Trump falsely claims House Democrats never asked Bolton to testify

President Donald Trump falsely claimed that House Democrats never sought former National Security Adviser John Bolton’s testimony as part of their impeachment inquiry.

"The Democrat controlled House never even asked John Bolton to testify," Trump said in a Jan. 27 tweet. "It is up to them, not up to the Senate!"

The Democrat controlled House never even asked John Bolton to testify. It is up to them, not up to the Senate!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 27, 2020

The House did ask Bolton to testify on Nov. 7. But Bolton, who left his post in September, declined to do so at the White House’s directive. The White House successfully blocked a number of officials from testifying or producing documents relevant to the House’s investigation.

Bolton signaled that he would testify only if he were subpoenaed and if a court ruled that he should obey the subpoena over the White House’s instructions.

Bolton’s lawyers said he would sign on to a lawsuit filed by his deputy, Charles Kupperman, who asked a court for guidance after he received a subpoena from the House and an order from the White House not to comply. 

Many of the witnesses who did testify, such as Fiona Hill, the White House’s former top Russia expert, did so in defiance of the White House's orders.

Ultimately, House Democrats elected not to subpoena Bolton or take the issue up in court, saying it would create unnecessary delays. Instead, they withdrew their subpoena to Kupperman and documented Trump’s efforts to block cooperation in an article of impeachment alleging obstruction of Congress.

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Subsequently, a federal judge dismissed Kupperman’s lawsuit, declaring it moot because the House had given up on pursuing his testimony. 

Then, in a Jan. 6 statement, Bolton said he would be willing to testify if subpoenaed in the Senate trial. He said he came to the decision on his own because the lawsuit’s dismissal meant he would not get the court guidance he was seeking before the trial wraps up.

Trump’s false claim that the House "never even asked" Bolton to testify came on the heels of a major New York Times report about the former national security adviser’s forthcoming book. 

According to the report, Bolton wrote in a draft copy of his book that Trump told him in August that he wanted to continue withholding military aid from Ukraine until the country announced investigations into former Vice President Joe Biden.

Trump denied the report’s account on Twitter. "I NEVER told John Bolton that the aid to Ukraine was tied to investigations into Democrats, including the Bidens," he wrote.

The White House and Trump campaign did not respond to requests for comment in time for publication.

Trump said, "The Democrat controlled House never even asked John Bolton to testify."

The House asked Bolton to appear voluntarily for a deposition on Nov. 7. He did not, saying that he would only appear if he were subpoenaed and if a court ruled that he should.

We rate Trump’s statement False.