WASHINGTON (AP) – The stakes over witness testimony at President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial are rising now that a draft of a book from former national security adviser John Bolton appears to undercut a key defense argument.
Bolton writes in the forthcoming book that Trump told him that he wanted to withhold security aid from Ukraine until it helped him with politically charged investigations, including into Democratic rival Joe Biden. Democrats are now demanding that Bolton testify in Trump’s impeachment trial.
Trump’s legal team has repeatedly insisted that the Republican president never tied the suspension of military assistance to investigations into Biden and his son. The Trump defense continues when the trial resumes Monday afternoon.
President Trump tweeted in reaction to the news late last night:
I NEVER told John Bolton that the aid to Ukraine was tied to investigations into Democrats, including the Bidens. In fact, he never complained about this at the time of his very public termination. If John Bolton said this, it was only to sell a book. With that being said, the…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 27, 2020
The Democrat controlled House never even asked John Bolton to testify. It is up to them, not up to the Senate!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 27, 2020
