President Biden’s Justice Department is dropping a lawsuit against former Trump National Security Advisor John Bolton for publishing a book that the Trump administration said contained classified information.
In a federal court filing on Wednesday, the government told the court that the parties agreed to dismiss the case.
The Justice Department last June sued Mr. Bolton in an attempt to block the publication of his book, “The Room Where it Happened,” which President Trump’s administration argued contained classified information. The government said publication of the book violated the nondisclosure agreements Mr. Bolton had signed as a condition of his employment.
But a federal judge denied the government’s attempt to stop the release of the book.
Mr. Bolton’s book deal was worth $2 million, and the manuscript was “rife with classified information,” according to court documents.
Mr. Bolton had moved to dismiss the case, arguing political speech is protected by the First Amendment and he had no power to stop the publishing of his book, which details his dealings with Mr. Trump in the White House.
Mr. Bolton also argued he had the manuscript screened for classified information and had been cleared with edits, before he was sued.
Mr. Bolton served in the Trump administration from April 2018 to September 2019, when Mr. Trump ousted him as his national security adviser.
• Alex Swoyer can be reached at aswoyer@washingtontimes.com.
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