The transition team for Donald Trump said Wednesday that several of the president-elect's appointees, including Cabinet nominees, were targeted with bomb threats and swatting Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.
Calling the threats “violent” and “unAmerican,” Trump-Vance transition spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt did not say which, or how many, officials had been targeted but said law enforcement acted quickly to ensure their safety.
A handful of Cabinet nominees said in social media posts that they were among those targeted.
The office of Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., who Trump is nominating as ambassador to the United Nations, said in a statement the congresswoman's home was the target of a bomb threat Wednesday morning. She was driving home to Saratoga County, New York, with her husband and son for Thanksgiving when they were informed about the threat, her office said.
"New York State, County law enforcement, and U.S. Capitol Police responded immediately with the highest levels of professionalism," Stefanik's office said in a statement. "We are incredibly appreciative of the extraordinary dedication of law enforcement officers who keep our communities safe 24/7."
A New York City property owned by Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick also reportedly received a bomb threat, as did a mailbox at a home in Florida referencing Trump's initial nominee for attorney general, former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz. Gaetz does not live at the home, but a family member does.
Agriculture secretary nominee Brooke Rollins and Environmental Protection Agency director pick Lee Zeldin confirmed they, too, received threats. Susie Wiles, Trump’s incoming chief of staff, and Pam Bondi, the former Florida Attorney General whom Trump has chosen as Gaetz’s replacement, were also targeted, according to a law enforcement official who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity amid the ongoing investigation.
And Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth and John Ratcliffe, Trump's pick for CIA director, were also targeted, Fox News reported.
The FBI said in a statement that it is “aware of numerous bomb threats and swatting incidents targeting incoming administration nominees and appointees, and we are working with our law enforcement partners. We take all potential threats seriously, and as always, encourage members of the public to immediately report anything they consider suspicious to law enforcement.”
Swatting is when attackers initiate an emergency law enforcement response against a target victim under false pretenses.
Over the past three weeks, Trump has announced his core Cabinet picks, many of whom are considered loyalists that will enact the policies he promised on the campaign trail, including mass deportations of undocumented immigrants and tariffs on the country’s major trading partners.
“President Trump and the Transition are focused on doing the work of uniting our nation by ensuring a safe and prosperous future,” Leavitt said in a statement. “With President Trump as our example, dangerous acts of intimidation and violence will not deter us.”
Trump himself was targeted in two assassination attempts during his campaign, including being wounded in the ear during a shooting at a July rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson called the threats “dangerous and unhinged.”
“This year, there was not just one but TWO assassination attempts on President Trump. Now some of his Cabinet nominees and their families are facing bomb threats,” he wrote on X. “It is not who we are in America.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.