FBI Reveals Classified Documents Were Found in John Bolton's Office

Federal agents uncovered classified records at former national security adviser John Bolton’s Washington, D.C., office last month, raising fresh questions about the longtime establishment figure who has repeatedly attacked President Donald J. Trump.

According to Politico, the FBI executed a federal search warrant on Aug. 22, seizing documents that included references to weapons of mass destruction, the United Nations, and U.S. strategic communications. Court filings released Tuesday confirmed the discovery.

While the FBI inventory did not specify the total number of pages, it noted that some folders were marked “confidential” and that pages inside carried “secret” classification labels. At least one heading was redacted from the public list.

That same morning, agents also combed through Bolton’s home in Bethesda, Maryland, seizing computers and electronic devices. Although no classified files were immediately flagged there, investigators are pursuing potential felony violations, including charges under the Espionage Act and the unauthorized retention of classified material.

Bolton’s Checkered History

Bolton is no stranger to controversy over classified information. In 2020, a federal judge warned that his decision to include sensitive national security details in his memoir may have been criminal. The Biden Justice Department dropped that probe in 2021, giving him a pass that many conservatives argue would never have been granted to President Trump or his allies.

Bolton’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, defended the discovery, insisting that many of the documents had already been cleared during a pre-publication review of Bolton’s book:

“These materials, many of which are documents that had been previously approved as part of a pre-publication review for Amb. Bolton’s book, were reviewed and closed years ago,” Lowell said.

“These are the kinds of ordinary records, many of which are 20 years old or more, that would be kept by a 40-year career official who served at the State Department, as an Assistant Attorney General, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, and the National Security Advisor.”

Lowell claimed the documents dated from 1998 to 2006, during Bolton’s service under President George W. Bush.

A Sworn Enemy of Trump

Bolton, who was fired by President Trump during his first term, has since become a fixture on cable news attacking the president. He openly celebrated when the FBI raided Mar-a-Lago in 2022.

In June 2023, Bolton posted on X (formerly Twitter):

“All American voters should read the full text of the Trump indictment, and then consult their own consciences. If Trump has done what has alleged, he should be convicted and punished.”

Now, with classified material reportedly found in his own office, critics say Bolton’s moral grandstanding looks hypocritical at best — and potentially criminal at worst.