Donald Trump took to his Truth Social platform Friday to mock former National Security Adviser John Bolton, hours after Bolton pleaded guilty to a federal charge related to mishandling classified information. The plea agreement is set to dismiss 17 other counts against Bolton.
Trump, who has had a contentious relationship with Bolton since their time in the White House, called his former aide "a very dumb, unbalanced, and unskilled former representative of the United States of America." He added, "He is a terrible person, a lunatic who only wanted to start trouble and wars, and who was a needless pusher of death and destruction wherever he went. Hopefully, he will be dealt with harshly!"
Bolton, 77, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, Maryland, to one count of unauthorized possession of a national defense document. As part of the plea agreement, prosecutors are recommending a sentence of up to five years in prison and a $2.25 million fine. He will also face three years of supervised release, up to 100 hours of community service, and will forfeit his federal retirement pension.
Prosecutors alleged that Bolton unlawfully retained classified national defense information after leaving his role as national security adviser. The documents, which included sensitive intelligence on covert action programs, human intelligence sources and methods, and foreign military threats, were reportedly shared with two family members via a personal email account. FBI Director Kash Patel stated that the investigation proved Bolton knowingly transmitted top-secret information using personal online accounts and kept the documents at his residence, violating federal law.
Bolton served as Trump's national security adviser from April 2018 to September 2019. The two men have publicly disagreed on the circumstances of Bolton's departure from the administration, with Trump stating he fired Bolton and Bolton claiming he resigned. Their relationship further soured following the 2020 publication of Bolton's memoir, "The Room Where It Happened," which offered a critical account of Trump's presidency. The Trump administration attempted, unsuccessfully, to block the book's publication, citing concerns over classified information.
Bolton's attorney, Abbe Lowell, defended his client's decision, stating that it demonstrated accountability and saved the government resources. Lowell contrasted Bolton's actions with those of former President Trump, alleging that Trump "thumbed his nose at the classified information laws, took actual classified documents to his Florida mansion, interfered with the investigation of that conduct, and has never accepted any accountability for his conduct."