White House sees blueprint for stonewalling Democrats after subpoena win by former aide

As House Democrats prepare for public impeachment hearings next week, White House officials say there is an overlooked ray of good news after Democrats dropped a subpoena rather than risk an unfavorable ruling and a loss of time.

Charles Kupperman, deputy to former national security adviser John Bolton, on Wednesday challenged a subpoena to appear privately before the House Intelligence Committee. Democrats dropped the request rather than wait for a Dec. 10 court hearing.

A day later, Bolton did not appear for a scheduled voluntary deposition. He also is represented by Charles Cooper, Kupperman's attorney.

“Now they won’t touch Bolton because Kupperman and Bolton have the same lawyer, who is playing hardball,” a White House official told the Washington Examiner.

The White House official said the standoff was a "huge loss" for Democrats, who backed down out of fear they would “lose in a very public way.”

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