Congressman‘s Claim of ’Toxic Substance‘ in ’Domestic Terrorism’ Attack — Proved Wrong
- Posted on October 23, 2010 at 12:27am by
Meredith Jessup
- Print »
- Email »
In a little-reported story Thursday, a Tucson-area office of Congressman Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., claimed to have received a suspicious piece of mail, subsequently closing down his Tucson and Yuma offices and sparking the involvement of local police, the bomb squad and the FBI. Rep. Grijalva was reportedly not at the office at the time the package arrived. According to news accounts, the envelope arrived with swastikas drawn all over the outside and a white powdery substance on the inside.
On multiple occasions, Grijalva and his office spokesman claimed the substance was “toxic” — at one point calling it an act of “domestic terrorism — despite the FBI confirming it was not.
Ironically, Grijalva — a co-chair of the House Progressive Caucus and four-term incumbent Democrat currently locked in a tight “toss up” battle to retain his House seat — appeared on a national news talk show earlier this week complaining about racist tactics being used in politics. Just days later, it seemed Grijalva himself had been a target of this negative rhetoric.
Adam Sarvana, Grijalva’s spokesman, told the local press Thursday that staffers were undergoing preliminary health checks and Grijalva himself declared the envelope of white powder “toxic.” Despite the FBI having yet to identify the substance, MSNBC.com reprinted Grijalva’s claim, reporting:
White powder delivered in an swastika-covered envelope to the Tucson, Ariz., office of Rep. Raul Grijalva is a toxic substance, the Democratic congressman said the FBI told him Thursday afternoon.
This seemingly racist threat also caught the eye of MSNBC host Keith Olbermann who interrupted his regular prime-time programming to feature Grijalva:
Olbermann repeats the assumption that the substance was “confirmed toxic,” and Grijalva himself says the piece of mail put constituents and his staff in danger.
Further, Grijalva used Thursday’s events to confirm what he called a “disturbing pattern.” Grijalva’s office has been targeted twice in the past, supposedly related to his outspoken opposition to Arizona’s SB 1070 immigration law and his own subsequent calls for a boycott of his state. In April his office reported having received death threats, and in July staffers say they found a bullet and a shattered window inside his Yuma office.
“We’re in a tough election… there is still room for a little bit of civility,” Grijalva told Olbermann. “This is not the way the system works. The system works by who‘s going to vote and how we’re going to vote on Nov. 2. … This is unfortunately a disturbing trend that goes beyond anger; it goes toward anger and trying to hurt people. I can’t even describe it.”
Olbermann asked Grijalva to confirm details of the case and the congressman confirms the presence of swastikas and that “this is a pattern.” Olbermann then claimed Politico reported the substance as “toxic,” although Politico’s source on that theory appears to have been the congressman himself. Grijalva responded that it has been confirmed as “toxic,” but it’s “level of toxicity” had yet to be determined.
Olbermann then opened the door for Grijalva to make a plug for his stance against SB 1070 where the congressman again asserted the bullying “is a pattern.”
Also weighing in on the issue Thursday was Pima County Democratic Party Chairman Jeff Rogers who said he was disappointed in the level of discourse in politics, blaming the Grijalva office incident on the tea party and right-wing Republicans. “It’s disappointing and I think it’s directly related to the level of rhetoric,” Rogers said. “That kind of level of rhetoric is what leads people to do crazy things. They have a responsibility to tamp this down and say we can have a civil discussion about the future of the country without screaming names and violence or threats of violence.”
Roger‘s direct assault on the tea party may be an attempt to link Grijalva’s tea party-backed opponent to the incident at his Tucson office. Ruth McClung is a conservative rocket scientist giving Grijalva and the Democrats heartburn in Arizona’s Seventh Congressional District. McClung has since condemned the alleged threat on Grijalva’s office and added that violence or threats of violence against politicians are wrong. “This is a democracy, this is about ideas. We should have a right to share our ideas and we should not be afraid to share our ideas regardless of what they are,” she said.
