John Bolton

John Bolton
John R. Bolton currently serves as a Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. His area of research is U.S. foreign and national security policy. Prior to arriving at AEI, Amb. Bolton served as the United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations from August 1, 2005 to December 9, 2006. From June 2001 to May 2005, Ambassador Bolton served as Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, also in the Bush Administration. Prior to this, Ambassador Bolton was Senior Vice President of the American Enterprise Institute (AEI). He supervised the AEI research program, financial oversight, dissemination of the AEI research and publications, public affairs and general management. Ambassador Bolton has spent many years of his career in public service. Previous positions he has held are Assistant Secretary for International Organization Affairs at the Department of State, 1989-1993; Assistant Attorney General, Department of Justice, 1985-1989; Assistant Administrator for Program and Policy Coordination, U.S. Agency for International Development, 1982-1983; General Counsel, U.S. Agency for International Development, 1981-1982. Ambassador Bolton is also an attorney. He was an associate at the Washington office of Covington & Burling, and then a member of the firm from 1983-1985, after public service at the U.S. Agency for International Development. He currently is "of counsel" to the law firm of Kirkland & Ellis. Bolton graduated Phi Beta Kappa, summa cum laude from Yale College (1970), and received his J.D. from Yale Law School (1974), where he was editor of the Yale Law Journal. Ambassador Bolton is married to Gretchen Smith Bolton. They have one daughter, Jennifer Sarah, an investment banker in New York.

ARTICLES BY: John Bolton

October 29, 2014 7:28 am

The Latest Push for a Palestinian State

Recent developments in Sweden, the United Kingdom and Ireland exemplify yet another effort to create a Palestinian "state" out of thin air. Sweden's new socialist...

October 8, 2014 7:57 am

President Obama Refuses to Recognize Reality

President Obama's halting, erratic, often contradictory response to the Islamic State's emergence is a classic example how rigid ideology can distort reality. His unwillingness to...

September 17, 2014 6:52 am

Defeating ISIS Will Require American Troops on the Ground

The third brutal beheading of a Westerner by the terrorists of the "Islamic State" (a"Šk"Ša ISIS a"Šk"Ša ISIL) tells us one thing unmistakably: They're not...

September 16, 2014 6:40 am

Iran’s Nuclear Program Continues Full Steam Ahead

Iran's nuclear weapons program, now operating largely outside Barack Obama's attention span, is still making steady progress. While Ukraine's crisis and the creation of the...

September 10, 2014 6:47 am

The United Nations at 70: How to Fix a Broken Organization

As the United Nations begins a year-long celebration of the 70th anniversary of its 1945 founding, it is entirely appropriate that we reassess what the...

September 7, 2014 10:58 am

Pushing Back Against Putin: No U.S. Leadership, No NATO

Vladimir Putin's efforts to establish hegemony over Ukraine may now have reached a decisive point both for the balance of power in Central and Eastern...

August 28, 2014 7:24 pm

Opinion: The Middle East’s Problems Are Ours

Chaos is engulfing the Middle East and North Africa. Islamicist militias have just captured the international airport outside Tripoli, Libya's capital, after a protracted struggle. More...

August 22, 2014 1:05 pm

Opinion: Destroy the ‘Islamic State’

The recent military successes of the Islamic State, also known as ISIS and ISIL, and the ongoing disintegration of Iraq's "central" government have created a...

August 21, 2014 2:38 am

Opinion: It’s Not Too Late for the U.S. to Stop Putin in Ukraine

American and European stock markets have been jumpy for weeks as they contemplate possible armed conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Inside Ukraine, certainly, Kiev's forces...

August 11, 2014 5:45 pm

Opinion: Congress Must Defund the Worst of the United Nations’ Institutions

Although far from central to the ongoing Hamas-Israel hostilities, the United Nations has nonetheless inflicted substantial damage to its own reputation and credibility. So outrageously...

July 15, 2014 10:21 am

Opinion: Who’s to Blame for Iraq’s Descent into Chaos?

Iraq's descent into chaos has sparked a fierce, high-decibel debate over who is responsible, a debate that unfortunately overshadows the one we truly need about...

June 17, 2014 10:52 am

As Iraq Falls Apart, U.S. Must Stay Focused on Iran

Whole forests have been sacrificed since the stunningly swift military advances of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant ("ISIL") to provide enough newsprint...

June 11, 2014 6:36 pm

Opinion: Obama’s Lack of Leadership Reverberates in Europe

Barack Obama's trip to Europe last week for D-Day's 70th anniversary provided yet another manifestation of his failed leadership. Ronald Reagan's memorable 1984 visit to Normandy...

June 6, 2014 1:50 am

Opinion: The High Price of Obama’s Reckless Taliban Swap

The friends and family of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl are understandably happy and relieved that he is free from Taliban captivity after five years. But we, as...