The US Justice Department, in a letter to the Hachette Book Group, publisher of 'A Warning', is seeking to reveal details about the anonymous author, described as a "senior Trump administration official," according to Fox News. The DoJ letter reportedly warns that the author may be subject to a breach in their nondisclosure agreements.
"If the author is, in fact, a current or former 'senior official' in the Trump administration, publication of the book may violate that official's legal obligations under one or more nondisclosure agreements, including nondisclosure agreements that are routinely required with respect to information obtained in the course of one's official responsibilities or as a condition for access to classified information," wrote Joseph Hunt, assistant attorney general, quoted by Fox News.
The letter further explained that nondisclosure agreements ordinarily impose pre-publication revisions of written work that could be “potentially containing protected information”.
“Courts have approved the imposition of a constructive trust to collect the proceeds of the breach generated by an unapproved publication," Hunt’s letter reportedly reads.
The Hachette Book Group, which confirmed receiving the assistant attorney general’s letter, announced that it would not reveal the identity of the author, Fox News reported.
"Hachette is not party to any nondisclosure agreements with the US government that would require any pre-publication review of this book," wrote company Executive Vice President and General Counsel Carol F. Ross, cited by Fox News.
The writer of an op-ed titled "I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration," published on 5 September 2018 by the New York Times, promised to continue uncovering the Trump administration by writing a book that would be published in November 2019.
"This explosive book offers a shocking, first-hand account of President Trump and his record," the publishing company reportedly said in a press release earlier this year.
