Trump revokes protections for former Secretary of State Pompeo and top aide threatened by Iran

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has revoked government security protection for former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his top aide, Brian Hook, who have faced threats from Iran since they took hard-line stances on the Islamic Republic during Trump’s first administration.

A congressional staffer and a person familiar with the matter, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss personal security details, confirmed the change, but neither could offer an explanation. They said that Pompeo and Hook were told of the loss of protection on Wednesday and that it took effect at 11 p.m. that night.

It’s another sign of steps Trump is taking just days into his return to the White House to target those he has perceived as adversaries.

A day earlier, Trump, a Republican, revoked the security clearance and Secret Service protection from John Bolton, who was fired as Trump’s national security adviser during his first term. Bolton later wrote a book whose publication the White House unsuccessfully sought to block on grounds that it disclosed national security information. Bolton, who has been targeted for assassination by Iran, said in a statement that he was disappointed but not surprised by the decision.

Trump also revoked security clearances for dozens of former intelligence officials who signed a 2020 letter saying the Hunter Biden laptop saga bore the hallmarks of a “Russian information operation.”

Trump had soured on Pompeo some months ago, saying publicly that he would play no role in his new administration. In a social media post this week, he fired Hook from his presidentially appointed position on the board of the Wilson Center, a think tank.

Asked about the decision to end Pompeo and Hook’s security, Trump replied to reporters: “Do you want to have a large detail of people guarding people for the rest of their lives? I mean, there’s risks to everything.”

That language was similar to the explanation he gave when asked about Bolton’s security detail.

A representative for Pompeo did not immediately reply to a request for comment, and Hook has not responded to multiple voice and text messages from the AP since Bolton was stripped of his protection on Tuesday.

The New York Times first reported on the loss of protections.

The Biden administration’s State Department had provided and then systematically renewed round-the-clock protection by the Diplomatic Security Service for Pompeo and Hook since Jan. 21, 2021, when they left office along with Trump. The last such authorization was on Oct. 21.

Pompeo and Hook were the public faces of the U.S. “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran after Trump withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal in 2018, which offered relief on sanctions in exchange for drastically limiting its nuclear program. And Iran has blamed both for the killing of Iran Revolutionary Guard commander Qassem Soleimani on Jan. 3, 2020.

According to a March 2022 report to Congress, the State Department said it was paying more than $2 million per month to provide 24-hour security to Pompeo and Hook. But later determinations did not give a dollar amount.

In those notifications, the State Department told lawmakers that threats against Pompeo and Hook remain “serious and credible” and continue to warrant government-provided security details.

Biden administration officials briefed Trump officials earlier this month about the ongoing threat posed by Iran to Pompeo, Hook, Bolton and others and why the administration had extended the security details for them, according to a former senior Biden administration official familiar with the matter.

The official, who requested anonymity to discuss the private briefing, said Trump administration officials are “well aware” of the “active threats” against the former government officials and called the move “highly irresponsible.”