The FBI is searching the Maryland home of John Bolton, who served in President Donald Trump’s first administration as national security adviser but later became critical of the president, as part of an investigation into the handling of classified documents, a person familiar with the matter said Friday.
The person was not authorized to discuss the investigation by name and spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press.
Messages left with a spokesperson for Bolton and the White House were not immediately returned. A lawyer who has represented Bolton had no immediate comment Friday.
Here's the latest:
Trump arrives at Kennedy Center, which he says he’s going to renovate
The president, making a stop that wasn’t on his public schedule, arrived at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. He told reporters at an earlier stop that he planned to show them marble that would be used in sprucing up the center, along with other planned renovations such as painting the columns from gold to white.
Trump has taken over the center by installing himself as chair and replacing the board of trustees with loyalists. He has also hinted he’d like to see the venue renamed the Trump/Kennedy Center.
Trump said he didn’t know about Bolton raid but says former adviser ‘could be a very unpatriotic guy’
The president, speaking to reporters during an unscheduled visit to the White House Historical Association, said he saw the raid of Bolton’s home on television Friday morning but he didn’t know anything about it.
“He is a, not a smart guy. But he could be very a very unpatriotic guy. We’re going to find out.”
He said he expected to be briefed later in the day about the search of Bolton’s home and office.
“I’m not a fan of John Bolton. He’s a real, sort of, a lowlife,” he said.
Trump visits White House Historical Association
The president made a surprise visit Friday morning to the White House Historical Association, which sits less than a block away from the White House on Pennsylvania Avenue.
It wasn’t clear what he was doing there and the visit wasn’t on his official schedule.
Trump could be spotted on video posted on social media walking into the building with his chief of staff Susie Wiles.
The association has a gift shop and a replica of the Oval Office as part of its educational center about the White House.
Powell signals Fed may cut rates soon even as inflation risks remain
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Friday opened the door ever so slightly to lowering a key interest rate in the coming months but gave no hint on the timing of a move and suggested the central bank will proceed cautiously as it continues to evaluate the impact of tariffs and other policies on the economy.
In a high-profile speech that will be closely watched at the White House and on Wall Street, Powell said there are risks of both rising unemployment and stubbornly higher inflation. That puts the Fed in a tough spot, because it would typically cut its short-term rate to boost hiring, while keeping it high — or raising it — to fight inflation.
“The stability of the unemployment rate and other labor market measures allows us to proceed carefully as we consider changes to our policy stance,” Powell said in prepared remarks. That suggests the Fed will continue to evaluate jobs and inflation data as it decides whether to cut rates, including at its next meeting Sept. 16-17.
▶ Read more about Powell and the Federal Reserve
Trump threatens to tighten grip on DC
In an overnight social media post, Trump said he was considering “a complete and total Federal takeover of the City!”
He’s already seized control of the local police department for 30 days, which could be extended with congressional approval.
Trump has claimed the city is in the midst of a crime crisis despite statistics showing a declining problem. The U.S. attorney in Washington has opened an investigation into the numbers, the latest pressure point in a tug of war between the administration and D.C. government.
“Mayor Muriel Bowser must immediately stop giving false and highly inaccurate crime figures, or bad things will happen,” the president wrote.
At Bolton’s home as the FBI search is underway
A few local police cars were stationed across the street from Bolton’s house outside Washington as FBI agents passed in and out. The tan-and-brick structure is set back from a two-lane road on a leafy suburban street.
Reporters and curious neighbors gathered across the street, including a man who gave only his first name as David. He said it appears Bolton is being targeted because of his disagreement with the Trump, a “frightening” prospect.
The crowd grew to include prominent Trump critic George Conway as passing cars slowed near the scene. One driver shouted “shame on you!”
An Iranian operative was charged with plotting to kill Bolton in 2022
The plot was in presumed retaliation for a January 2020 U.S. airstrike that killed the country’s most powerful general. Bolton had by then left the Trump administration but tweeted, “Hope this is the first step to regime change in Tehran.”
Bolton became a strong Trump critic after leaving his administration
In his book “The Room Where It Happened,” Bolton portrayed Trump as grossly ill-informed about foreign policy and said he “saw conspiracies behind rocks, and remained stunningly uninformed on how to run the White House, let alone the huge federal government.”
Trump responded by slamming Bolton as a “crazy” war-monger who would have led the country into “World War Six.”
Trump’s schedule for Friday
The president is scheduled to make an “announcement” at noon ET in the Oval Office. It’s unclear what it will be about.
This is the only event on Trump’s public schedule.
Trump officials previously scrutinized Bolton’s scathing book
Bolton faced scrutiny during the first Trump administration over a book he wrote about his time in government, “The Room Where it Happened,” that officials argued disclosed classified information.
The Justice Department in 2021 abandoned its lawsuit and dropped a separate grand jury investigation.
Bolton’s lawyers have said he moved forward with the book, which was published in 2020, after a White House National Security Council official, with whom Bolton had worked for months, had said the manuscript no longer contained classified information.
Bolton seen at Washington office talking to FBI agents
As the search was ongoing, Bolton could be seen standing inside in the lobby of the Washington building where he keeps an office and talking to two people with “FBI” visible on their vests.
He was spotted by an Associated Press reporter who arrived at the building. He left a few minutes later and appeared to have gone upstairs in the building.
Roger Stone: ‘How does it feel?’
Longtime political adviser Roger Stone, who was prosecuted during the Russia investigation and later pardoned by Trump, was gleeful on social media.
“How does it feel to have your home raided at 6 o’clock in the morning?” he posted.
Intelligence leaders posted online about the search of Bolton’s home
FBI Director Kash Patel, who in a 2023 book he wrote included Bolton in a list of “members of the Executive Branch Deep State,” posted on X: “NO ONE is above the law… @FBI agents on mission.” Attorney General Pam Bondi shared his post, adding: “America’s safety isn’t negotiable. Justice will be pursued. Always.”
Bolton has not been detained or charged with any crimes
That’s according to a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to discuss the investigation by name and spoke on the condition of anonymity to The Associated Press.
— Eric Tucker
Bolton’s security clearance was revoked in January
On his first day back in office this year, Trump, a Republican, revoked the security clearances of more than four dozen former intelligence officials, including Bolton. Bolton was also among a trio of former Trump officials whose security details were canceled by Trump earlier this year.
What to know about John Bolton
During Trump’s first term, Bolton served as the president’s third national security adviser for 17 months and clashed with him over Iran, Afghanistan and North Korea. The first Trump administration had unsuccessfully sought to block the publication of a Bolton book that it said contained classified information.
The Associated Press
