What Were FBI Agents Looking For At John Bolton's Home?

On "Forbes Newsroom," criminal defense attorney Jo-Anna Nieves discussed the possible goal of FBI agents who raided John Bolton's home.

Transcript

00:00Give us your take. What exactly is the FBI looking for when it comes to John Bolton and his office

00:06and his home? So I think it really starts with what we know about, you know, the 2020 filings

00:14and investigation that was taking place related to John Bolton's book and the allegations that

00:20there were this release of classified material and the efforts to stop the publication of that

00:28book. And so we know for several years now that there's been this concern about whether or not

00:33John Bolton has mishandled classified communications and maybe even retains any of that communication

00:39in his home. And so where we are right now is that there has got to be something, I think,

00:46beyond this prior issue with his memoir that has reignited this probe into that that's led to this

00:55search warrant being approved and executed this morning into his personal spaces.

01:05So to you, it sounds like the timing is especially interesting because he's been a critic for a

01:10number for a number of years. Is the pertinent question why now?

01:15Absolutely. Absolutely. Because if, you know, if there wasn't something additional, I think that it

01:24really would be confusing and kind of lean into that narrative that this is retribution or retaliatory

01:31and kind of, you know, payback for being a critic versus, hey, there is there was something that had

01:38to be declared in an affidavit by a law enforcement officer that was reviewed by an AUSA and submitted to a

01:45magistrate for approval. And that that judge decided that there was probable cause, it was a

01:52particularity and specificity and signed off on a warrant to be executed now. And I find it hard to

02:00believe that it's only based on prior information. That that may be a significant portion of what's in

02:08that affidavit. But there's something that is prompting the investigation now.

02:14Now, you just outlined effectively the steps for getting a warrant. And I'm wondering,

02:18do we know if President Trump issued the order to start this process? Does it go back to him or do we

02:25not know? I am not aware of who initiated this. I mean, what we know right now is Pam Bondi and the

02:33DOJ have effectively, you know, created this group where they are investigating kind of bad acts

02:42throughout the administration and kind of reaching back to a lot of things. We see what's happening

02:46with the Jack Smith probe. And now this John Bolton thing, it does look like people who have criticized

02:52the president are being targeted at the same time, their efforts are kind of masked by this effort to

03:01take down anybody who may be releasing classified documents or doing things, mishandling their

03:10position as a federal employee.