Ruling will not lead Bolton to testify soon, lawyer says
WASHINGTON — John Bolton, the former national security adviser to President Trump who resisted efforts to pressure Ukraine for help against domestic political rivals, dashed any expectation Tuesday that he would testify soon in the House impeachment investigation in response to a court ruling involving a onetime colleague.
Charles Cooper, a lawyer who represents Bolton, said that a court decision Monday ordering another former White House official to appear before Congress under subpoena did not apply to Bolton because of the nature of his job. Cooper said Bolton would therefore wait for another judge to rule in a separate case that could take weeks more to litigate.
The statement came a day after a federal district judge rejected the assertion that Trump could block aides from responding to congressional subpoenas based on a sweeping claim of presidential immunity. The ruling ordered Don McGahn, a former White House counsel for Trump, to comply with a House subpoena. McGahn’s lawyer filed a notice Tuesday that he would appeal.
While the judge said it made no difference whether a White House official dealt with national security matters, Cooper rejected any suggestion that it would cover Bolton.
“Any passing references in the McGahn decision to presidential communications concerning national security matters are not authoritative on the validity of testimonial immunity for close White House advisers” whose “responsibilities are focused exclusively on providing information and advice to the president on national security,” Cooper said.
Trump said Tuesday that he had no concern about Bolton testifying and that he was resisting the House investigation because he considered it illegitimate.
“John Bolton is a patriot and may know that I held back the money from Ukraine because it is considered a corrupt...