'Un-American': Trump Cabinet Picks Face Violent Threats, Including One 'Sent In With a Pro-Palestinian Themed Message'
Multiple people tapped to serve in President-elect Donald Trump’s administration are facing threats on their and their families’ lives, the Trump transition team announced Wednesday, with Lee Zeldin, Trump’s pick for EPA administrator, saying the threat against his family came with a “pro-Palestinian themed message.”
“Last night and this morning, several of President Trump’s Cabinet nominees and Administration appointees were targeted in violent, unAmerican threats to their lives and those who live with them. These attacks ranged from bomb threats to ‘swatting,'” incoming White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote in a statement Wednesday. “In response, law enforcement and other authorities acted quickly to ensure the safety of those who were targeted. President Trump and the entire Transition team are grateful for their swift action.”
Zeldin, who is Jewish, said Wednesday afternoon that “a pipe bomb threat targeting me and my family at our home today was sent in with a pro-Palestinian themed message.”
“My family and I were not home at the time and are safe,” Zeldin wrote on X. “We are working with law enforcement to learn more as this situation develops. We are thankful for the swift actions taken by local officers to keep our family, neighbors, and local community secure.”
The threats come after Trump faced two assassination attempts during the campaign. Politico reported Tuesday that the second would-be killer, Ryan Routh, wrote a letter praising himself and previous attempted assassin Thomas Crooks.
Leavitt did not specify which nominees faced the threats, but in addition to Zeldin, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R., N.Y.), Trump’s pick for ambassador to the United Nations, announced on Wednesday that her family was the target of a bomb threat.
“This morning, Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, her husband, and their three year old son were driving home to Saratoga County from Washington for Thanksgiving when they were informed of a bomb threat to their residence,” Stefanik’s office wrote in a statement. “We are especially grateful to our law enforcement officers and military families who are on duty over the holiday season.”
Rep. Matt Gaetz (R., Fla.), Trump’s now-withdrawn pick for attorney general, was also targeted, according to Punchbowl News‘s Melanie Zanona.