June 13, 2020

"John Bolton, Donald Trump’s former national security adviser, wanted to write a book."

"He knew that the White House would do everything it could to stop him. He hired a flashy white-shoe law firm to handle the prepublication review process required by the nondisclosure agreement he signed when he got his security clearance. As expected, the White House weaponized the prepublication review process against him to keep him from publishing. If he published without approval, it said, he could face severe legal consequences. Then his lawyer, Chuck Cooper, wrote a Wall Street Journal op-ed this week intended to put public pressure on the White House. In it, Cooper volunteered that Bolton had violated both his NDA and perhaps a few criminal laws, including the Espionage Act. Now, even if Bolton’s book is never released, he is facing stiff penalties. As unforced legal errors go, that’s a doozy...."

From "Here’s How John Bolton’s Lawyer Just Threw Him Under the Bus/If you can be prosecuted for keeping a classified document in your garage, you can be prosecuted for giving it to your lawyer" (The Daily Beast).

70 comments:

Michael K said...

Nothing but the best running DC.

Looking forward to the DNC convention, Too. A million laughs.

john said...

The way McClanahan puts it, Bolten, by his mere act of writing down his memoirs at his kitchen table, has already run afoul of the Espionage Act. Handing it over to the NSC for "prepubication review" is tantamount to admitting you have carried classified material off the job site, even if that material was only inside your head at the time you left.

But yea, his lawyer appears to be pretty dumb about this. Wasn't he also Flynn's lawyer?

Dear corrupt left, go F yourselves said...

Please leftwingers - buy his book!

Sebastian said...

And all to make big $$ and give Trump the middle finger while he's still in office.

Besides Pence and Pompeo, has anyone in DC acted ethically toward the president?

chuck said...

Always thought Bolton was a blow hard. Change my mind.

Birkel said...

And this frees Barr to go after Comey and Comey's lawyer.

Doesn't it?

Wince said...

Who knew NDAs apply not just to the nannies and housekeepers of Hollywood celebrities?

"No one is above the law."

robother said...

Oops! The lawyer who advised Jeff Sessions to recuse himself in Russiagate turns out to be not the sharpest knife in the drawer. Who could have seen this coming? (Of course, one hope that a man of John Bolton's experience in top security clearance jobs might have some familiarity with the need for pre-clearance.)

Yancey Ward said...

Is Chuck Cooper from Michigan?

Jersey Fled said...

When does Bolton start cutting the lawn at Trump's house.

Darkisland said...

All part of the campaign to gin up interest in Bolton's book.

(yawn)

John Henry

Mr Wibble said...

Once again, life can be summed up by The Hunt For Red October...

https://youtu.be/FR55kxkdUJs

Jersey Fled said...

Which once again raises the issue of Hillary! faxing classified memos home for her housekeeper to take off the machine.

narciso said...

too bad he sold his soul, to victor pinchuk, apparently he brought in the 'whistleblower' ciamarella, remember him, who had been part of the country team,

Big Mike said...

There is no "Orange Man Bad" exemption to the US laws surrounding the handling of classified information. Nor is there a "my heart was pure and my intentions noble" exemption. And regardless of what Comey said regarding Hillary Clinton's Email server, there is no "I didn't mean it" exemption. You mishandled classified information, you go to Leavenworth. And not as a tourist.

Bill, Republic of Texas said...

We need better elites.

Bill, Republic of Texas said...

Nevermind. He's a Bama grad. Enough said.

Inga said...

I don’t feel sorry for Bolton. He had a chance to do the right thing by testifying in front of the House. He chose to be a coward and to try to withhold information to put it in a book to make money off of. He’s probably disliked and distrusted as much by the right as he is by the left.

Leland said...

So all those service personnel imprisoned for mishandling classified material was because Trump weaponized the law decades ago.

Ron Winkleheimer said...

