Politico | Criminal probe opened into John Bolton book

This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by Josh Gerstein on politico.com on September 15, 2020.

A US federal grand jury is investigating potential disclosures of classified information in the book former national security adviser John Bolton published in June over strong objections from the Trump administration, a source familiar with the situation said Tuesday.

The development signals that Bolton may face much more severe legal trouble than just the pending lawsuit that seeks to strip him of the proceeds from The Room Where it Happened, the tell-all account that generated a slew of brutal press for President Donald Trump.

The judge assigned to that suit rejected the Justice Department’s bid to block publication of the book, but said Bolton appeared to have deliberately violated non-disclosure agreements he signed and could face criminal jeopardy.

Spokespeople for the Justice Department, Bolton and his publisher, Simon & Schuster, declined to comment on the development. A lawyer for Bolton, Chuck Cooper, did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.

In his ruling denying an injunction against the book, US District Court Judge Royce Lamberth opined that such a move would be ineffective because advance copies had already been distributed to and reported on by media outlets. But the appointee of President Ronald Reagan excoriated Bolton for his book.