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John Bolton Says Trump Asked China for Help with 2020 Reelection Campaign

HeadlineJun 18, 2020

Former national security adviser John Bolton has accused President Trump of personally asking Chinese President Xi Jinping to use his economic power to help him win the 2020 presidential election by purchasing more soybeans and wheat. Bolton makes the claim in his forthcoming memoir. The Justice Department has sued Bolton in an attempt to block publication of the book, but copies have already been obtained by journalists.

Bolton’s book comes just months after he declined to testify during President Trump’s impeachment trial. In the book, he faults Democrats for focusing on Trump’s dealings with Ukraine, saying Trump was willing to halt criminal investigations for “dictators he liked,” citing China and Turkey as two examples. Bolton also writes that Trump privately called for the execution of journalists who do not reveal their sources, reportedly saying, “These people should be executed. They are scumbags.”

Bolton also criticizes Trump for not being hawkish enough on foreign policy. He claims Trump’s decision not to attack Iran in 2019 following the downing of a U.S. drone was “the most irrational thing I ever witnessed any President do.” Bolton, who strongly advocated for the U.S. to overthrow the Venezuelan government, claims in the book that Trump said invading Venezuela would be “cool” and that it was “really part of the United States.”

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