Bolton should have known better. I was a lowly IT geek in the army with just a secret clearance, but things like "need to know" and "safe guarding classified information" were drilled into me in yearly, mandatory classes. One guy at one unit I served in got into tons of trouble because he put a confidential document (that is the lowest classification: confidential, secret, top secret) into one of those inter-office envelopes they used before email and put it in the distribution box.

Ron Winkleheimer said...

Its kind of scary that I know more about how to handle classified material than a former National Security Adviser.

Narr said...

Our political and legal systems are so gunked up that everything and nothing is arguably legal. It's a crisis of authority, from top to bottom.

Crisis of abuse of authority, actually. In the white collar world, the agents of the state set up and frame people they don't like, on the basis of nothing (i.e. Carter P., George P.) with the expectation that they'll get away with it.

On the mean streets, agents of the state act like thugs, apparently with the same expectation of immunity. And the rioters and looters are certainly immune from legal consequences, for the most part.

In Seattle, elected officials are being played by street people, something that happens only when the elected officials doubt their own authority--like Buchanan before the Civil War on a farcical little stage.

Vacuums of authority are usually brief but can be very unpleasant.

Narr
We have the least elite elites, evah

frenchy said...

It's irony and poetic justice, and all that, but am I the only one who is reminded of how Hillary skated, yet this zest over Bolton?

I hope Cooper wrote that op-ed at Bolton's request and instruction too, for Cooper's sake.

Mary Beth said...

It seems like a rookie mistake for an experienced lawyer. Did they mispredict the results of the impeachment?

traditionalguy said...

"Never plead guilty" is the first rule of legal counsel. The corollary is never let you client testify except as a last resort.That is to make them prove the case and never give them proof they don't have

I guess Bolton wants to testify and his legal counsel made it inevitable that he will testify at an Adam Schiff Show.The book itself will make him several million dollars even if no one buys it except George Soros' mega order.

Narayanan said...

chuck said...
Always thought Bolton was a blow hard. Change my mind.
----------============
I will give this a shot :
his mustache still reposes on his upper lip without a quiver - not much of a blowhard -

probably also has cleft lip too! raised you one.

or I should buy shares in SuperGlue

gilbar said...

ProTip: IF you sign a nondisclosure agreement.... Do NOT disclose!!!

The Vault Dweller said...

I wouldn't exactly say that Bolton's lawyer "threw him under the boss." That implies a knowing action done by the lawyer to shift blame from him or someone else onto Bolton. In this case it seems much more plausible that the lawyer just screwed up. Lawyers have a duty of confidentiality, and there does exist an attorney client privilege, and even if neither of those existed a pragmatic lawyer would still always err on keeping their client's confidences, that being said that doesn't mean they are legally allowed to know everything their client knows. Something tells me this never even crossed Bolton's lawyer's mind.

I know most on the right now despise Bolton, and while I was never huge fan of him, I did generally hold a positive view of him. So I will withhold writing him off until I know the entire story of what went on here. I suspect what might have been Bolton's undoing, assuming he did in fact do something wrong, is that like many people around Trump their ego convinces themselves that he or she should be the one making the policy and Trump should just go with their idea, because after all they are the expert. Never mind the fact that being an expert on something like Foreign Policy is absurd. It is like someone being an expert in Sociology, or all of Medicine, or all of the law.

Koot Katmandu said...

Could not happen to nicer guy. If Bolton or any member of presidents staff see illegal things a happening do they not have a responsibility to call it out at the time? If the the law says not then resign and not take part. Cashing out in a book - disgusting. To think I use to listen to Bolton Yikes.

GatorNavy said...

Top men in Washington!

Psota said...

It's ridiculous for Bolton to insist on writing and releasing a book during Trump's re-election campaign. Whatever trouble he has over this is well deserved

Earnest Prole said...

Trump hires the best people.

rcocean said...

