House Democrats appear to be backing down on their push to hear testimony from former national security adviser John Bolton.
Bolton had said he was “prepared to testify” if subpoenaed by the Senate in its impeachment trial of President Donald Trump. But the Senate did not call any witnesses during the trial, which ended in the president’s acquittal.
Bolton plans to publish a book detailing his time in the White House, including criticism of Trump’s actions such as his decision to withhold military assistance from Ukraine. Publication of the book is now set for May 12.
House Judiciary Committee chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., said last month that House Democrats “likely” would issue a subpoena for Bolton to give testimony.
But The Hill noted that any such plans seems to have fizzled due to “impeachment fatigue.”
“I would have liked to hear what he had to say, and I think that if there’s nothing to hide then we should have listened,” said Rep. Eliot Engel,
D-N.Y. “But I don’t know that I would be in favor of opening it up again. Then it becomes the never-ending story. “When he said he was willing to come, that’s when we should have invited him.”
And an unidentified Democratic Party lawmaker also cast doubt on hearing from Bolton.
“It overwhelms the other things that we’re trying to do, so I don’t think it’s going to happen,” the lawmaker said. “That would poison the well for a lot of that stuff.”
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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