The DOJ has opened an investigation into John Bolton for possibly revealing classified information in his book, “The Room Where It Happened.” Bolton is a world class war monger that never saw a war he didn’t like, especially because he won’t have to fight.
Bolton signed a non disclosure agreement and was supposed to let the FBI check his book for classified information before publishing it, told Simon and Schuster to go ahead and release the book. If he did reveal classified information, it would be covered by the Espionage Act and could result in a ten year sentence per violation.
In June, after the Trump administration had filed a lawsuit to stop the book’s publication, Judge Royce C. Lamberth of the Federal District Court of the District of Columbia ruled that Bolton could proceed with the publication of the book, arguing, “With hundreds of thousands of copies around the globe — many in newsrooms — the damage is done. There is no restoring the status quo,” but Lamberth also added, “Bolton has gambled with the national security of the United States. He has exposed his country to harm and himself to civil (and potentially criminal) liability. But these facts do not control the motion before the court. The government has failed to establish that an injunction will prevent irreparable harm.”
Judge Lamberth said that he was persuaded that John Bolton probably leaked classified information but since the book was already out, it made little sense to issue an injunction. He also said that Bolton has set himself up for both criminal and civil penalties if he did leak such information.
Judge Lamberth said:
“This was Bolton’s bet: If he is right and the book does not contain classified information, he keeps the upside mentioned above; but if he is wrong, he stands to lose his profits from the book deal, exposes himself to criminal liability, and imperils national security. Bolton was wrong.”