Its amazing how many of the Clinton/OBama/Bush officials have a la-di-da attitude toward classified documents. Of course, the Queen of that was Hillary, who kept classified documents & communications on a private server. And then we Comey taking classified documents home and giving them to friends. Now Bolten.

I'll be interested to know who recommended Bolton as NS Adviser. My suspicion is Kelly but it could be Kushner/Ivanaka. anyway, it has to go down as Trump's biggest unforced error, next to Rod Rosenstein.

Kevin said...

If he were a Trump supporter, the FBI would be raiding his home and office at dawn.

CNN would be providing the footage.

Brand said...

I have no problem going after Bolton. However, this law seems to be another one that exempts the left.

rcocean said...

One gets the feeling Bolton started collecting Anti-Trump data and writing the book on Day 1. Yet, he doesn't come off as liberal plant, just incompetent and selfish. IRC, when the Ukrainian phone call was made, Bolten's first step was to race off and talk to the NSA Legal Counsel. He also appointed Commander-in-Chief wannabe Col. Vindman and his brother, along with Faith Hill (another wannabe President).

Tomcc said...

I'm amused by the use of the word "weaponized". There are lots of employment contracts that contain NDAs, and yes, when you take the position of NSA they have significantly more relevance to your life during and after your employment. You know damn well that if you write a book about your experience, unless it's about food, then it's going to be scrutinized/redacted every which way and whatever is left isn't going to be worth reading/selling.

Michael K said...

Earnest Prole said...
Trump hires the best people.


It's OK. Romney and Bush had great confidence in him.

Why do you think Trump surrounds himself with family ?

DC is nothing but sharks and self important idiots.

Narayanan said...

CTH frames things this way: re : Gen. Flynn
In the assembly of each prosecution there was no legal basis for the underlying case to proceed into the judicial branch, and yet those proceedings continued. They continued because the case travel is based on politics, not law. This is the essence of Lawfare.

As soon as the political runway of the case runs-out; then, and only then, does the case itself run into the law, and the case collapses.

---------==========

anybody think Bolton lawyer [Lawfarer] may have flipped that around?

Tomcc said...

Also, never hire an attorney named "Chuck".

narciso said...

what's actually going on,


https://creativedestructionmedia.com/sections/investigations/

YoungHegelian said...

If he published without approval, it said, he could face severe legal consequences. Then his lawyer, Chuck Cooper, wrote a Wall Street Journal op-ed this week intended to put public pressure on the White House. In it, Cooper volunteered that Bolton had violated both his NDA and perhaps a few criminal laws, including the Espionage Act. Now, even if Bolton’s book is never released, he is facing stiff penalties. As unforced legal errors go, that’s a doozy...."

I'm sorry, but what sort of stupid imbeciles are these people? For someone who's at the top of the intelligence chain to just decide he's going to spill the beans because, what?, he's pissed off at the Clown At The Top? I've got news for everyone & especially Bolton: A sizable fraction of the Washington bureaucracy retires/quits because they're pissed off at the Clown At The Top! That doesn't mean you get to start blabbing state secrets about it to justify what an asshole he is & what a saint you are!

When I look back on Trumpism some years from now what I will remember most about it is how it revealed so many people in positions of power & influence to be on the moral & intellectual level of a carnival grifter.

Drago said...

The Very Forgetful Inga: "I don’t feel sorry for Bolton. He had a chance to do the right thing by testifying in front of the House. He chose to be a coward and to try to withhold information to put it in a book to make money off of. He’s probably disliked and distrusted as much by the right as he is by the left."

According to the lefties, including Inga, John Bolton was a Colossus striding across the globe who was going to bring down Orange Man Bad and so 30 years of lefty complaints about Bolton were magically washed away and he was the greatest ex-nazi republican EVER!!d

Right up until the "Nobody knows what Mueller knows!" crowd realized they had been played for at least th 749th time since November of 2016.

Yet even now, the Inga's believe.

For instance, Inga STILL believes Trump colluded with Russia.

Just ask her!

Earnest Prole said...