In response to Rogers’ accusations, Tucson tea party organizer Trent Humphries said the tea party in no way advocates violence.
“I have to say it’s really interesting that when Democrats are most in trouble, something like this always happens,” he said, suggesting the incident was a political ploy. “We aren’t sending out anything with swastikas or powder. And as far as ‘inflamed rhetoric,’ all we’ve said is Raúl Grijalva is an idiot because he called for a boycott of his own state,” Humphries said.
On Friday, the FBI confirmed that the powdery substance was indeed not toxic and Politico quickly corrected the record, pointing out that this information contradicted Grijalva’s assertions.
Meanwhile, Congressman Grijalva appeared on a live MSNBC broadcast later in the day, but continued to claim the piece of mail was “toxic,“ insisting the incident was an act of ”domestic terrorism” — both ideas repeated by host Ed Schultz:
Once again, Grijalva immediately directed attention to his own re-election race, specifically attacking his opponent’s campaign: “It’s a pattern of intimidation. When you have a campaign filled with distortion, filled with division, where you feed hatred, then people feel, that are on the extreme, that they have impunity — that they can do something as stupid and as harsh as this,” Grijalva said.
Grijalva went on to not only inflate the severity of the situation, but to also indirectly accuse McClung’s campaign for the alleged attack. “I’m in a tough race, I know that,” the Democrat said. “But it’s a race about ideas, it’s a race about effort. But to add insult to injury, to bring threats, to bring intimidation into the process, it needs to be condemned for what it is. It’s domestic terrorism.”
Schultz went on to claim he didn’t want to “mischaracterize” the situation, and asked, “What is it about Raul Grijalva that they don’t like and why are you being targeted?” Grijalva once again went on the stump outlining his campaign platform.
The day before the toxic envelope arrived at Grijalva’s Tucson office, the Yuma Sun reported that two organizations — SEIU’s Mi Familia Vota and One Vote Arizona — had delivered 3,000 new voter registrations to the Yuma County Recorder‘s Office in Grijalva’s district.
On the same day the envelope arrived at Grijalva’s office, the County Recorder’s Office found more than 65 percent of these ballot registrations to be fraudulent, either belonging to individuals living in the country illegally or addressed incorrectly. However the only story out of Arizona’s Seventh Congressional District to receive national media attention Friday was the mysterious envelope — coincidence?



















Submitting your tip... please wait!
Comments (87)
BarryDead
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 4:24amWith absolutely no facts this POS blames the right. Just maybe he pissed off a leftist. Just maybe some (lover) women or guy has it in for him. And the right should automatically take the blame? Keep dreaming Grijalva
Report Post »Muerkier
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 4:01amYou left out :
1.) the photographic evidence of the corner stone girders of all 3 buildings CUT at a 45 degree angle that every demolitions expert that reveiwed the photos said that those buildings had been prepped for a controlled demolition.
2.) That all 3 buildings were in freefall and fell straight down (as in controlled demolition)
3.) That every independant scientist interviewed said that burning jet fuel cannot attain the temperature neccessary to melt the grade of steel used in those buildings, that an additional element such as Thermite would be neccessary to enhance the temperature.
4.) The maintenance workers who testified that there was an explosion seconds PRIOR to the first plane hitting the building. These tesitmonies were left out of the 9/11 commission reports.
5.) The witness who testified that the second plane to hit the building was not a civilian aircraft as it had no windows – also left out of the 9/11 commission report.
6.) the testimony of experts who advised the commission that IF the jet fuel COULD have melted the steel girders (which they doubted), the buildings would not have fallen in freefall and would not have fallen symetrically straight down but rather would have broken apart and fallen in sections at unknown angles and directions and certainly not all at once.
7.) Building #7 was never hit by a plane … had never caught fire …. never received any structural damage ….. but collapsed in freefall just like the twin towers.
