So suddenly there was the Bolton book. Ohhhhhh the humanity. The New York Times headlined their “scoop” this way:
Trump Tied Ukraine Aid to Inquiries He Sought, Bolton Book Says
The story said, in part, this:
“WASHINGTON — President Trump told his national security adviser in August that he wanted to continue freezing $391 million in security assistance to Ukraine until officials there helped with investigations into Democrats including the Bidens, according to an unpublished manuscript by the former adviser, John R. Bolton.”
The predictable media frenzy ensued. Then, several days into the frenzy, with media-types and Democrats still in the midst of high-fiving that finally, at long last, they have nailed Trump the Road Runner, the hammer falls on the Wylie Coyote media industrial complex.
An August 2019 Bolton television interview with Radio Free Europe surfaces, in which the then-national security adviser says the complete opposite of the now-famous phone calls between President Trump and the Ukrainian president. Unsurprisingly – if amusingly to his supporters – President Trump pounced.
Bolton was busted.
Over at Real Clear Politics, the headline was this:
Trump Tweets Video of Bolton Praising “Warm and Cordial” Ukraine Call: “Game Over!”
And sure enough, there was Bolton himself, on camera, calmly saying the exact opposite of what his book now allegedly says. Here is the money quote from the interview- with bold print supplied:
“I will be meeting President Zelensky. He and President Trump have already spoken twice. The president called to congratulate President Zelensky on his election and on his success in the parliamentary election.
They were very warm and cordial calls. We’re hoping they’ll be able to meet in Warsaw for a few minutes together, because the success of Ukraine, maintaining its free, its system of representative government, a free-market economy, a free of corruption, and dealing with the problems of the Danbass in the Crimea are high priorities here, obviously, but high priorities for the United States, as well.”
Got that? Bolton appeared not only totally unperturbed but quite casually observed that the calls were “very warm and cordial” – something that in fact is borne out by the transcript of the actual call.
In other words?
Game over indeed.
Bolton has been busted. By himself.
