U.S. President Donald Trump has revoked the Secret Service protection afforded to his outspoken critic and former National Security Adviser John Bolton, according to many observers, as an act of revenge. In a conversation with reporters on January 21, Trump mentioned that Bolton, who worked for his administration, did not have security anymore because, as he emphasized, “You can’t have that for life.”
Bolton, who reportedly faces threats related to an alleged Iranian assassination plot, expressed disappointment but not surprise over the decision. During the White House briefing, Trump defended his action while launching a scathing critique of Bolton, labeling him a “very dumb person” and a “stupid guy.” Trump insisted, “We’re not going to have security on people for the rest of their lives. Why should we?”
Bolton, now 76, served in Trump’s administration during its first term. Trump remarked, “I thought he was a very dumb person, but I used him well because every time people saw me come into a meeting with John Bolton standing behind me, they thought that he’d attack them because he was a warmonger.”
In addition to revoking Bolton’s Secret Service protection, Trump signed an executive order stripping him of his security clearance. This decision was partly based on accusations that Bolton leaked sensitive information from his time in office, as detailed in his critical 2020 memoir.
In an X post, Bolton invoked the current threat on his life, pointing to 2022 Justice Department charges filed against an Iranian Revolutionary Guard official for allegedly hiring a hitman to kill him. He pointed out, “That threat persists today, as further illustrated by the arrest just recently of someone who sought to organize President Trump’s own murder.”
Bolton put that in contrast with the situation of President Joe Biden, who in 2021 chose to extend Secret Service protection to him, despite his criticism of Biden’s national security policies. “The American people can judge for themselves which President made the right call,” he said.
The State Department has placed a $20 million bounty on information leading to the arrest of the alleged Iranian mastermind behind the plot to assassinate Bolton, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. U.S. officials have also indicated that Iran has targeted Trump for assassination in retaliation for the 2020 drone strike that killed Iranian General Qassem Soleimani.
