Gretchen Smith is John Bolton’s wife. She is a financial planner with AXA Advisors. The couple has a daughter, Jennifer, together. Bolton was previously married to a woman named Christine between 1972 and 1983. Gretchen and Bolton were married in January 1986.
In September 2019, Bolton resigned as the National Security Advisor to President Donald Trump. Trump tweeted on September 10, “I informed John Bolton last night that his services are no longer needed at the White House. I disagreed strongly with many of his suggestions, as did others in the Administration, and therefore I asked John for his resignation, which was given to me this morning. I thank John very much for his service. I will be naming a new National Security Advisor next week.”
A May 2005 New York Times feature on John Bolton saw friends describe him as a “very private person who is devoted to his wife.” When President George W. Bush appointed Bolton as the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, the then-president thanked Gretchen for her “service and sacrifice.”
Here’s what you need to know about the love of John Bolton’s life:
1. Gretchen Studied at the Same College as President Donald Trump
GettyJohn Bolton and his wife Gretchen arrive at the White House for a state dinner April 24, 2018 in Washington, DC .
According to Gretchen Smith’s LinkedIn page, she studied at The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. That’s the same school that President Donald Trump attended between 1966 and 1968. Gretchen attended slightly later, attaining a certificate in retirement planning from the school in 2007. On her LinkedIn page, Gretchen describes herself as “helping individuals and businesses build financial security and success.’ Gretchen says that she uses “a practical approach” to help a client to achieve “specific financial goals.”
Gretchen has also studied at the American College, Wellesley College and gained a Master’s degree at New York University. She has worked as a financial advisor for more than 25 years. Gretchen has worked at AXA Advisors in the Washington D.C.-area since 1993. On her Facebook page, Gretchen says that she is a native of Kansas City, Missouri.
2. Gretchen Smith Ran in the 2013 Boston Marathon
GettyBolton (R) sits in the Oval Office of the White House with his wife Gretchen Bolton (C) after a meeting with US President George W. Bush December 4, 2006 in Washington, DC.
In nine years on Twitter, Bolton has tweeted about his wife twice, in April 2015, wishing her luck in the Boston Marathon:
Good luck to my amazing wife Gretchen who is about to run the #BostonMarathon Be #BostonStrong ! http://t.co/UJjbfjZG5Z
In a tweet the day before that message, Bolton wrote, “My wife was running in the @bostonmarathon marathon two years ago .. And she’s running again on Monday. #BostonStrong.” In the wake of the terrorist bombing that befell the 2013 race, Gretchen was one of the many runners who were unable to complete the run. Though she returned to finish the race in 2014.
3. Gretchen Learned She Was Pregnant With the Couple’s Daughter While They Were on Their Honeymoon to China
GettyThe Bolton’s pictured with former President George W. Bush in 2007.
A 2005 feature in the Baltimore Sun on Bolton detailed that the couple found out that Gretchen was pregnant with their first child while they were on their honeymoon. The couple’s trip took them to China, Nepal and Tibet, according to the article. In the same piece, Gretchen describes her husband as “relatively soft-spoken, shy man who asserts himself where he thinks is necessary.”
11. NSA Ambassador John Bolton and Gretchen Bolton arrive at the State Dinner. They didn’t smile.
Gretchen continued, “I think his outspoken speeches, his forthrightness, is something people value because they know exactly where he stands. It doesn’t mean everyone always agrees with him, but they know what he thinks.”
4. The Couple’s Daughter, Jennifer Bolton, Is a Senior Manager at Nissan
John Bolton’s daughter, Jennifer, pictured with her mother in November 2017.
The Bolton’s daughter, Jennifer, is a senior manager with auto-manufacturer, Nissan, and is based in Nashville, Tennessee, according to her LinkedIn page. Jennifer has worked as a manufacturer since June 2014. Jennifer wrote her thesis on the company’s supply chain optimization while she studied mechanical engineering at Yale. Her father graduated from the school in 1970.
Prior to working in the motor industry, Jennifer worked in investment banking for Morgan Stanley, beginning in 2007 as an intern in New York City before moving to Hong Kong from 2010 until 2011. Jennifer had studied for an MBA and a civil engineering degree at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She is also a graduate of Holton Arms preparatory school in Bethesda, Maryland. Jennifer Bolton is also a licensed ski instructor. A 2005 New York Times feature noted that Gretchen and her daughter are avid skiers, while Bolton does not ski.
Jennifer Bolton told the Yale Daily News in October 2015 that she is a conservative but “nothing is certain.” Jennifer didn’t say whether or not she had political ambitions and was tired of denying that she did saying, “It’s pointless. Anyway, everyone at Yale secretly believes that everyone else at Yale wants to be involved with politics.”
5. Gretchen ‘Provides Social Grease’ at Functions the Couple Attends
New York Magazine wrote about Bolton in December 2005 saying that Gretchen provided the “social grease” at functions the couple attended together. The feature described Gretchen as “sweet-faced, warm, and unafraid of grabbing guests by their arms and leading them into the dining room.”
When the Bolton’s moved into the U.S. Ambassador to the U.N.’s residence in Manhattan’s Waldorf Towers, Gretchen was pictured smiling while showing reporters around their new home.
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