It is too easy to call someone a “Flake” or a “Nutjob”. Thats a cop out for those who either refuse to believe their own govt would be complicit in something like 9/11 or are too scared by the implications of the truth in something like that. There are too many pieces of evidence out there that point to govt complicity in those attacks but the powers-that-be quickly made it “Politically Incorrect” to say these things aloud. I could care less about being politically correct. I do my own research and come to my own conclusions and if one were to simply open their eyes …. they too could see what common sense should tell people …… 3 skyscrapers simply do not free fall straight down in a line whether or not they were hit by planes …… oh …. and wasn’t anyone even remotely curious WHY Building 7 fell? Being that it was never hit by a plane and didn’t receive any damage what-so-ever …. why would all 4 of its cornerstone girders be cut at a 45 degree angles and have fallen like the other 2 buildings??
Something to think about.
Report Post »RRitchey
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 3:35amI find it odd that any tine he feels like he is about to be exposed for the “Rascal” he really is something always happens. Last time it was the bullet hole in store front window of his campaign headquarters. Now a toxic white powder in his mail…It;s always something with him. Hopefully the FBI will be able to find the person who did this. Of course after they reveal that the “Buttler ” didn’t do it they should look for an inside job.. Just to many coincidents and I don’t believe in coincidents.
Report Post »AzArcher
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 3:09amThe Sherrif of Pima county is a bought and paid for Dem. There will be no serious investigation. Also, the Tucson Tea Party immediately condemned the attack and I believe McClung did also. Once again the media misses the news. What do we expect?
Report Post »thegr8restoration
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 3:06amWhat I wana know is the white substance regular or medicated?
Report Post »LadyIzShy
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 3:03amwhy isnt the seiu story on its own?
ok so the guy lied it was probably a stunt to get free air time
Report Post »Arc
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 2:49amThere is such a thing as “disinformation”. Where a problem does not exist, potential losers can do things to make themselves appear to be victims, thereby receiving some sympathy votes or publicity for a cause. Similar to a “bad cop” planting eveidence to ensure an assh…e is arrested.
Report Post »Down2TheC
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 2:48amStop spamming dude. Go to a truther forum is you want to discuss that so badly.
Report Post »HEARDENOUGHCRAP
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:54amRight out of the Obamacratic Playbook. Why is anyone suprised?
Report Post »walkwithme1966
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 3:18amAnd on what page of the play book it that found on? hum!!!
Report Post »Psychosis
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 3:56am@ WALK………….its on page 6 thru 11………..what you didnt get he memo?
Report Post »AZBabe
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:54amThe city is spelled TUCSON, not Tuscon! Grijalva is an idiot and knows he is going to lose this election, he will do anything to try and steal this election!
Report Post »Meredith Jessup
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 9:22amThanks — I always mess that up! :-P
Report Post »leftylemn
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:40amWho sends a package they hope to have opened, marked with swastikas. Obviously a publicity stunt to get attention.
Report Post »titan
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:39amwell i tend to believe that Grijalva or one of his associates sent that package to themselves because they are falling behind in the polls. look what happened he got on pmsnbc twice and trying to blame the tea party and Ruth Mcclung. the guy is a total LOSER. it also got him some free face time on tv here in arizona. wanting to boycott his own state of arizona because of sb1070. please god let this loser LOSE!
Report Post »libertyordeath87
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 12:51pmBut getting on PMSNBC really didnt do anything for him. the commies will vote for him anyway, and no one else watches that trash.
Report Post »dustyzz
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 12:52pmLook at his photo. Face time? A real bad idea.
Report Post »*************************
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:34amWhy do you think they call them Dumb-o-crats?
HEDLEY LAMARR: “Qualifications?”
Report Post »DESPARDO [chewing]: “Murder … armed robbery … mayhem …”
HEDLEY LAMARR: “Wait a moment. What have you got in your mouth?”
DESPARDO [stops chewing]: “Nuff’m.”
