TRANSCRIPT: John Bolton interview with ABC News' Martha Raddatz (ABC)

[Mike 03]

Link: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/transcript-john-bolton-interview-abc-news-martha-raddatz/story?id=71287825

Excerpt:

RADDATZ: And President Trump, of course, got the summit with him in Helsinki in July, 2018. You were worried about leaving him alone in a room with Vladimir Putin. Why?

BOLTON: Because I didn't know what he would say. At any given moment, we didn't know what he was gonna say. Now, it turned out and I say in the book, I feel very confident nothing untoward happened in the one on one. But that means we escaped without injury in the meeting.

That not advancing American interests. I mean, it's better than sustaining the injury. But it's certainly not advancing the interests. Then, of course, we had the famous press conference. And the equivalency that the president ascribed, he says, because he was misunderstood, to what our intelligence was saying about Russian interference in American elections and Vladimir Putin's denial. It was a stunning moment.

RADDATZ: You said you were frozen in your seat watching that.

BOLTON: I -- I -- I -- I -- I thought I wouldn't get up. I didn't know what to do. And it was -- I describe in the book, we went through a lot of gyrations. And I say -- to try and explain it -- I thought Dan Coats, then the director of national intelligence, was close to resignation.

Ultimately, he didn't resign. And the president -- found a way of -- of tryin' to get out of it. But the fact is that the Russian threat to our elections and the threat from China, Iran and North Korea in different forms of cyber attacks is very, very real.

And I viewed this before I joined the administration. I viewed it while I was there, and I view it today. These are attacks on the constitution itself. These are acts of war against the United States. And we need to take them seriously. I think we took steps to get our cyber offensive capabilities into better shape during the administration, during my service there. I think that was a very important step forward.

[RDANGELO]

1. I have read the whole thing.

Although I am not as angry about it as others, I don't buy is reasons for not testifying. He said the he didn't like the approach that the Democrats took on impeachment, they made it too political because they were trying to get it over with before the election. It wouldn't have made any difference to the Republicans in the Senate. The fact that this information is coming out closer to the election, actually helps Biden more than it would have in the impeachment hearings.

He definitely is making a case that trump is operating in his own best interests and not the countries.

[Mike Nelson]

2. Agree...

... with what Bolton said here... but he should have called a press conference and told the nation Trump was compromised and a danger. I think a President Pence would be in a better position to win (although he's as bad as Trump)... so Trump's ability to paralyze these people is strange. I've always seen Trump clearly - he always been obvious. They know... Bolton is hiding something about himself, maybe?

[dawg day]

12. That's a good description

Trump paralyzes them, and it is inexplicable. I could understand self interest. But they stay loyal long after he fires them, like Coats, and even when they hate him like Rubio and Cruz. It's like he has some thrall we are immune to so can't understand.

[CentralMass]

3. Just another neocon asshole trying to sell a book.

[kozar]

4. Basically Bolton is saying,

AS Americans , we do not deserve to hear about treachery,constitutional crisis, problems within OUR government for free in a little impeachment trial....we must pay to read it in his book... hmmmmmmmmmm


Koz

[WestLosAngelesGal]

5. I have read the whole thing and I think there is a question missing and an attribution error

Last edited Mon Jun 22, 2020, 08:51 AM - Edit history (1)

See: RADDATZ: Well, I think if you pursue policies that are consistent with American national interests...

Okay, that seems to be BOLTON answering a question from RADDATZ, a question that does not appear in the transcript.

What do you think?

EDIT (because I found another error in the transcript);
"who might have looked for a boarder investigation,"
should, I think, have been "who might have looked for a broader investigation,"

[Rhiannon12866]

6. Bolton is also going to be on with Stephen Colbert on Tuesday

Should be interesting considering what Colbert has already said... and he's never pretended to be an impartial journalist.

[WestLosAngelesGal]

7. I look forward to the Colbert interview

He's not impartial and I appreciate his perspective, though I think he should not make fun of the mustache. Let's just stick to the facts.

[Rhiannon12866]

9. Well, it's a little late for that...

John Bolton Is A Madman (2018)

Stephen introduces America to Trump's new National Security Advisor John Bolton (Dana Carvey) and his accomplice.




John Bolton Is Committed To Getting His Story Out, Even If It Takes Down President Trump (2020)

The man at the center of the impeachment drama, Amb. John Bolton (Dana Carvey), appears via satellite to tell Stephen Colbert what he might say if called to testify in Trump's impeachment trial.

[WestLosAngelesGal]

10. Oh my

I guess it was inevitable.

[Rhiannon12866]

11. LOL! He's had a lot of fun at Bolton's (mustache) expense for over 2 years

So it's a little late to take it back...

[johnthewoodworker]

8. One republican rat fucker exposing another, when it's convenient.