The FBI on Friday searched the home of John Bolton, Donald Trump's former National Security Advisor and currently one of his most visible critics. The agents' raid on Bolton's private residence in Bethesda, a wealthy neighborhood in northwest Washington, is part of an investigation into the alleged use of classified documents by the former official. A spokesperson for the federal law enforcement agency confirmed the development of"court-approved activity" in the area. The former ambassador to the UN was not at home at the time of the search.
FBI Director Kash Patel, a staunch supporter of the president, posted on social media early Friday as the search was taking place: “No one is above the law.” According to The Washington Post, the order to launch this investigation came from Patel himself, who in a 2023 book included Bolton on a list of alleged members of “the sewers of the state.”
For his part, Trump has distanced himself from the federal agents' raid on his former aide's home, claiming to have little information about the raid. But he also took the opportunity to attack Bolton, calling him a"criminal" and "a dimwitted guy." "It could be very unpatriotic. We'll see," he told reporters during a visit to the White House museum.
Bolton, a prolific commentator and frequent guest on television political analysis programs, served as ambassador to the UN under George W. Bush (2001-2009) before becoming Trump's third National Security Advisor in his first term. A fiercely hawkish foreign policy hawk, the neoconservative held the position in the Trump White House for 17 months. During that time, he frequently clashed with the president over how to proceed on a whole range of geopolitical issues. From North Korea, with whose leader, the autocrat Kim Jong-un, Trump wanted to meet—he did so three times—to Afghanistan and Iraq.
The then-advisor published a memoir, The Room Where It Happened, about his time in the West Wing after his resignation in 2019. The White House's office unsuccessfully sought to prevent the book from going to press, claiming it contained classified material.
Since returning to power, Trump has taken a series of steps against those he believes have harmed him as president in his first term or as a candidate for his second. Among other matters, his administration has announced the opening of investigations into prosecutors Jack Smith and Letitia James, who brought charges against Trump in separate cases—Smith's criminal case, James's civil case—before the Republican's election victory.
The current administration is also investigating Democratic Representative Adam Schiff, who led the congressional investigation into the January 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol and the possible role Trump may have played in that attempt by his supporters to prevent the confirmation of Democratic rival Joe Biden's electoral victory, for alleged mortgage fraud.
But the search of Bolton's home appears to be the most forceful gesture yet, and an escalation in this Administration's apparent use of the instruments of power against those it considers its enemies.
On the day of his inauguration for his second term, January 20, Trump signed an order to revoke the security clearances of nearly 50 former senior officials in his administration, including Bolton. The president also ordered the removal of security clearances for his former advisor, who has received death threats from Iran.
Following the summit in Alaska between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin a week ago to discuss the war in Ukraine, the former UN ambassador declared that the Kremlin leader"clearly won" the meeting and that although the president "didn't lose," he did appear "tired" on camera.
Bolton has also criticized Patel in the past. In December, a month before Trump's inauguration, he told CNN, where he is a commentator, that the Senate should reject the current FBI director's confirmation"by a vote of 100 to 0." Patel was eventually confirmed.
