Former National Security Adviser John Bolton on Wednesday criticized the Democrat House-led impeachment of President Donald Trump, his former boss, and added that his testimony, had he given it, would not have changed the outcome.
Appearing alongside President Barack Obama’s national security adviser, Susan Rice, Bolton said the process was “grossly partisan” and “impeachment malpractice,” further speculating that the proceedings “drove Republicans who might have voted for impeachment away because it was so partisan.”
Democrats became interested in having Bolton testify during the House’s impeachment inquiry following a New York Times report alleging that his forthcoming book contains allegations that President Trump sought to tie U.S. security assistance to Ukraine to investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden, and his son, Hunter Biden.
President Trump has repeatedly denied the report and labeled the book “nasty and untrue.”
“People can argue about what I should have said and what I should have done,” Bolton said. “I would bet you a dollar right here and now, my testimony would have made no difference to the ultimate outcome.”
That seemed to indicate the die was cast for acquittal in the Senate, though if the Times report is accurate, it’s possible Bolton could have swayed enough Republicans to vote to convict.
Bolton, a longtime Republican hawk, also said that he can’t simply “spill his guts” on what he knows because he could be prosecuted if he divulged information that is classified.