DIMs demand Bolton testify after NY Times report on his book

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WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump told former national security adviser John Bolton that nearly $400 million in frozen security aid to Ukraine would not be released until that nation offered assistance with probes into Democratic targets, including the Bidens, Bolton alleges in an unpublished book whose contents were reported Sunday night.

NBC has not verified the report, published The New York Times, which cited multiple sources familiar with Bolton’s account, or seen a copy of that manuscript, but the report immediately produced calls by Democrats for Bolton's testimony in the Senate impeachment trial.

The contents of that manuscript were described as a rough account of how the former Trump official would testify, should he be called as a witness in the trial, which is currently underway. The prospect of any new witnesses has been viewed as unlikely, given Republican reluctance to accept additional testimony.

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In the unpublished book, Bolton reportedly alleges that other administration officials, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Attorney General William Barr and acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, were made aware of Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani's unusual involvement in a shadow foreign policy in Ukraine well before it became a central element of the whistleblower complaint at the heart of the impeachment inquiry.

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Hill Democrats on Sunday said the new report highlighted the urgency of a Senate request for Bolton's testimony — a move which would require several GOP votes.

"John Bolton has the evidence," tweeted Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. "It's up to four Senate Republicans to ensure that John Bolton, Mick Mulvaney, and the others with direct knowledge of President Trump’s actions testify in the Senate trial."

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