Secret Service Protecting John Bolton

Secret Service Police vehicles have been monitoring the home of John Bolton, a former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, for at least the past two days.

On Wednesday and Thursday, two white SUVs, marked as belonging to the Secret Service Police, were parked across the street from Bolton’s home in a Maryland suburb of Washington, D.C. The vehicles were backed into the lot, with an officer in each one looking out at Bolton’s home. Thursday afternoon there was an uptick in activity, with three marked vehicles and several unmarked ones standing by as people carrying black bags left the residence. Public records confirm that the house belongs to Bolton.

The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations under George W. Bush and national security advisor for Donald Trump, Bolton is currently a foreign-policy pundit advocating for increased U.S. involvement in Ukraine. Bolton also runs his own super PAC.

It is not immediately clear why Bolton or his home merits Secret Service protection. Although that agency is best known for protecting the president, it is also authorized to protect other individuals if an executive order calls for it, as well as in the case of “national special security events.” The agency’s uniformed division guards facilities and venues on behalf of people under Secret Service protection.

A Secret Service spokesperson declined to explain the officers’ presence, stating, “In order to maintain operational security, the Secret Service does not discuss protective operations or protectees.” The former ambassador did not respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for his PAC declined to speak on the record. The White House also didn’t reply to an inquiry, but a search of its website for executive orders to protect John Bolton yielded no results.

The elevated security presence has drawn the attention of Bolton’s neighbors posting on Next Door, an app that allows people living in the same neighborhood to communicate. One person who lives in the area told Forbes that she first noticed increased security in front of Bolton’s house a few weeks ago. “The level of coverage seems to have escalated,” the person said, explaining that she first noticed an unmarked black SUV, then a sedan with a U.S. government license plate, then the two Secret Service Police vehicles, all of which were manned.

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https://www.forbes.com/sites/zacheverson/2022/01/28/the-secret-service-is-watching-former-ambassador-john-boltons-house/?sh=7ce35ea6882a