FBI agents conducted a raid on the home of Donald Trump’s former national security adviser, John Bolton, in Washington on Friday morning. According to a report by The Post, the operation is part of an investigation related to national security matters. The operation took place early in the morning, around 7 a.m., at Bolton’s home in the Bethesda area of Maryland. According to a Trump administration official, the search warrant was authorized by FBI Director Kash Patel.
Read: Wall Street Journal: Trump changed rhetoric on Ukraine in four days – Why optimism decreased
“NO ONE is above the law… FBI agents on mission,” Patel wrote in a post on X, shortly after the operation began.
NO ONE is above the law… @FBI agents on mission
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) August 22, 2025
It’s worth noting that the investigation reportedly relates to classified documents and had begun years ago. However, according to a senior American official, the Biden administration had “frozen it for political reasons.”
Bolton’s social media post during the FBI raid
At the same time, it’s worth noting that while agents were at his house, a sharp post appeared on Bolton’s X account regarding Trump’s Ukraine policy. It remains unclear who published it or whether it was scheduled in advance.
“Russia has not changed its goal: drag Ukraine into a new Russian Empire. Moscow has demanded that Ukraine cede territory it already holds and the remainder of Donetsk, which it has been unable to conquer. Zelensky will never do so. Meanwhile, meetings will continue because Trump wants a Nobel Peace Prize, but personally I don’t see anything coming from them,” he noted.
Russia has not changed its goal: drag Ukraine into a new Russian Empire. Moscow has demanded that Ukraine cede territory it already holds and the remainder of Donetsk, which it has been unable to conquer. Zelensky will never do so. Meanwhile, meetings will continue because…
— John Bolton (@AmbJohnBolton) August 22, 2025
The book that changed the balance
In the past, Bolton had been accused of revealing classified information through his book “The Room Where It Happened” (2020). Trump attempted to block its publication, claiming it violated the non-disclosure agreement Bolton had signed, but without success. In September 2020, the Department of Justice launched an investigation regarding the book.
Since then, Bolton’s relationship with Trump has deteriorated, with him frequently appearing on television criticizing the former president’s foreign and defense policies. The raid on Bolton’s home came just one day after revelations by Kash Patel, who claimed that former FBI Director James Comey had leaked classified documents and misled Congress shortly before the 2016 elections.
Patel has stated that his goal is to clean up the public administration from corruption and bring to light cover-ups within the state.
