{"id":30439,"date":"2026-06-26T10:50:05","date_gmt":"2026-06-26T14:50:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/ex-trump-adviser-john-bolton-pleads-guilty-in-classified-information-case-us-politics-live-us-politics\/"},"modified":"2026-06-26T10:50:05","modified_gmt":"2026-06-26T14:50:05","slug":"ex-trump-adviser-john-bolton-pleads-guilty-in-classified-information-case-us-politics-live-us-politics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/ex-trump-adviser-john-bolton-pleads-guilty-in-classified-information-case-us-politics-live-us-politics\/","title":{"rendered":"Ex-Trump adviser John Bolton pleads guilty in classified information case \u2013 US politics live | US politics"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Ex-Trump adviser turned critic John Bolton pleads guilty in classified information case<\/h2>\n

John Bolton<\/strong>, who served as Donald Trump<\/strong>\u2019s national security adviser in his first administration before becoming an outspoken critic, has plead guilty in a federal court hearing in Maryland to one count of retaining classified national security information in a case that could send him to prison for up to five years.<\/p>\n

The charge is specifically related to diary entries about his work during Trump\u2019s first term that he compiled for his memoir, which was deeply critical of Trump. Bolton was accused of transmitting some of these materials to two relatives, whom multiple outlets have reported were his wife and daughter.<\/p>\n

He initially pleaded not guilty to an 18-count indictment in October last year, but under a plea deal with the US justice department, Bolton agreed to plead guilty to the single count of retaining the classified information in diary-like entries and also to pay a fine of over $2m.<\/p>\n

Had he gone to trial and lost, Bolton could have faced decades of incarceration. A trial also could have dragged significant classified information into the public realm in order for Bolton to defend himself, which was cited as another reason he took the deal.<\/p>\n

Bolton is expected to argue for no prison time but the DOJ may seek to incarcerate him, setting up a showdown at his sentencing, which is due to take place at a later date.<\/p>\n

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Key events<\/p>\n

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While his plea agreement with the justice department may enable John Bolton<\/strong> to avoid time behind bars, the judge ultimately will decide his punishment.<\/p>\n

The plea agreement recommends capping any prison sentence at five years but the judge isn\u2019t bound by that part of the deal, the Associated Press notes.<\/p>\n

Bolton can withdraw his guilty plea if the judge issues a longer prison sentence or a fine greater than $2.25m.<\/p>\n

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Per his plea deal, a justice department prosecutor told Judge Theodore Chuang<\/strong> that John Bolton<\/strong> faces a fine of $2.25m – half of which should be paid within five days of his sentencing – a required debrief with a US intelligence committee, three years of supervised release and up to 100 hours of community service, Fox News reports<\/a>, and Bolton also agreed that he would not get an annuity or retirement from his federal service.<\/p>\n

The sentencing is scheduled for 28 October<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

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Updated at\u00a010.46 EDT<\/p>\n

Trump forced to drain the pool swamp – podcast<\/h2>\n

As we\u2019ve been reporting, the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool<\/strong> will have to be drained again. Donald<\/strong> Trump<\/strong> has blamed vandalism for the failure to keep the water \u201cAmerican flag blue\u201d. But what if this small body of water is proof that the president can\u2019t outrun the truth?<\/p>\n

In the latest edition of our Politics Weekly America podcast, Jonathan Freedland<\/strong> speaks to Arwa Mahdawi<\/strong> about why this project, which has cost the taxpayer millions of dollars, is proving to be such an embarrassing failure for a man obsessed with image.<\/p>\n

<\/span>Trump forced to drain the reflecting pool swamp | Politics Weekly America<\/span>Share<\/p>\n

Ex-Trump adviser turned critic John Bolton pleads guilty in classified information case<\/h2>\n

John Bolton<\/strong>, who served as Donald Trump<\/strong>\u2019s national security adviser in his first administration before becoming an outspoken critic, has plead guilty in a federal court hearing in Maryland to one count of retaining classified national security information in a case that could send him to prison for up to five years.<\/p>\n

The charge is specifically related to diary entries about his work during Trump\u2019s first term that he compiled for his memoir, which was deeply critical of Trump. Bolton was accused of transmitting some of these materials to two relatives, whom multiple outlets have reported were his wife and daughter.<\/p>\n

He initially pleaded not guilty to an 18-count indictment in October last year, but under a plea deal with the US justice department, Bolton agreed to plead guilty to the single count of retaining the classified information in diary-like entries and also to pay a fine of over $2m.<\/p>\n

Had he gone to trial and lost, Bolton could have faced decades of incarceration. A trial also could have dragged significant classified information into the public realm in order for Bolton to defend himself, which was cited as another reason he took the deal.<\/p>\n

