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Ivanka Just Tweeted About The Suspicious Packages Sent To Clinton, Obama, & CNN

by Lauren Holter
Mark Wilson/Getty Images News/Getty Images

Multiple suspicious packages were sent to a news outlet and the homes of politicians Wednesday morning. Not long after the news broke, Ivanka Trump condemned the suspicious packages and the attempted violence they represented in a tweet that also thanked law enforcement for its quick response.

"I strongly condemn the attempted acts of violence against President Obama, the Clinton family, @CNN & others. There is no excuse—America is better than this," she wrote. "Gratitude to the @SecretService and law enforcement for all they do to keep this nation safe."

Suspicious packages were recovered at former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's home in Westchester County, New York and former President Barack Obama's home in Washington D.C., the U.S. Secret Service said in a statement released on Wednesday morning. Both packages "were immediately identified during routine mail screening procedures as potential explosive devices and were appropriately handled as such," according to the statement. Neither Clinton nor Obama received the packages, and the Secret Service is investigating where they came from.

The same morning, the Time Warner Center in New York City that houses CNN was evacuated in response to a suspicious device that was received in the mailroom.

"We are working with authorities to determine the severity of the situation. The NYPD is on scene, and we [are] working closely with them to take every precaution," Jeff Zucker, president of CNN, said in a memo to CNN's New York-based employees. "We are also checking all bureaus around the world, out of a complete abundance of caution."

Reports that a suspicious package was also sent to the White House were false, the Secret Service told the Associated Press. But police are investigating a package sent to an office of Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, NBC Miami reports.

And news later broke that The San Diego Union-Tribune's building was evacuated Wednesday morning due to a suspicious package, and San Diego Union-Tribune reporter Kate Morrissey tweeted a photo of police tape in front of the building. The newspaper shares a building with a branch of California Sen. Kamala Harris' office, according to Morrissey.

Vice President Mike Pence tweeted about the attempted attacks around the same time as the first daughter, writing that "these cowardly actions are despicable & have no place in this Country." The president retweeted the VP's post and added, "I agree wholeheartedly!"

The events on Wednesday followed reports of a suspicious device found in a mailbox at the home of billionaire philanthropist George Soros on Monday. Federal authorities believe it was an explosive device that someone placed at Soros' home in a New York City suburb, not a package delivered by the U.S. Postal Service, The New York Times reports. The motive for targeting Soros' home was unclear, but he has previously been singled out by the alt-right. The FBI's New York offices, as well as the federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, are conducting a full investigation, per The Times.

Investigations into the suspicious packages sent to various locations around the country on Wednesday are also still underway.