The Justice Department closed its investigation into former President Trump’s national security adviser John Bolton’s memoir and the lawsuit related to the publication of the book and now Bolton says he is considering legal action.
Bolton’s book, titled “The Room Where It Happened” drew criticism from former President Donald Trump. The memoir came amid a re-election year and depicted the former president as a leader with selfish interests. The book suggested Trump was only concerned with winning the presidential election regardless of the consequences and “even if it meant endangering or weakening the nation.”
In detail: The probe looked at whether Bolton’s book unlawfully disclosed classified information connected to national security. The lawsuit sought to recoup profits from Bolton for publishing the book without getting full approval from the administration.
A judge ruled that the publication of the book cannot be halted because the book had already been “printed, bound and shipped across the country” at the time but allowed the administration to continue to seek the profits.
It was later revealed that the DOJ opened a criminal investigation into the matter.
Why it matters? The judge in the case had already signaled disapproval of Bolton’s decision to skip getting final approval from the White House before moving forward with the publication of the book.
Bolton’s response: Bolton’s aide Sarah Tinsley confirmed that he has been notified of the DOJ’s decision.
“We are very pleased that the Department of Justice has dismissed with prejudice its civil lawsuit against Ambassador Bolton and has terminated grand jury proceedings,” she said. “We argued from the outset that neither action was justifiable, because they were initiated only as a result of President Trump’s politically motivated order to prevent publication of the Ambassador’s book before the 2020 election.”
Bolton himself said he is considering suing officials who took part in the investigation and the lawsuit against him.
“I’m going to be looking at what the appropriate remedies are,” Bolton told USA Today, calling the cases “impermissible” and “an abuse of power.”