Why do you think Trump surrounds himself with family?

Funny coincidence: Tucker Carlson was asking the same question the other day on Fox:

“No one has more contempt for Donald Trump's voters than Jared Kushner does, and no one expresses it more frequently.

“In 2016, Donald Trump ran as a law and order candidate because he meant it, and his views remain fundamentally unchanged today. But the president's famously sharp instincts, the ones that won him the presidency almost four years ago, have been since subverted at every level by Jared Kushner. This is true on immigration, on foreign policy, and especially on law enforcement.

“As crime in this country continues to rise, Jared Kushner has led a highly aggressive effort to let more criminals out of prison and back on to the streets. This is reckless. At this moment in time, it is insane. It continues to happen.

“The president seems to sense this. At times he seems aware he is being led in the wrong direction. He often derides Kushner as a liberal and that's correct, Kushner is. But Kushner has convinced the president that throwing open the prisons is the key to winning African-American votes in the fall and that those votes are essential to his reelection.

“Several times over the past few days, the president has signaled that he would very much like to crack down on rioters -- that is his instinct. If you've watched him, you'll believe it. But every time he has been talked out of it by Jared Kushner and by aides that Kushner has hired and controls.”

nono said...

What Bolton signed and what I signed many years ago is not what most people think of as an NDT. What he signed was an acknowledgement that he has read and had it explained to him that he was bound to the terms of 18 U.S. Code § 798.

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/798

Michael K said...

“The president seems to sense this. At times he seems aware he is being led in the wrong direction. He often derides Kushner as a liberal and that's correct, Kushner is. But Kushner has convinced the president that throwing open the prisons is the key to winning African-American votes in the fall and that those votes are essential to his reelection.

“Several times over the past few days, the president has signaled that he would very much like to crack down on rioters -- that is his instinct. If you've watched him, you'll believe it. But every time he has been talked out of it by Jared Kushner and by aides that Kushner has hired and controls.”


I think there is a lot to this. Kushner has led the policy toward Israel which is all to the good as far as I am concerned.

The thing about blacks and law enforcement has a rational side to it but the emptying of prisons and the BLM nonsense is not it.

How does Trump thread this needle? I don't know. Maybe these guys have some ideas.

Narayanan said...

how does this square with publication of ?Pentagon Papers?
what has changed? in law and culture?

Bill, Republic of Texas said...

Nor is there a "my heart was pure and my intentions noble" exemption. And regardless of what Comey said regarding Hillary Clinton's Email server, there is no "I didn't mean it" exemption. You mishandled classified information, you go to Leavenworth. And not as a tourist.

Obviously there are these two exceptions. Ask Comey, ask Hillary, ask Huma and Weiner. There is now two sets of laws in this country. One for the favored in group and one for the rest of us.

Kirk Parker said...

chuck,

"Always thought Bolton was a blow hard. Change my mind."

Well, I certainly did like it when he was blowing against the UN.


Leland,

"So all those service personnel imprisoned for mishandling classified material was because Trump weaponized the law decades ago."

Trump is certainly the Chuck Norris of American politics, isn't he?

Earnest Prole said...

How does Trump thread this needle? I don't know. Maybe these guys have some ideas.

Let me second your link: For years those two have engaged in a conversation on Bloggingheads that always rewards time spent listening.

narciso said...


More like steven seagal 200 pounds ago


https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2020/06/so_who_tried_to_trick_his_way_into_george_papadopouloss_home.html

FullMoon said...

Yet even now, the Inga's believe.

For instance, Inga STILL believes Trump colluded with Russia.

Just ask her!



Said at times as a teasing sort of joke. But Drago is correct. Commenters on twitter and reddit actually still believe this and other anti Trump lies. Some are simply childishly ignorant but many are intentionally misleading the simple minded.

mikee said...

Is it true that Bolton's mustache has sued for divorce?

MayBee said...

