Excerpts from a new book by former national security adviser John Bolton have been leaked—and they may undercut President Trump's defense in his impeachment trial. In The Room Where It Happened, Bolton says Trump told him in August that he wanted to freeze military aid to Ukraine until it assisted investigations of the Bidens and other Democrats, the New York Times reports. Trump has denied that the delay in sending $391 million in security assistance was connected to the request for investigations. In the book, which was submitted to the White House for pre-publication review, Bolton also describes conversations about Ukraine with officials including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Bolton, whose book is due to come out on March 17, has said he will testify if subpoenaed. He left the administration in September.
The seven House impeachment managers issued a statement Sunday night describing the claims in Bolton's book as "explosive" and renewing their calls for the Senate to call Bolton to testify, the Washington Post reports. "The Senate trial must seek the full truth and Mr. Bolton has vital information to provide," the managers said. "There is no defensible reason to wait until his book is published, when the information he has to offer is critical to the most important decision senators must now make—whether to convict the president of impeachable offenses." Bolton's lawyer blamed the White House for the leak, saying the "pre-publication review process has been corrupted." In a tweet Sunday, Trump said he "NEVER" told Bolton that aid was connected to the investigations. "If John Bolton said this, it was only to sell a book," Trump said. (More John Bolton stories.)
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