Bolton is expected to argue for no prison time but the DOJ may seek to incarcerate him, setting up a showdown at his sentencing, which is due to take place at a later date.<\/p>\n

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As the never-ending story of Trump\u2019s doomed multimillion dollar renovation of the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool<\/strong> drags on, CNN reports<\/a> that a company involved in a previous renovation 15 years ago passed on the president\u2019s project after deeming it \u201cunfeasible\u201d<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Two employees of New Jersey-bsed firm Sika Corporation, which provided the concrete construction and sealing products for a 2010 renovation project of the pool, told CNN the company declined on the basis that Trump\u2019s demands that the work be completed by the Fourth of July and that the bottom of the pool had to be blue, made the task \u201cunfeasible\u201d<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

<\/span>Trump said the pool will likely need to be drained for a second round of repairs. <\/span> Photograph: Shawn Thew\/EPA<\/p>\n

As we all know by now, less than a month after it was applied, the lining that turned the bottom of the reflecting pool \u201cAmerican flag blue\u201d started peeling off, prompting the president to baselessly blame \u201cvandals\u201d rather than admit the job was rushed, and sent contractors in to patch up the problem. Trump has floated<\/em> a number of allegations, mostly with no evidence, including that vandals made a gash hundreds of feet long and illegally polluted the pool with chemicals.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, algal blooms sabotaged the water color, turning it murky green. The interior department prematurely declared victory over the algae and even likened it to the US\u2019s supposed victory over Iran. Over a week later, Trump\u2019s war on algae is in fact still very much ongoing, so \u2026 do with that what you will.<\/p>\n

<\/span>Algae is seen in the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool on Thursday.<\/span> Photograph: Win McNamee\/Getty ImagesShare<\/p>\n

Updated at\u00a010.18 EDT<\/p>\n

Johnson says he will send housing bill to Trump’s desk<\/h2>\n

In case you missed it yesterday, House speaker Mike<\/strong> Johnson<\/strong> said he was sending the bipartisan housing bill to Donald Trump<\/strong>\u2019s desk, a day after the president abruptly cancelled its signing as he tried to pressure the Senate to pass the unrelated Save America Act.<\/p>\n

Johnson told reporters after his lengthy crunch-time meeting with the president that they are \u201con exactly the same page\u201d, though he didn\u2019t mention the housing bill specifically.<\/p>\n

And it\u2019s important to note that Trump has not yet committed to signing the legislation, despite the fact that the bill has overwhelming bipartisan support and his own party is keen to use it to show voters they\u2019re working to lower living costs ahead of November\u2019s midterms.<\/p>\n

By formally sending the bill to the president\u2019s desk, Johnson has opened the 10-day window (excluding Sundays) during which Trump must decide whether he will sign or veto the legislation. If he doesn\u2019t do either, it automatically becomes law without his signature.<\/p>\n

<\/span>House speaker Mike Johnson makes remarks at the ceremony dedicating the Semiquincentennial Congressional Time Capsule in honor of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, in Washington on Thursday.<\/span> Photograph: Andrew Thomas\/CNP\/Andrew Thomas – CNP\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

For his part, after the meeting Trump publicy urged House GOP hardliners to stop \u201cgrandstanding\u201d and to unify after they brought most activity in the lower chamber to a halt earlier this week over the Save Act.<\/p>\n

\u201cHouse Republicans should unify, and stop voting down \u2018Rules\u2019 or, threatening to do so. Giving power to the Radical Left Dumocrats in the House to control what goes up for a Vote will make our outcomes worse, not better. No more grandstanding, please! They are the Dumocrats, and we can\u2019t let them WIN!\u201d Trump wrote on Truth Social.<\/p>\n

While the president threw him a lifeline, Johnson\u2019s headache is by no means over. Florida Republican Anna Paulina Luna<\/strong>, who\u2019s leading the hardline rebellion, wrote on X<\/a> after Trump and Johnson\u2019s meeting that she had submitted an amendment to the House rules committee to attach the Save Act to the annual defense bill.<\/p>\n

But per Axios, Luna told reporters yesterday that she is not promising to support next week\u2019s rule if leadership blocks that effort.<\/p>\n

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Alarm over \u2018extreme\u2019 sentences for anti-ICE protesters convicted of terrorism<\/h2>\n

Sam Levine<\/span><\/p>\n

The decades-long prison sentences<\/strong> for a group of Texas activists convicted of terrorism and other charges in connection to a Fourth of July protest last year has caused widespread alarm, given their unusually punitive length<\/strong> and for the apparent harsh criminalization of protest activity<\/strong> under Donald Trump\u2019s justice department.<\/p>\n

