Trump Terminates Bolton's Secret Service Detail and Security Clearance Hours After Taking Office

Jan 21, 2025, 07:32 PM

Within hours of taking office, President Donald Trump terminated the Secret Service detail assigned to his former National Security Advisor John Bolton and revoked his security clearance, despite ongoing threats from Iran. The Secret Service informed Bolton at 11:30 p.m. on Monday that his protection would end at noon Tuesday. The protection was initially provided after the Department of Justice in 2022 charged an Iranian national and member of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps with plotting to assassinate Bolton. Bolton, who left the Trump administration in 2019, expressed disappointment but not surprise at the decision, noting that President Biden had extended his protection due to the substantial threat from Iran. Critics have accused Trump of prioritizing personal grievances over national security concerns.