The FBI came for former National Security Advisor John Bolton before dawn. Cars with flashing lights. Agents with a warrant. The neighbors watched from behind curtains.
They said it was about classified documents. They always say that.
Bolton knew the price of speaking out. He had served as Trump’s third national security adviser. He had sat in the room where it happened. Then he wrote a book about it.
The White House tried to stop the book in 2020. A judge said no. The Justice Department opened a case. Biden’s team closed it. Now it is open again.
This is how it works now. The raid on the dissident is a message to us all, and a challenge for Americans to continue, because there are two sets of rules in this country.
On his first day back in office, Trump stripped Bolton of his security detail. Iran had threatened Bolton’s life. There was a plot in 2022. It didn’t matter. The protection vanished.
According to court documents, Shahram Poursafi, 45, of Tehran, Iran, attempted to pay individuals in the United States $300,000 in cryptocurrency to carry out the murder the murder of Bolton in retaliation for the January 2020 death of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps – Qods Force (IRGC-QF) commander Qasem Soleimani.
“An attempted assassination of a former U.S. Government official on U.S. soil is completely unacceptable and will not be tolerated,” said Assistant Director in Charge Steven M. D’Antuono of the FBI Washington Field Office. D’Antuono has since left his FBI post for the private sector.
“Iran has a history of plotting to assassinate individuals in the U.S. it deems a threat, but the U.S. Government has a longer history of holding accountable those who threaten the safety of our citizens,” said Executive Assistant Director Larissa L. Knapp of the FBI’s National Security Branch. “Let there be no doubt: The FBI, the U.S. government, and our partners remain vigilant in the fight against such threats here in the U.S. and overseas.”
Today, Knapp works for the Motion Picture Association (MPA), fighting against illegal streaming services on behalf of Amazon, Apple TV+, Netflix, Paramount Global, Sony Pictures, Universal Studios, The Walt Disney Studios, and Warner Bros. Discovery.
Now the FBI is at Bolton’s door.
Bolton’s not alone. Letitia James. Adam Schiff. James Comey. The list grows. If you criticize the president, you become a target. The law becomes a weapon.
Since returning to office, Trump’s campaign to exact revenge against his foes has turned out to be far more expansive, creative, efficient — and less reliant on the justice system — than anticipated.
In addition to revoking his security clearance, the Pentagon removed Gen. Mark A. Milley’s security detail, ordered an inspector general inquiry into his record and took down his portrait from the hallways of the Pentagon.
Trump terminated the security protection for Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top government official charged with the response to the pandemic.
The administration fired more than a dozen prosecutors who worked for the special counsel Jack Smith on two criminal investigations into Trump. Senior FBI employees were told to resign. Veteran career lawyers who managed pardon work, bankruptcy litigation, and other legal issues were forced out in the latest wave of departures.
The bureau issued a statement: “Court authorized activity. No threat to public safety.” Cold words for a political operation.
On social media, Trump’s appointees cheered. The FBI director posted: “No one is above the law.” The attorney general quoted him: “Justice will be pursued. Always.” Keep in mind, these are people who work for Donald Trump, a man who has been impeached, indicted, and convicted.
They did not mention that the case had already been closed. They did not mention that the book had already been published. They did not mention that Bolton’s crime was not holding secrets—it was telling them.
Trump’s former national security adviser-turned-critic’s house and office are being turned inside out, much like the truth in so many cases under this fascist dictatorship.
Bolton did not answer the door for reporters. His lawyer did not return calls.
In the Oval Office, Trump once trusted this man. Now he hunts him.
The sun rose over Maryland. The agents carried out boxes.
This is not about classified information. It is about power. It is about fear. It is about what happens to those who break ranks.
The raid is the message.
Everyone is watching.