A timeline of Trump and Bolton’s long-running feud

Mike Bedigan, The Independent

The FBI conducted an early-morning raid at the home of President Donald Trump's former National Security Adviser John Bolton — the latest in the growing feud between the president and ex-confidant. FBI agents moved in and out of Bolton's home in Bethesda, Maryland, on Friday. It was reported to be part of a classified document investigation, but federal investigators have released few details. The raid comes as Bolton has become an outspoken critic of Trump, particularly with regard to the president's approach to Russia. But, just a few years ago, Bolton was one of the president's top foreign policy advisers during Trump's first turn in the White House. He served as National Security Adviser from 2018 to 2019, and was admired by the president.

However, the two clashed especially on North Korea, and Trump fired Bolton with a social media post. That led to Bolton becoming a frequent critic. Here is what you need to know about the feud between the two men and some of the pivotal moments:

March 2018: One year after first being interviewed for the position of National Security Advisor but losing out to HR McMaster, Trump announced on Twitter (now X) that Bolton would be replacing taking up the role — despite rumours that the president was not a fan of Bolton's signature mustache

Things started seemingly well, and a month later Bolton pressed the president to withdraw from the Iran Nuclear Deal, which he did in May.

July 2018: The pair continued to be in-step in July after Bolton declined to comment definitively on whether Russian President Vladimir Putin had been involved in the Kremlin's cyberattacks on the Democratic National Committee during the 2016 presidential campaign.

Even after 12 Russian military intelligence officers were indicted by the US for hacking the DNC, Bolton remained diplomatic, telling Russian radio station Echo Moskvy that any such interference had not affected the outcome of the election.

May 2019: By May the following year, cracks began to show in the relationship, with The New York Times reported that Trump was complaining about Bolton and his advice in private — later undercutting him publicly on North Korea and Iran.

August 2019: The disconnect continued following the emergence of a scandal that alleged Trump had attempted to coerce Ukraine into investigating his political rival Joe Biden — with the aim of damaging the Democrat's 2020 presidential campaign.

Bolton later wrote in his memoir that the president had told him in August 2019 that he wanted to continue to freeze aid to Ukraine until officials there pursued investigations into his rival and other top Democrats.

September 2019: In a post online, Trump announced that Bolton had been fired, saying that he "disagreed strongly with many of his suggestions, as did others in the Administration" — though he did thank Bolton "very much for his service."

Accounts appeared to differ, however, with Bolton writing in response: "I offered to resign last night and President Trump said, 'Let's talk about it tomorrow.'"

The firing came as Bolton tried to stop Trump from signing a peace agreement with the Taliban, according to the New York Times. Trump didn't sign the deal but was upset with how the situation played out. Trump and his advisers were mad about media reports about where Bolton stood and how much support he had for his viewpoint.

November 2019: Despite the firing, Bolton refused to attend his scheduled deposition in the House impeachment inquiry against Trump, threatening to take legal action if he was subpoenaed.

He later said he was willing to testify, but only after a federal court had ruled on the competing claims of the Trump administration and Congress.

January 2020: The Trump administration forces a delay in the publication of Bolton's memoir, "The Room Where it Happened," later filing a federal lawsuit claiming he breached his contract by failing to complete a pre-publication review for classified information.

The 577-page book was eventually published in June that year and offered an unflattering description of the president, painting him as grossly ill-informed about foreign policy. Trump "saw conspiracies behind rocks, and remained stunningly uninformed on how to run the White House, let alone the huge federal government," Bolton wrote.

June 2022: Bolton defended Trump in an interview on CNN about the January 6 riots, according to Axios, saying it was not a planned coup.

"That's not the way Donald Trump does things," Bolton told CNN "It's rambling from one ... idea to another, one plan that falls through, and another comes up."

April 2023: Bolton went back to critising Trump saying it was a mistake for Republicans to align with the president for the 2024 election.

"It goes to the question of character and fitness for the presidency," Bolton told CBS News.

January 2024: In a new foreword to the book, Bolton relayed his fears about a second Trump presidency saying the president was "unfit" for the top job. "If his first four years were bad, a second four will be worse," he wrote.

"For someone who professes to have such great disdain for President Trump, 'Book Deal Bolton' sure has found a way to grift off the relationship," Trump campaign spokesperson Jason Miller told Axios at the time.

Mike Bedigan, The Independent