inquiry facing his old boss, and while it remains to be seen if he’ll ever testify to Congress about what he knows, he may offer revelations in an upcoming book, according to media reports.
Bolton has a deal with publisher Simon & Schuster to write a book that may publish ahead of the 2020 election, The Associated Press and CNN reported, citing unnamed sources.
The same literary agency that represented former FBI Director James Comey and the anonymous author of “A Warning” helped Bolton land the $2 million deal, according to AP.
Bolton – a national security hawk who was often at odds with Trump and other White House officials who favored a less interventionist foreign policy – left the administration in September. Trump tweeted that he asked for Bolton’s resignation and that he “disagreed strongly with many of his suggestions.” Two days later, he tweeted that Bolton was actually “holding me back” when it came to handling the crisis in Venezuela.
But Bolton disputed Trump’s version of his departure, tweeting that he had offered Trump his resignation and the president had told him, “Let’s talk about it tomorrow.”
“I will have my say in due course,” Bolton told The Washington Post after his departure, adding that his “sole concern is US national security.”
Bolton’s name has repeatedly come up in the House impeachment inquiry into allegations that Trump used military aid as leverage to get Ukraine to open investigations that would benefit him politically. Witnesses said Bolton was highly critical of the effort and that he said he wanted nothing to do with what he characterized as a “drug deal.”
He declined a request to testify in the impeachment inquiry and his lawyer told congressional Democrats he would fight a subpoena. Democrats have said they will not issue a subpoena for Bolton because of the time it would take to resolve a court battle.