At least four Democratic members of Congress from Connecticut were targeted with bomb threats at their homes on Thursday, the lawmakers or their offices said.
Representatives Jim Himes, Joe Courtney, John Larson, and Jahana Hayes all reported being the subject of such threats. Responding police said they found no evidence of explosives at the MPs’ properties.
There was no immediate information whether Representative Rosa DeLauro, a fifth Democratic House member from the state, and Connecticut’s two Democratic senators had received threats.
Bomb threats against Democrats come a day after multiple presidential-elections donald trumpThe most prominent cabinet picks and appointees reported that they had received such threats, as well as “swoon attacks”, in which perpetrators initiate an emergency law enforcement response against a victim under false pretenses.
Hayes said the Wolcott Police Department notified him Thursday morning that he had received “a threatening email stating that a pipe bomb had been placed in the mailbox at my home.” The State Police, the US Capitol Police and the House Sergeant were notified, Wolcott and the State Police responded “and no bomb or explosive material was found.” His office said a bomb threat was received at Courtney’s Vernon home while his wife and children were there.
Himes said he was informed of the threat at his home during a Thanksgiving celebration with his family. The US Capitol Police, and the Greenwich and Stamford police departments responded.
On behalf of his family, Hines expressed “our utmost gratitude to our local law enforcement officials for their immediate action to ensure our safety.” Echoing other lawmakers who were threatened, he said: “There is no room for political violence in this country, and I hope we can all live through the holiday season in peace and civility.” Larson also said Thursday that East Hartford police responded to a bomb threat at his home. The threats come after an election season filled with violence.
In July, a gunman opened fire at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, hitting him in the ear and killing one of his supporters. The Secret Service later foiled an assassination attempt on Trump at a golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida, after an agent observed the barrel of a gun piercing a hole through the perimeter fence while Trump was playing golf.
Those who received threats on Wednesday included New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, whom Trump chose to serve as the next ambassador to the United Nations; Matt Gaetz, Trump’s initial choice to serve as attorney general; Oregon Representative Lori Chavez-Deremer, whom Trump chose to lead the Labor Department, and former New York Congressman Lee Zeldin, who has been selected to lead the Environmental Protection Agency.