The Republican National Committee’s Washington D.C. headquarters was briefly locked down on Wednesday, after two vials of blood were received in the mail.
The vials, which were reportedly addressed to Donald Trump, spurred a response from Capitol Police’s Hazardous Incident Response Division before being cleared. Business resumed midday on Wednesday, and the RNC went straight to work trying to pin the blame on left-leaning political actors without evidence, per CBS News.
“Staff has resumed their office duties because we remain unintimidated and undeterred in our efforts to elect President Trump to the White House,” RNC chairman Michael Whatley said in a statement.
Capitol Police have yet to release information on potential suspects or motives, but calls for violence against political bodies and representatives have become increasingly salient following the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Anthony Guglielmi, a spokesperson for the U.S. Secret Service, confirmed in a statement that the vials were addressed to “a Secret Service protectee,” adding that the vials were being tested.
“Agents of the U.S. Secret Service Washington Field Office responded to investigate the potential threat. The package contained vials of liquid suspected to be blood, and the packaging and contents were collected for further testing,” the statement on X read.
The RNC and DNC headquarters were previously targeted with pipe bombs, prompting lockdowns on January 6th. That case remains unsolved.
The Republican National Committee, which has taken on an undemocratic tone in recent months, will officially nominate Trump at its July convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Advocacy for political violence and intimidation has taken an increasingly prominent seat in the Trump campaign, while White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre condemned the vials.
“We are going to do what we consistently have done from here, condemn any political violence, threats or intimidation that has no place in any community and certainly in our political discourse,” Jean-Pierre said.
