John Bolton’s book is due to be released later this month having been pushed back several times so far this year but he is determined to release the memoir despite not having final approval from the White House.
Bolton’s book, entitled The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir, describes his time as national security adviser and was originally scheduled to come out in March, but was postponed to May, pending a government security review.
The review process is carried out by the National Security Council.
John Bolton’s scathing book was supposed to be released in March of this year
The book was delayed having needed to be reviewed by the National Security Council to ensure no top secret or classified information was revealed
Now just weeks away from the book’s release date, it appears as though the White House has still not signed off on its final publication, but Bolton is planning to publish his tell-all regardless.
Meanwhile, Bolton is planning a hefty media tour to promote the read the week before its release.
Trump has previously called Bolton a ‘traitor’ and demanded he hold off from publishing anything until he leaves office in what is generally believed to be a negative portrayal of the current administration according to the Washington Post.
The White House informed Bolton in January that his book manuscript appeared to contain ‘significant amounts of classified information’ and could not be published in its current form.
In a letter from the White House National Security Council to Bolton’s attorney, Charles Cooper, said the manuscript contained some material that was considered ‘TOP SECRET’.
‘Under federal law and the nondisclosure agreements your client signed as a condition for gaining access to classified information, the manuscript may not be published or otherwise disclosed without the deletion of this classified information,’ the letter said.
Trump has previously described the book in a January tweet as ‘nasty & untrue’
Despite this threat, it is not clear if the White House could prohibit the book from being published.
Bolton could theoretically lose his security clearance or perhaps be forced to forgo profits from the sales.
Since the delay, the book has also apparently grown longer. It was originally listed as 528 pages, but is now 592 pages, according to the retailer and publisher web sites.
Trump has called the book, ‘nasty & untrue’. The president added: ‘All Classified National Security.’
Interest in the book, and its anticipated criticism of President Trump’s actions on Ukraine, peaked during the Senate impeachment trial earlier this year when it reached the top 20 on Amazon’s bestseller list
The White House informed Bolton in January that his book manuscript appeared to contain ‘significant amounts of classified information’ and could not be published in its current form.
The book is expected to reveal in detail how the president goes about making decisions and to catalog clashes with advisers alongside various foreign policy issues including Ukraine, Venezuela, North Korea and Iran.
Bolton reportedly describes an August conversation, a month before he left the White House on acrimonious terms, when Trump told him that he wanted to withhold hundreds of millions of dollars in security aid from Ukraine until it helped him with investigations into political rival Joe Biden.
The book supposedly describes the Ukrainian interactions in detail.
Allegations that Trump pressured Ukraine led to his being impeached last December by the House of Representatives. In February, the Senate acquitted him.
Bolton was widely criticized for not sharing details from his book during the impeachment hearings.
During public appearances, Bolton has teased that his book contains explosive details about Ukraine investigation but has not revealed further information
He had stated his willingness to testify, but Senate Republicans rejected calls to hear from any additional witnesses.
At times, Bolton even teased the public at one point responding ‘You’ll love Chapter 14.’
‘For all the focus on Ukraine and impeachment trial: to me there are portions of the manuscript that deal with Ukraine — I view that as the sprinkles on an ice cream sundae, in terms of the book,’ Bolton said at a publicity event earlier this year.
Bolton, 71, left his post in September after disagreements with the president. Trump said he fired him. Bolton said he quit.
Media outlets reported in October that Bolton, a leading foreign policy hawk, was planning to write a book about his time in the Trump administration.
When released, it will be the most detailed account from a former administration official who served at such a high level of government.
It was reported in November that Bolton’s book deal was worth $2 million.