Key Aide to John Bolton Supporting Romney

Thomas A. Schweich of Missouri, a onetime chief of staff to former UN Ambassador John Bolton, has publicly endorsed Mitt Romney’s candidacy, reports POLITICO.

Schweich, who was elected State Auditor in 2010, was one of several big name Republicans in the Show Me State to throw their support to Romney on Thursday.

Romney’s other Missouri backers include former U.S. Sen. Jim Talent, state Senate Majority Leader Tom Dempsey and state House floor leader Tim Jones. Talent is a longtime Romney supporter.

Bolton, who had headlined a fundraiser for Schweich during his 2010 campaign for Missouri State Auditor — a race in which the Harvard-educated lawyer defeated incumbent Democrat Susan Montee by more than 100,000 votes — had long understood that his former assistant would be supporting Romney.

Schweich, who once served as chief of staff on former Sen. John Danforth’s team investigating the Waco incident, said that he had spoken with Bolton prior to making the announcement.

Bolton, who is still weighing a presidential candidacy of his own, indicated that there were no hard feelings over the endorsement. “He told me he was for Romney before I was looking at it. I am not at all upset with this,” the longtime diplomat said in an email to POLITICO.

Bolton, who plans his first trip into New Hampshire in early September, hasn’t indicated when he’ll make a decision regarding the race.