The Daily Fuckup

The dates matter here because they fix the record. John Bolton pleaded guilty in federal court on June 26, 2026. James Comey was indicted by a federal grand jury on April 28, 2026. Those are not the same event, they are not part of the same procedural step, and they did not happen on June 29 or June 30.

Bolton’s case reached a plea on June 26 after the Justice Department said he admitted to willfully retaining national defense information. In its announcement, the department said a federal grand jury had indicted Bolton in October 2025 and that the plea agreement resolved all 18 counts. The court also set sentencing for Oct. 28, 2026. That leaves the case in the sentencing phase, not the trial phase, and it is still moving through the criminal process. ([justice.gov](https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/former-us-national-security-advisor-john-r-bolton-ii-pleads-guilty-violating-espionage-act))

Comey’s case is at a different stage entirely. The Justice Department said the grand jury in the Eastern District of North Carolina returned a two-count indictment on April 28, 2026, accusing the former FBI director of threats to harm President Donald Trump. The indictment says one count stems from a May 15, 2025 Instagram post and that the charges remain accusations unless and until they are proved in court. ([justice.gov](https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/federal-grand-jury-indicts-former-fbi-director-james-comey-threats-harm-president-trump))

The cleaner read is the simpler one: Bolton pleaded guilty on June 26. Comey was indicted on April 28. One case has moved to sentencing, and the other is still at the charging stage. Collapsing those timelines into late-June commentary only muddies what the official record already makes clear. ([justice.gov](https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/former-us-national-security-advisor-john-r-bolton-ii-pleads-guilty-violating-espionage-act))