Trump Rages at John Bolton Amid Signs Former Adviser Could Be Called to Testify

By Joanna Walters, Guardian UK

29 January 20

 

onald Trump launched a direct attack on his former national security adviser John Bolton on Wednesday amid signs that the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, does not have Republican votes locked down to block Democrats’ efforts to call Bolton as a witness in the president’s impeachment trial.

As another tense day unfolds on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, with US senators able to begin asking questions of the Democrats’ prosecution team and Trump’s defense team in the trial, the issue of witnesses and fresh evidence being submitted is in the balance.

Trump attacked Bolton after reports that a draft manuscript of Bolton’s forthcoming book claims Trump directly linked a delay in military aid to Ukraine to a condition that the Ukrainian government investigate his Democratic rivals, especially Joe Biden.

Trump wrote of Bolton: “… if I listened to him, we would be in World War Six by now, and goes out and IMMEDIATELY writes a nasty & untrue book. All Classified National Security. Who would do this?”

One of Trump’s defense arguments during the impeachment inquiry was that those two were not connected. Critics say he was trying to use a vulnerable Ukraine to help his re-election chances; Trump said he was just trying to root out corruption there.

....many more mistakes of judgement, gets fired because frankly, if I listened to him, we would be in World War Six by now, and goes out and IMMEDIATELY writes a nasty & untrue book. All Classified National Security. Who would do this?

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 29, 2020

Trump maintains Bolton was fired last fall, while Bolton claimed he resigned.

On Wednesday, Trump also complained about Bolton’s timing. He wrote: “Why didn’t John Bolton complain about this “nonsense” a long time ago, when he was very publicly terminated. He said, not that it matters, NOTHING!”

Moderate Republicans in the Senate are under pressure from Democrats to compel witnesses to appear at the impeachment trial, with Bolton top of their list.

Meanwhile, McConnell is under pressure to round up his caucus and move to vote by the end of the week first to block witnesses and then to acquit Trump on the impeachment charges altogether.

McConnell told his caucus in a meeting on Tuesday night, according to multiple reports, of the stakes.

With an unknown number of Republican senators still undecided on the question of calling witnesses, McConnell could still get the votes he needs to block witnesses and stop the trial from reeling off into unpredictable – and potentially hazardous – territory for the president. At least four Republicans would need to join Democrats to force witness testimony.

Trump’s defense team and his Republican allies have argued vehemently against the inclusion of witnesses at the trial, saying they already had enough information to decide the case and that the Senate should not be burdened by what they have framed as an incomplete process in the House of Representatives.

But those arguments appear not to have been persuasive to the necessary number of senators. Trump’s lawyers concluded their opening arguments on Tuesday.

Led by Trump’s personal lawyer Jay Sekulow, the defense team dismissed objections to Trump’s conduct towards Ukraine as “policy disagreements” and warned senators not to “lower the bar of impeachment” by voting to convict the president.

A furious Trump complained on Twitter on Wednesday morning that Democrats could not be satisfied. During the inquiry process in the House of Representatives last year, the White House blocked senior administration officials from testifying in the House.

No matter how many witnesses you give the Democrats, no matter how much information is given, like the quickly produced Transcripts, it will NEVER be enough for them. They will always scream UNFAIR. The Impeachment Hoax is just another political CON JOB!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 29, 2020

No witnesses have appeared at the trial in the Senate, with House managers detailing the case for the prosecution of Trump that he abused the power of his office and, in gagging officials and blocking the release of some documentary evidence, obstructed Congress – forming the two articles of impeachment relating to Trump’s conduct with regard to Ukraine.