Written by Matthew Daniels.

In a surprising turn of events, Scott Ritter, a former United Nations weapons inspector and a vocal critic of Joe Biden, NATO, and Israel, found his home raided by the FBI on Wednesday. The raid was reportedly linked to a potential violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), a law requiring lobbyists for foreign governments to register with the Justice Department.

Ritter, clearly frustrated, denied any wrongdoing. “I will tell you right now I am not in violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act,” he asserted to reporters outside his home. He went on to express hope that the FBI would swiftly conclude their investigation and clear his name. “There’s no doubt I’m being targeted because of statements I’ve made about U.S. policy in Ukraine, I’m being targeted because of an effort to improve relations,” Ritter claimed, pointing to a broader issue—an attack on free speech in America.

This isn’t Ritter’s first clash with U.S. authorities. Just this past June, U.S. officials seized Ritter’s passport while he was on his way to an international conference in Russia. Attempting to board a flight in New York to attend the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, he was stopped in his tracks, passport confiscated, leaving Ritter once again at odds with the government.

A History of Criticism: Ritter’s Strained Relationship with Biden

Ritter’s outspokenness isn’t new; he has long been a thorn in the side of Biden’s foreign policy. In 2022, Ritter made headlines by labeling Biden “a war criminal” due to his actions in Ukraine. Ritter didn’t mince words, accusing the President of promoting anti-Russian propaganda to conceal alleged Ukrainian war crimes. In a now-deleted social media post, Ritter sarcastically congratulated America on creating “yet another Presidential war criminal.”

The animosity between Ritter and Biden, however, dates back decades. In 1998, when Biden was a U.S. Senator, Ritter testified before the Senate in his role as a UN weapons inspector. Biden, unimpressed with Ritter’s work, criticized him for supposedly failing to perform his duties effectively. This tension only deepened when Biden later refused to have Ritter testify during Senate hearings on Iraq’s alleged weapons of mass destruction—a decision that became controversial when Ritter’s claims that Iraq lacked WMDs were eventually proven correct.

Despite his critical stances, Ritter’s past has its own dark chapters. He has previous convictions for unlawful contact with a minor and criminal solicitation, casting a shadow over his public persona. However, these convictions do not diminish the importance of the questions raised by the recent FBI raid.

Our Take

Scott Ritter’s experience serves as a stark reminder of the fragile balance between national security and civil liberties. While the law must be upheld, the timing and nature of the FBI’s actions raise legitimate concerns about whether dissenting voices are being unfairly targeted. If critics of U.S. foreign policy can be silenced under the guise of law enforcement, we risk sliding down a slippery slope that endangers the very freedoms our country stands for.