August 22, 2025.

In these last days of August, with Congress on hiatus and the Epstein files looming,

the Trump White House appears to be making a big move to consolidate power over the federal government, weaponize

it against Trump's opponents, and keep him in power indefinitely. At around 7 o'clock this

morning, FBI agents searched the home and office of Trump's former national security adviser

John Bolton, who has been a fierce critic of Trump

since leaving his first administration. Officials told reporters the search was part of an

investigation into whether Bolton illegally retained classified information or leaked it to news media.

But as JV. Last of the bulwark noted, an investigation into classified

documents from several years ago, as opposed to a search of, say, a drug dealer, would normally

mean the government officials would have had a conversation with Bolton's lawyers and arranged

for a routine search to which Bolton agreed. Instead, agents stormed his house and office in an early morning raid.

The raid seems a pretty clear warning to those Trump perceives as enemies

that he will bring the full weight of the United States government to harass them.

Bolton has been a thorn in Trump's side for years because he is a

well-known right-wing figure who has not been shy about speaking out against Trump. As recently as last week,

Bolton told CNN that Trump had achieved very little by meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin

in Alaska and that Putin clearly won.

He also noted that Trump looked tired.

Earlier this month, when ABC's Jonathan Carl asked Bolton if he was worried Trump would come

after him as part of the president's retribution campaign being waged through the FBI and the

Department of Justice,

...