The Trump administration filed a lawsuit on Tuesday seeking to prevent publication of former national security advisor John Bolton’s book, which is expected to provide a damning insider portrait of the White House.
The Department of Justice alleged in its suit, filed in federal court in Washington, that publication of the book risks “compromising national security” through revelation of classified information that Bolton had access to during his turbulent 17-month stint in the White House.
The suit says Bolton failed to have the text vetted, meaning his book would be in “clear breach of agreements he signed as a condition of his employment and as a condition of gaining access to highly classified information.”
The book, “The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir,” is due to hit the shelves next Tuesday.
On Monday, President Donald Trump said that his former Bolton, could face a “criminal problem” if he doesn’t halt plans to publish a new book that describes scattershot, sometimes dangerous, decision-making by a president focused only on getting re-elected.
The administration pressured the chamber’s Republican majority, and the opposition Democrats fell short of the necessary votes to issue a subpoena compelling Bolton to testify.
Bolton, in the book’s epilogue, also accused Trump of seizing Bolton’s advisors’ documents, obstructing his Twitter account and “making outright threats of censorship,” according to Axios.
The government has said that Bolton is in breach of basic secrecy rules after refusing to wait for the National Security Council to go through the text, as required.
It said Bolton and publishers reportedly resolved to release the book on June 23 “without Defendant giving any prior notice to the NSC” or completing the pre-publication review process.
The President also accused Bolton of not completing a pre-publication review to make sure the book does not contain classified material.
In April this year, after resolving a shorter list of remaining issues, it appeared that the pre-publication review process had been finalised.
Earlier this month, Bolton got a letter from John Eisenberg, the president’s deputy counsel for national security, who claimed that Bolton’s manuscript still contained classified information and that publishing the book would violate his nondisclosure agreements.
In January, Trump had slammed John Bolton, a potentially damaging witness at his Senate impeachment trial, amid White House efforts to block publication of an explosive book by the former national security advisor.
Last year, in September, President Trump had fired Bolton, who was known for his hardline stances on Washington’s archenemies, particularly Iran, North Korea and Venezuela. He was replaced by Robert C O’Brien.
(With inputs from agency)