Former NSC Official Alleges Politicized White House Interference in Bolton Book Review

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On Wednesday, former National Security Council official Ellen Knight accused the White House of playing an “unprecedented” and “outsize role in the review process” of former national security adviser John Bolton’s book. Knight alleges that after she reviewed the book for classified information, other White House officials conducted their own “fundamentally flawed” reviews and marked “hundreds of passages” as potentially classified. Several officials then allegedly asked Knight to aid the administration’s lawsuit against Bolton by admitting a mistake in her review. Knight allegedly refused to cooperate and was later fired from her position.

Coverage in some left-rated outlets used sensationalist words like “extraordinary,” “scathing” and “blasted.” Fox News and Washington Times were the only right-rated outlets to do original reporting on the news; the Times focused specifically on the Justice Department's rebuttal to Knight's claim. Some right-rated voices have given opinions on “tell-all” books about President Donald Trump, referencing Bolton's and journalist Bob Woodward’s latest releases. Editor's note: Updated 9/23/20 at 3:34 p.m. ET to include examples of right-rated coverage, which were published after this headline roundup was initially created.

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White House aides improperly intervened to prevent a manuscript by President Trump’s former national security adviser John R. Bolton from becoming public, a career official said in a letter filed in court on Wednesday, accusing them of making false assertions and trying to coerce her to join their efforts, and suggesting that they retaliated when she refused.

A former career official at the National Security Council claims her pre-publication review of former national security adviser John Bolton's explosive book on President Trump was "commandeered by political appointees for a seemingly political purpose," according to a letter from her lawyers filed in court on Tuesday.

Why it matters: The White House fought against the publication of Bolton's book for most of the year on the grounds that it contained harmful and "significant amounts of classified information."