Eight people who participated in a protest at the Prairieland ICE detention facility in Alvarado, Texas, were sentenced on Tuesday to between 50 and 100 years in prison<\/strong>. A ninth person, Daniel Sanchez-Estrada, the husband of one of the demonstrators, did not participate in the protest, but was sentenced to 30 years in prison<\/strong> after he was convicted of moving boxes containing leftwing zines and other materials after a prison phone call from his wife.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese sentences are a travesty and totally unjustified, but that\u2019s the point. Americans hate the fascist Trump regime, so the only way they can try to cling to power is brute force,<\/strong>\u201d the representative Rashida Tlaib<\/strong>, a Democrat from Michigan, posted on X<\/a>. \u201cMore bullshit \u2018terrorism\u2019 charges like these are coming<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sanchez-Estrada\u2019s sentence in particular has been condemned by first amendment advocates, who say that it sends a chilling message about the kind of ideological material people are allowed to possess.<\/p>\n

Seth Stern, the chief of advocacy at the Freedom of the Press Foundation, said in a statement:<\/p>\n

double quotation mark[The zines Sanchez-Estrada was punished for moving are] no different from the pro-Revolution pamphlets this country\u2019s founders had in mind when they drafted the first amendment\u2019s press clause.<\/p>\n

Sanchez\u2019s case is the latest example of the Trump administration grasping at any legal straws it can to criminalize disfavored ideologies and writings<\/strong>, from conflating dissent with terrorism to deporting immigrants who report on protests or criticize wars the US bankrolls.<\/p>\n

Americans should not make the mistake of believing Sanchez\u2019s sentence only threatens immigrants, leftists or so-called antifa members \u2013 they\u2019re just the low-hanging fruit, not the endgame.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s Sam\u2019s report:<\/em><\/p>\n

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Opening summary<\/h2>\n

Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog.<\/p>\n

John Bolton<\/strong>, former national security adviser to Donald Trump<\/strong>, is expected to plead guilty on Friday to charges that he unlawfully retained sensitive national security information.<\/p>\n

The agreement with federal prosecutors includes a $2.25m fine, according to sources familiar with the deal.<\/p>\n

Bolton is expected to plead guilty to one count of retaining classified information, which is specifically related to diary entries about his work during Trump\u2019s first term. The former adviser, who is now a prominent critic of Trump, was accused of transmitting some of these materials to two relatives.<\/p>\n

The trial is scheduled to take place in Greenbelt, Maryland, on Friday \u2013 and a possible sentence could range from no jail time to five years.<\/p>\n

In October, Bolton pleaded not guilty to charges of mishandling classified information when he worked in the Trump White House.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was a very difficult decision for him,\u201d the source close to Bolton said to NBC, in relation to his expected guilty plea. \u201cMost importantly, he is doing what leaders do and taking responsibility.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe understands that if he went to trial what that would mean, which essentially would be the disclosure of many, many more classified documents that he would need to reveal to defend himself. And given the Ukraine and the Middle East, he didn\u2019t want to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elsewhere, the supreme court conservative majority passed two new rulings on Thursday that allowed the Trump administration to strip certain immigration protection and fundamentally reshape the asylum system in the United States.<\/p>\n

This means that the court has allowed the administration to move forward with policies that could remove more than 1 million people from the US, and could also possibly prevent others from entering.<\/p>\n

<\/span>People rally to protect TPS status holders outside the supreme court in April. <\/span> Photograph: Bill Clark\/CQ-Roll Call, Inc\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Dozens of groups, advocates and members of Congress called the court\u2019s decisions \u201cdisastrous\u201d and \u201ccruel\u201d, while the Trump administration, Republican lawmakers and anti-immigrant groups celebrated the rulings.<\/p>\n

In case after case, the court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, has green-lighted Donald Trump<\/strong>\u2019s policies targeting both legal and illegal immigration with few exceptions, while its three liberal justices have objected to most of his actions.<\/p>\n

This will mostly impact Haitian and Syrian \u2060immigrants, with hundreds of thousands expected to be stripped of their Temporary Protected Status.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Trump administration has turned the immigration system into a deportation machine,\u201d said Elora Mukherjee<\/strong>, director of the Immigrants\u2019 Rights Clinic at Columbia Law School in New York.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn most cases, the supreme court has been a rubber stamp for Trump\u2019s mass deportation agenda,\u201d Mukherjee added.<\/p>\n

<\/span>The US supreme court.<\/span> Photograph: Rahmat Gul\/AP<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what else is happening:<\/p>\n