Obama, Clinton, CNN target of bomb threats
Explosive devices bring condemnation from president, Democrats.
Authorities said Wednesday they had intercepted packages containing homemade explosive devices addressed to former secretary of state Hillary Clinton in New York and former president Barack Obama in Washington, while another bomb was discovered at CNN’s offices in Manhattan.
These devices in Washington and New York prompted bipartisan condemnation and set off spasms of unease across the country, as security and law enforcement officers rushed to scour incoming mail for other potential undiscovered bombs.
The devices sent to Clinton and Obama were found during screening and did not make it to them, officials said.
“The packages were immediately identified during routine mail screening procedures as potential explosive devices and were appropriately handled as such,” the Secret Service said in a statement Wednesday.
“The protectees did not receive the packages nor were they at risk of receiving them.”
In New Yo r k , what “appeared to be a live explosive device” was located in the CNN mailroom, said James P. O’Neill, the New York City police commissioner. O’Neill said the device has been removed from the CNN offices. He also said the pack- age contained an envelope with white powder, which investigators took for testing.
Officials have said the devices sent to Obama, Clinton and CNN appeared to be the work of the same individual. John Miller, the New York police deputy commissioner of intelligence and counterterrorism, said his office was notified by the Secret Ser- vice that the packages sent to Clinton and Obama were “nearly identical.”
“The devices have been what appear to be p ipe bombs,” he said.
President Donald Trump on Wednesday afternoon decried the bombs, saying that “the packages are being inspected by top explosives experts.”
Trump pledged that the federal government would investigate and bring those responsible to justice and offered a condemnation of political violence.
“In these times, we have to unify,” he said. “We have to come together and send one very clear, strong and unmistakable message that acts or threats of political violence of any kind have no place in the United States of America.”
Authorities were quick to label the string of packages terrorism. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell released a statement “condemning today’s attempted acts of domestic terrorism.”
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, D, used similar language.” This clearly is an act of terror,” he said.
As news of the devices spread, authorities vowed to ramp up security measures. The New York Police Department was increasing patrols in areas linked to public figures and possible targets and inspecting packages sent to locations tied to them. The police were also increasing patrols at high-profile areas, including media locations, in New York City.
The Senate sergeant at arms sent a message to senators and their staffers advising them to be cautious when handling mail and reminding people not to bring unopened mail or packages from outside into their Senate offices.
It wasn’t immediately clear, as officials scrambled to prevent possible explosions, how many of the suspicious pack- ages being examined were live bombs or false alarms. The San Diego Union-Tri- bune’s building was briefly evacuated Wednesday morning due to suspicious boxes that wound up containing nothing dangerous.
Another law e nforce- ment official said the pack- ages sent to the public officials this week shared sim- ilar markings, and at least one of them had a return address from Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla.. Authorities do not believe she is involved, an official said. Law enforcement offi- cials were also investigating a suspicious package sent to her Sunrise, Florida, office, the FBI said. Her office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
A similarly constructed package addressed to former attorney general Eric Holder Jr. was intercepted by law enforcement officials, according to people familiar with the investigation.
The Secret Service said the package addressed to the Chappaqua, New York, home of Clinton and former president Bill Clinton was recovered late Tuesday. The pack- age sent to Obama’s Wash- ington home was intercepted early Wednesday, authorities said.
Both packages were inter- cepted by Secret Service per- sonnel working at offsite facilities near the homes in New York and in Washing- ton, according to a person familiar with their work. All mail and packages addressed to former presidents and their immediate family are presorted and screened by Secret Service personnel.
An Obama representative referred questions to the Secret Service. Speaking in Florida on Wednesday, Clinton said her family was “fine, thanks to the men and women of the Secret Service who intercepted the package addressed to us long before it made its way to our home.”
As investigators continued to explore the devices and their origins, White House officials and others in Washington decried the string of packages.
“We c ondemn t he attempted violent attacks recently made against Pres- ident Obama, President Clinton, Secretary Clinton, and other public figures,” Sarah Sanders, the White House press secretary, said in a statement Wednesday morning. “These terrorizing acts are despicable, and anyone responsible will be held accountable to the full- est extent of the law. The United States Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies are investigating and will take all appropriate actions to protect anyone threatened by these cowards.”
Vice President Mike Pence posted a similar condem- nation, calling the devices “despicable” and saying that anyone “responsible will be brought to justice.” Trump chimed in after, writing: “I agree wholeheartedly!”
Suspicious letters and packages have been sent to numerous public figures, including President Trump’s children. Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son, tweeted: “As someone whose family has directly been the victim of these mail threats I condemn whoever did this regardless of party or ideology. This crap has to stop and I hope they end up in jail for a long time.”
A letter was sent to Trump Jr.’s home earlier this year that resulted in his wife going to the hospital. A man later pleaded guilty to sending threatening letters with white powder to Trump’s sons and other public figures.
The devices sent to Clinton, Obama and Soros this week were all pipe bombs placed inside plain manila brown envelopes with the addresses typed on stickers, according to a law enforcement official.
The device sent to CNN was found while its building was teeming with employees. CNN’s headquarters at the Time Warner Center in New York evacuated suddenly Wednesday morning after the suspicious package was discovered there.