Trump's former national security adviser, John Bolton, said the president ended his Secret Service protection immediately after returning to the White House this week.
“I am disappointed, but not surprised, by President Trump's decision to end the protections previously provided by the U.S. Secret Service,” Bolton said in an emailed statement to The Hill on Tuesday. “I don't think so.” “Despite my criticism of President Biden's national security policies, he made the decision to extend that protection to me in 2021.”
Bolton has long been a hawk on Iran. He served in the first Trump administration until November 2019, but after leaving office, he received an assassination threat from Iran.
The former ambassador, who has become a fierce critic of President Trump since leaving the White House, had his national security details rescinded by Trump during his first White House term. Former President Biden restored and extended protections in 2021, Bolton said.
The Secret Service declined to comment when contacted by The Hill.
The Iranian national and member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) was indicted by the Department of Justice (DOJ) in August 2022 for his role in a murder-for-hire plot against Bolton.
The government offered a reward of up to $20 million for information leading to the arrest or conviction of members of the Revolutionary Guards. The Justice Department alleged in late September last year that Shahram Poursafi attempted to hire someone to kill Bolton between October 2021 and April 2022. In return, the person was to be paid $300,000.
“The Department of Justice has filed criminal charges against an Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps official for trying to hire a hitman to target me in 2022,” Bolton said Tuesday.
“That threat remains today, as evidenced by the recent arrest of a man who attempted to plot the assassination of President Trump himself,” he added. “The American people can decide for themselves which president made the right decision.”
The Hill has reached out to the White House for comment.
