Bolton Case Assigned To Judge Who Has History With Trump
U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang, an Obama appointee based in Greenbelt, Maryland, has once again placed himself at the center of a high-stakes confrontation between the judiciary and President Donald J. Trump’s administration — this time over the criminal prosecution of former National Security Adviser John Bolton.
Chuang first gained national attention in 2017, when he blocked President Trump’s travel ban, which restricted entry from several majority-Muslim nations in an effort to protect national security. In that ruling, Chuang controversially claimed that campaign trail remarks made by Trump years earlier could still be considered evidence of anti-Muslim bias.
“Simply because a decisionmaker made the statements during a campaign does not wipe them from the ‘reasonable memory’ of a ‘reasonable observer,’” Chuang wrote at the time.
The decision — seen by conservatives as a prime example of judicial overreach — ignited widespread criticism for allowing a federal judge to override the president’s constitutional authority on immigration policy.
Chuang later intervened in other executive actions, including President Trump’s plan to restructure the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), temporarily blocking reforms designed to streamline operations and ensure accountability in foreign aid. Many conservatives accused Chuang of repeatedly inserting judicial power into matters reserved for the executive branch.
Now, the same judge is presiding over the criminal case against John Bolton, Trump’s former national security adviser, who faces 18 felony charges related to the alleged mishandling of top-secret materials. The case, which will hold a key hearing on November 21, has drawn enormous attention given Bolton’s public feud with Trump and Chuang’s history of rulings that have curbed executive authority.
Bolton, in a fiery statement Thursday, claimed the indictment is politically motivated:
“I have become the latest target in weaponizing the Justice Department to charge those [Trump] deems to be his enemies with charges that were declined before or distort the facts,” Bolton said.
The Justice Department previously pursued Bolton in 2020 over his memoir, The Room Where It Happened, alleging he failed to complete a required pre-publication review for classified material. Although the Biden DOJ later dropped the investigation, Chuang ruled that Bolton had “likely published classified materials” and “exposed his country to harm.”
Bolton maintains his book was properly cleared. “The book was reviewed and approved by the appropriate, experienced career clearance officials,” he said, adding that the FBI was fully briefed on a 2021 hack of one of his accounts allegedly by Iran.
“In four years of the prior administration, after these reviews, no charges were ever filed,” Bolton added.
He also accused Trump of using federal power to silence opposition:
“These charges are not just about [Trump’s] focus on me or my diaries, but his intensive effort to intimidate his opponents, to ensure that he alone determines what is said about his conduct,” Bolton said. “Dissent and disagreement are foundational to America’s constitutional system, and vitally important to our freedom.”
For many observers, the Bolton case highlights a deepening clash between the Trump administration’s pursuit of accountability and a judiciary long influenced by Obama-era appointees. With Judge Chuang at the helm, the case could once again test the boundaries of executive authority — and the political neutrality of America’s courts.