My theory: Bolton doesn't really want to release his book because nobody will read it. He won't be able to back up the insinuation he made about Trump to fuel the impeachment so the left won't care, and nobody on the right is interested either.

readering said...

Maybe Cooper and Bolton are in trouble, but not because of this week's WSJ op-ed. It's been known from the outset by the government that Bolton was working through his lawyer. And lots of details of the interaction with the pre-clearance folks were revealed when the passages in the book pertaining to Ukraine were leaked during the impeachment proceedings. I recall seeing images of entire letters between the parties.

On the one hand, it's hard to imagine how the NSA to a current administration can publish a meaningful book about his work without disclosing classified information. On the other hand, Bolton published a critical book about his time in the GW Bush administration in July 2008, so he's no neophyte.

Just hope it's Bolton's MO to publish 7 months before the end of the administration about which he is writing.

cubanbob said...

I used to like the 'stach. He should have stayed at Fox as a commentator. What I find interesting is the number of people Trump had to fire because they tried to pay him. Presidents make their positions pretty well known while campaigning so it should not be a surprise when they try to implement their ideas. All of the people had to let go knew or should have known Trump's general views and if they disagreed, then they should not have taken the job. It would be disturbing if Boulton faces seriously legal consequences while the Obama Cabal does not. Lock her up!

Howard said...

I pine for the good old days when John Bolton was on the Glenn Beck show along with Lord Monckton of Brenchley climbing on the table to convince you people global warming was a hoax. Good Times

narciso said...

what's actually going on,


https://creativedestructionmedia.com/sections/investigations/

Left Bank of the Charles said...

It would be very funny and ironic if John Bolton got fined or jailed over his lawyer’s op-ed mistake. But if it was a mistake to submit the book for prepublication through his lawyer, wouldn’t the government already know that? Most lawyers would use a cover letter she doing some thing like that. Wouldn’t that give away the breach, if it is a breach?

Earnest Prole said...

Is it true that Bolton's mustache has sued for divorce?

I believe Bolton sports what the kids call a pedostache.

Michael K said...

Howard said...
I pine for the good old days when John Bolton was on the Glenn Beck show along with Lord Monckton of Brenchley climbing on the table to convince you people global warming was a hoax. Good Times


Thanks, Howard. I never knew that Bolton was a climate expert but then that bar is pretty low. Down to autistic 16 year olds, in fact.

Michael K said...

Just hope it's Bolton's MO to publish 7 months before the end of the administration about which he is writing.

Good luck.

Oh, I understand you are planning to move to CHAZ to anticipate the Post-Election situation if Biden wins.

Readering said...

I am making plans to move in with you if Trump wins. Covid will be unstoppable and I want to share a roof with an MD.

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

Readering said...
I am making plans to move in with you if Trump wins. Covid will be unstoppable and I want to share a roof with an MD.

6/13/20, 5:33 PM

Don't worry about covid. You'll be in the camps by then.

Michael K said...

Readering, if covid becomes "unstoppable," come by and I will put you out of your misery.

The Godfather said...

There's no such thing as a "flashy white shoe law firm". A "white shoe" firm is one that's been around FOREVER -- in DC, Arnold & Porter, Covington & Burling, Hogan & Hartson, etc. They are anything but flashy. I don't have any opinion about Cooper, or his firm, or his representation of Bolton, because all we know about the representation is what we've read in the public press. It's likely that what has been made public is disinformation -- but we won't know for a long time.

Inga said...

“Readering, if covid becomes "unstoppable," come by and I will put you out of your misery.”

The MD threatening death(?)to a commenter who made a joke. Can this be blamed on senility?

Readering said...

it was a joke.

Readering said...

White shoe denotes Ivy League. Chuck Cooper, who started his own boutique in the nineties, is Crimson Tide all the way.

Kirk Parker said...

readering,

"it was a joke"

Sure, but both Exiled and Michael replied with an even better one, so what are you complaining about?