Threats on Jeffords’ Life Reported

Sen. James M. Jeffords of Vermont has received multiple death threats since announcing last week that he is leaving the Republican Party, a move that gives Democrats control of the Senate, an aide said Thursday.

Erik Smulson, Jeffords’ press secretary, said the threats had been received at the senator’s offices in Washington and in Montpelier, Vt. Smulson declined to provide additional information about the threats except to say that the matter has been referred to the U.S. Capitol Police.

A security detail from the police force accompanied Jeffords on Capitol Hill late last week before he left to attend a conference in Italy on environmental issues.

Lt. Dan Nichols of the Capitol Police said the protection “will remain in place until the threat diminishes.” He also said that, in general, when a member of Congress has been threatened, the FBI conducts a criminal investigation while the Capitol Police assess the threat and “determine whether to implement a protective operation.”

Jeffords, 67, stunned Washington by declaring that he would become an independent, tipping what has been an evenly split Senate in favor of Democrats when lawmakers return Tuesday from a weeklong recess.

Dismayed GOP leaders initially were low key in their comments about Jeffords and his decision, but some have become more pointed in their remarks as the shift in Senate control nears. Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.), who will soon become minority leader, complained in a radio interview earlier this week that Jeffords had mounted a “coup of one.”

Smulson said that most of the public reaction to Jeffords’ announcement has been supportive.

“We’ve been overwhelmed with dozens of bouquets of flowers, and boxes and crates of mail,” Smulson said. “We had a woman call in from Vermont, 8 1/2 months’ pregnant, saying she was going to name her son Charles but now plans to name him Jim.”

There is even evidence of Jeffords’ newfound celebrity on the Internet. The online auction site Ebay lists a half-dozen items of Jeffords’ memorabilia, including a “Jeffords for President” pin selling for $4.75. For those aggrieved by the senator’s switch, a James “Benedict” Jeffords button is available for $3.