Investigations: Trump critic in sight-FBI raid at ex-consultant Bolton

In the United States, the Federal Police FBI acted against one of the sharpest critics of US President Donald Trump. According to media reports, she searched the house of Trump’s former national security advisor, John Bolton. TV pictures showed FBI employees in front of a house in the US state of Maryland near Washington. A CNN reporter reported that Bolton’s office in Washington had also been controlled by FBI agents. Observers also see a demonstration of power from the White House in the procedure.

The background of the search was initially unclear. CNN, citing a person familiar with the matter, reported that the procedure was part of a – unspecified – examination on national security. The “New York Times” wrote, citing two anonymous sources, investigations should clarify whether Bolton could have illegally passed on or obsessed with secret information.

Trump denied the question of journalists whether he had knowledge of the FBI raid at Bolton. “No, I don’t know anything. I saw it on TV this morning,” he said, adding: “I’m not a fan of John Bolton. He is a kind of good for good.” He instructed US Justice Minister Pam Bondi to “do what needs to be done.” At the same time, he did not want to know exactly what the politician close to him is up to.

Criticism of raid – “retaliation, simple and simple”

The broadcaster NBC News quoted a Bolton, who saw the raid repeated criticism of Trump in response to Bolton. “It is retaliation, simple and simple,” she said. “Trump’s Ministry of Justice has lost any presumption of legality,” the “New York Times” quoted the legal professor at the University of Michigan and former US prosecutor during the Obama government, Barbara McQuade.

The left Senator Bernie Sanders wrote on X, Bolton and he had nothing in common politically. “But as far as I know, in America you can criticize the President of the United States without the FBI opening at the front door,” he continued. This is just a further step in Trump’s march towards authoritarianism.

Former friend, today enemy

Bolton was at times his national security advisor in Trump’s first term (2017-2021). The long -time diplomat Bolton, who is considered a foreign policy hardliner, resigned in the dispute with Trump after about a year and a half.

In 2020, Bolton then published a revelation book (“The Room Where It Happened”), in which he drew a devastating picture of Trump. The Trump government had tried unsuccessfully to stop the publication. She accused him of publishing secret information. At times there was also an investigation into whether Bolton passed on secret information. However, procedures related to the revelation book have been set again.

Only shortly after the beginning of his second term, Trump had the personal protection for Bolton withdrawn from the Secret Service. The Secret Service is responsible for the protection of senior politicians and not only takes care of the safety of active mandate holders, but also for some former incumbent.

Bolton recently criticized Trump again in the Ukraine War because of his dealing with Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin. The former advisor himself wrote on the day of the FBI search on the platform X: Russia did not change his goal of pulling Ukraine into a new Russian empire. “In the meantime, meetings will continue because Trump wants to have the Nobel Peace Prize – but I don’t see any progress in these conversations.”