When the impeachment hearings begin on Nov. 13th, there's a good possibility a star witness won't be present.
John Bolton, Trump's former national security adviser, is smack dab in the middle of the Ukraine scandal.
Democrats want to hear him public testify because he's the key to confirming what other witnesses have said.
But there's a problem.
Bolton's lawyer have advised him not to testify unless he's subpoenaed. Congressional subpoenas have been confronted with a stone wall from the White House thus far
in an illegal effort to buy time, and discourage the Democrats.
Time is an issue.
The Democrats only hope of getting Bolton to testify depends on a key test case involving former White House counsel Donald McGahn. A decision could come by the end of November.
If McGahn's lawyers lose their case, a door swings wide open, forcing all the holdouts to testify in the impeachment inquiry. Bolton would probably be the first, in the long line, to appear before Congress.
Although Bolton would be a star witness, there's a lot of star power in a lineup of future witnesses consisting of the likes of Mick Mulvaney, Mike Pompeo, Mike Pence, and the rest of the current holdouts.
When the day comes (if it does) Bolton is expected to corroborate what the other witnesses said, testifying that he was aghast at what was happening.
Bolton knew that U.S. Military aid was being held back as Trump and his minions pressured Ukraine's president to open investigations on his political rival, and a cockamamie conspiracy theory about a missing server.
Related: Bolton Knows About 'Many Relevant Meetings' on Ukraine, Lawyer Says
I recall what Bolton said when he resigned, "You'll hear from me in due time."
There's one caveat I should mention; Bolton has always held an expansive view of presidential power. It's unclear whether he would testify that Trump overstepped his constitutional authority in his dealings with the Ukraine.
Time for me to walk on down the road....
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