HEDLEY LAMARR: “Nuff’m, eh? Lyle!”
henchman LYLE: [searches man's mouth and pulls out] “Gum!”
HEDLEY LAMARR: “Chewing gum on line, eh? I hope you brought enough for everybody.”
DESPARDO [panicked]: “I didn’t know there was going to be so many!”
[HEDLEY LAMARR shoots the gum chewer]
-Blazing Saddles
eteme
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:52amWooh! Kemo Sabe…Give her a break!”, “She’s not a snake“ ”Don‘t you know she’s pooped?!”
Report Post »Great Movie!
Max jones
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:30amGearge H.W Bush told an interviewer, “If the American people knew what we have done to them, they would hang us from the streetlights.”
Report Post »What did “they” do? Who else is involved? I don’t trust ANY of them!! Remember,”ALL the world will whore after the beast.” That includes our leaders; Left and right.
Don’t ever put anything beyond the reach of EVIL!! IT IS HERE!!!
Separate yourself from sentimentality and political partisanship. The threat is from everywhere and anyone. ALL…ALL of our representatives have been swayed, to one extent or another by the proponents of the new world order. There is SO much money flowing into our representives campaigns, on both sides of the aisle, that it is virtually impossible that any of them are immune from this influence.. The hammer is coming down. You will be forced to choose-light or darkness, Wrong or right, Good or evil, Satan, or, Christ.
eteme
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:25amdag nab it! Twice removed Raul Grijalva Relative’s Prints are all over the damn package… He would have gotten away with it had it not been for The Blaze!!
Report Post »blacksmith
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:25amIf you cannot address the topic please do not continue to post this trash. I believe that you have a right to post as does anyone else but you should at least attempt to stay on topic.You are attempting to change the conversation of this post and as we all know this is a progressive trick. you use the name of a true patriot in your post and believe that we are ignorant enough to take your bait. you should truly be ashamed of yourself. This is a site for discussion of topics that should concern all Americans, not a site for the crazies,the liberals, the progressives and those that want to see the downfall mof the Republic. God bless America and you.
Report Post »Psychosis
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:22amcall me kooky………..what happened last time suspicious powder was found in mail in government buildings?…………..they close All buildings down…now add in 65% fraudulent voter reg. and what do you get…..an attempt to conceal voter reg. by delivering them on the same day as you deliver the “powder” in an attempt to close down all official buildings, and then hope those who inspect the registries dont get back to inspecting that bunch of reg. because they will be behind, and well we all know state workers lol ………..sorry i like to think “outside the box” but it is conceivable, and i wouldnt put it past a desperate group of people seeing power slipping away…….also kinda weird it happened in a very “unwatched” political arena…if this was an actual act of a complete nutcase trying to “poison” someone, i could think of a few other more politically important arenas…..
1) weird coincidence of voter fraud and suspicious powder in same voting area
Report Post »2) not unusual effort from the left to pin this on the tea party
3) considerable effort by the left to repeatedly inform public via lame media that powder was toxic
4) as of this moment >sat. @ 1 am no lame media correcting the falsehood
5) tip for the fbi…………check for freakin finger prints and then just to keep it fair, fingerprint all the staff from both political parties……………the odds are better than blackjack
notfooledbyu
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:06amI heard earlier today that Grijalva office called the news before calling the FBI.
Report Post »cheezwhiz
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:15amWhy call FBI ?
Report Post »Its not like he got a silly message on his voicemail
;-)
w4jle
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 12:51amIs that you Rosie?
Report Post »LUDWIKA BRONISLAWA
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 12:50amSOMEBODY was watching Jesse Ventura tonight weren’t they? Just what about severely compromised steel?? What about the entire inside structure being ripped apart by a large jet filled with fuel?? How much weight would it take for said compromised structure to collapse down on itself?? How long does a fire have to burn to reach 2500 degrees?? It is an insult to call it an ‘office fire’! BTW Jesse Ventura is a flake. Truthers are wrong. Denial is a powerful tool and your mechanic is using it well.
