Worst-case scenario’ unfolding as Trump sends new ‘message’ to critics: legal expert

FBI Director Kash Patel decided to send agents to search the house of John Bolton, one of Donald Trump’s well-known critics. Reports say this was meant as a warning and part of Trump’s promise of payback during his 2024 campaign.

CNN’s legal expert, Joey Jackson, said this move should worry people because it shows how far the Justice Department might go to serve the president’s interests. Early in the morning, around 7 a.m., FBI agents and local police arrived at Bolton’s home with a warrant. They claimed it was for national security reasons. This happened on a day when the House of Representatives was meeting again, and Trump’s past connections with Jeffrey Epstein were starting to make headlines once more.

Jackson spoke on CNN and suggested that Trump might have been behind the raid, using it to show what could happen to anyone who speaks out against him.

He said that, in the best case, the Department of Justice was simply doing its job: protecting national security and making sure rules are followed. He added that if that’s true, there’s a proper process for investigation through the FBI and the courts.

But he warned of a darker possibility. In the worst case, this raid was political revenge. He explained that if he were Bolton’s lawyer, he would say this is what happens when someone publicly criticizes the president—you get targeted. According to him, the message being sent is clear: speak against the president, and you might face a raid, jail time, or crushing legal costs that could ruin you financially.

He even added that this kind of action could spread to other areas, like universities. If they teach something the president doesn’t like, they could lose funding. Jackson called this a dangerous situation, describing it as an alarming and unusual time both legally and practically.