Ex-Trump Adviser Pleads Guilty in Classified Files Case

Tom BrennerDonald Trump’s former national security adviser, John Bolton, pleaded guilty in court Friday to unauthorized retention of national defense information. Bolton, 77, appeared before Obama-appointed Judge Theodore D. Chuang and faced 18 initial charges of unauthorized retention of national defense information, but only pleaded guilty to one of them. He allegedely shared what he called an “electronic diary of information” with two members of his family, though his lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said in a statement last year that his defendent did not break the law. “These charges stem from portions of Amb. Bolton’s personal diaries over his 45-year career — records that are unclassified, shared only with his immediate family, and known to the FBI as far back as 2021, the alum and professor of Columbia Law School said. Bolton was originally indicted in October 2025, when he pled not guilty to all 18 charges and faced up to 10 years in prison and a 4.5 million fine. He awaits a sentencing on Oct. 28 where he could face up to 60 months in prison. He has agreed to a 2.25 million fine. Bolton joins a list of former Trump appointees who have gone on to speak out against the president, including former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly, 76, who called the president, 80, a fascist, and former Attorney General William Barr, 76, who criticized the president’s handling of the 2020 election. Read it at NBCRead more at The Daily Beast.