Report Post »Taquoshi
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 12:46amOlbermann asked Grijalva to confirm details of the case and the congressman confirms the presence of swastikas and that “this is a pattern.” Olbermann then claimed Politico reported the substance as “toxic,” although Politico’s source on that theory appears to have been the congressman himself. Grijalva responded that it has been confirmed as “toxic,” but it’s “level of toxicity” had yet to be determined.
Wow! I haven’t seen such a fine example of circular reasoning in a long time. Impressive.
And then they kick it up a notch…..
On the same day the envelope arrived at Grijalva’s office, the County Recorder’s Office found more than 65 percent of these ballot registrations to be fraudulent, either belonging to individuals living in the country illegally or addressed incorrectly.
Report Post »uhadenoughyet.com
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 12:53amthese people better be prepared for what it seems they are after, if not they better get thoer heads together and stop being so predictable.
Report Post »LUDWIKA BRONISLAWA
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 12:42amhmmmmmmmm, does anyone else wonder if there were really swastikas? IDK, the whole thing sounds a little ‘fishy’ to me. Does it ever seem like some on the left might have a slight case of MUNCHAUSEN SYNDROME?????
Report Post »snowleopard3200
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 3:26amI could think of some other things to call what they are suffering from; but most of them describe brain disorders and bodily functions best left to the imagination.
Report Post »BurntHills
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 11:39am“3000 new voters”. really? any of them actual American citizens? sure doubt it.
Report Post »w4jle
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 12:41am“Look I want you to head over to the next town and mail this package back to me. Our jobs depend on it.”
Report Post »Nah, I am probably being hard on an honest democrat. They would never do anything dishonest, and you can be sure the illegal ballot registrations were for all the right wing Republicans.
LUDWIKA BRONISLAWA
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 12:51amLOL, I‘m glad I’m not the only one.
Report Post »MontanaMade
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:29amGrijalva WASN’T THERE when the envelope was delivered! coincidence??? hmmmm….. Actually this look SO dumb it’s probably true!! “Here- look over here!!! Don’t look at that illegal thing over there- look over HERE!!!”
Report Post »Highland
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 8:17amIt‘s more than likely that’s exactly what happened.
Report Post »Psychosis
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 12:38amwow 65 % of the democratic voter reg turned in by seiu and one vote are fraudulent……..unbelievable…….what slap on the wrist will be handed out …….oh i forgot their democrats……….nothing will be done
Report Post »walkwithme1966
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 3:17amIf that is a true report, even I am appalled by it!! http://maboulette.wordpress.com
Report Post »TruthTalker
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 12:34amcrazy, the left would attact the left! just crazy…
Report Post »cheezwhiz
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:01amSo as soon as reports of his peeps registering illegals to vote for him come out, he attacks his own office ?
( don‘t tell me he didn’t do it to distract from the fraud he is perpetrating and to get some sympathy in the bendover network )
kohlmann51
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:09amHope this is followed up by the local sheriff dept untill they get answers. We might see Mr Grijalva in jail yet.
Report Post »traderdan
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 1:44amhonestly I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss a 911 conspiracy related to our administrations push towards communism — I mean I know it sounds crazy that we would attack our own people but think just how much our country has already changed in the last few decades
Do you think people in Germany … say around 1935 … had any inclination what was coming or what their leaders were capable of?
Report Post »Down2TheC
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 2:47amHow long before we find out some Dem sent it? Should we start a pool? Squares for each week on a table with the perp options. (campaign, Grijalva, socialists, progressives, open border group.)
Report Post »rebel
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 2:55am“Hope this is followed up by the local sheriff dept untill they get answers. We might see Mr Grijalva in jail yet.”
just vote him out of office. if he goes to jail they‘ll cry foul and he’ll be made a marytr. I do love how the tea party is terrorists while they do nothing about the terrorism on the border. but then they would have to question people and that would be racial profiling.
