Violent Threats Against Several Nominees Proposed by the Trump Administration

Caroline Levitt, spokesperson for the Trump-Pence transition team, reported receiving "violent and un-American threats" against several nominees and appointees of Donald Trump's upcoming administration. In a statement on Wednesday, December 7, Levitt announced that several nominees were targeted by "violent and un-American threats" against themselves and their families on Tuesday evening and Wednesday morning. The spokesperson added that these threats ranged from "bombing" to "issuing fake alerts leading to police dispatch to the victims' residences." Levitt noted that police and other authorities responded quickly to ensure the safety of the "threatened individuals." She expressed gratitude on behalf of Donald Trump, the President-elect of the United States, and all members of the transition team for the prompt action of the police and relevant authorities. Levitt added that Trump and his transition team are working to ensure a safe and prosperous future and are striving to create unity in the country. She stated, "With a model like Donald Trump, dangerous acts of intimidation and violence will not stand in our way." Meanwhile, the office of Elise Stefanik, nominated by Trump as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, announced that she had been informed that their residence was targeted by a bombing threat. According to the statement, Stefanik, along with her husband and young child, was traveling from Washington to Saratoga in California for Thanksgiving. The statement, published on Stefanik's account on the 'X' network, indicated that New York state police and the FBI responded to the threat "with great skill and speed." Stefanik's office emphasized the "extraordinary selflessness of American police officers" in ensuring the round-the-clock safety of citizens and expressed gratitude for their efforts. Additionally, it is worth noting that a senior Republican member of Congress stated: "I will not be intimidated by the threats of the Iranian regime." Previously, the U.S. Department of Justice had released details on November 9 regarding the indictment related to thwarting an Islamic Republic plot to assassinate Donald Trump before the presidential election. According to the criminal indictment filed in federal court in Manhattan, New York, an anonymous official of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had instructed one of Iran's operatives in September to prepare a plan to monitor and ultimately assassinate Trump. The U.S. Department of Justice identified the main Iranian operative for the assassination plot as Farhad Shakri, a 51-year-old resident of Iran, and his associates as Carlyle Rivera, 49, from Brooklyn, New York, and Jonathan Ludolt, 36, from Staten Island, New York. In this context, Merrick Garland, the U.S. Attorney General, stated that few threats to U.S. national security are as serious as those posed by the Islamic Republic. He noted that the Department of Justice charged an Iranian operative who was tasked by the Iranian government to lead a network of criminals to carry out assassination plots against targets such as Donald Trump. Garland added that two other individuals, who were hired as part of this network to silence and kill a critical American journalist on U.S. soil, were arrested and charged. The U.S. Attorney General emphasized that the United States will not tolerate the Islamic Republic's efforts to jeopardize the national security of the United States and its citizens. Christopher Wray, the FBI Director, stated that these allegations reflect the "ongoing and brazen efforts" of the Iranian government to attack American citizens, including Donald Trump, other U.S. leaders, and opponents of the Islamic Republic. He noted that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, as a foreign terrorist organization, has been conspiring with criminals and assassins to attack Americans on U.S. soil, and such actions will not be tolerated. Wray pointed out that thanks to the intensive efforts of the FBI, deadly plots were disrupted.