Report Post »bookhound63
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 3:15amTruthtalker, isn’t it though? My question is, why weren’t the last two paragraphs first? They are the real story. Title should have been, Office Receives 3000 Voter Registration Cards for Illegals and one suspicious envelope.
Report Post »snowleopard3200
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 3:17amNotice the pattern SEIU and One Vote AZ are found major voter fraud and then comes a alleged attack – racially motivated conveinently – to distract everyone from another stolen election? Once again they seek to distort and distract from what is really going on.
http://www.artinphoenix.com/gallery/grimm
Report Post »jzs
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 3:33amYou have to admire him for his bold deception! The bullet in the window – one of his goons. The powder in the swastika adorned envelope – hoax and lie. The death threats – invented. More examples of denial. A lot of whites don’t want Mexicans her illegally, but nobody white person would do that. The libs are even saying Byron Williams was trying to walk into Tides with full body armor and automatic weapons to kill everyone he could, but that’s a lie.
Report Post »Stuck_in_CA
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 8:00amRules for Radicals tactic? The Commie Left will stop at nothing. Hopefully the people in the 7th district are smarter than that.
Report Post »FrankSpeak
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 8:41amGrijalva‘s campaign probably sent the package to themselves to ’create’ the story!
Report Post »JKN
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 9:10amThreats of violence are never the answer… The good citizens of Arizona simply need to vote this traitor out! We need political “representatives” who will represent the best interests of America; not Mexico…
Report Post »drbage
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 10:19amThe only thing toxic is the rhetoric spewing out of his mouth.
Report Post »cruisemates
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 2:55pmTHIS BUY NEEDS TO GET THE BOOT!!!
The stuff found in the letter was TYLENOL. Do you think MSNBC has reported that yet?
He released this story just after it was found his SEIU organization had dropped off almost 2000 fraudulent early voter requests at the Yuma election office. This needs to be exposed. This ultra liberal congressman is a leading La Raza socialist.
Please do what you can to defeat this crazy idiot. He is one of the most liberal, socialist congressmen there is. Check out this site for his “questionable” activities…
http://www.publiuspundit.com/
Furthermore, his opponent is a rocket scientist, literally, Grijalva is one of those guys that will stoop to ANYTHING to win, including lies like this, voter fraud, Acorn-style “get out the vote” tactics & more.
Report Post »cruisemates
Posted on October 23, 2010 at 3:12pmGrijalva’s opponent, McClung, has been endorsed by Sarah Palin, Mitt Romney, John McCain and Jan Brewer, But Grijalva has gotton support from the SEIU and Chicago thugs to follow and harass McClung. The La Raza solicalist currently leads by 2% in polls.
McClung is literally a ROCKET SCIENTIST. Watch this video on her analysis of border technology that can secure our borders.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=853wkpl1ZCg
This district; Yuma to Tucson in Southern Arizona, is ONE OF THE BIGGEST LEAKS in the entire border. This is Southern Arizona and it is under the congressional control of a communist (literally).
Go to the Ruth McClung web site and help her win her election: http://www.ruth4az.com/index.html
Report Post »RKade
Posted on October 24, 2010 at 12:40amTo get TV time you often have to “Create the Story” chap 13 “Progressive Drty Tricks Handbook”.
Report Post »CYCLONE
Posted on October 24, 2010 at 12:43amnothing personal…
is this guy related to Castro ?????
Report Post »jzs
Posted on October 24, 2010 at 2:38pmOops, some guy has been indicted for making death threats. He evidently did like Grijalva’s immigration stance. I love it how everyone hear supports domestic terrorists, as long as they’re on OUR side! Go team!
Report Post »Armed Patriot
Posted on October 25, 2010 at 7:45amThis guy is such a scumbag. His is anti American, pro mexico, and wants to destroy every tenant of America. He is ready to lie at the thought of dropping a hat and has no value as a human being. He probably drew the swastikas himself and poured in the baby powder before he licked the envelope, drove to the post office, bought the stamp, and placed it in the mail box.
Report Post »