Rand Paul Blames Richard Marx for ‘Calling for Violence Against Me’ After Suspicious Powder Incident
The latest social media between a politician and entertainer is becoming particularly personal, as COVID-downplaying Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky suggested on Twitter that the reason for receiving a suspicious powder at his home could be singer Richard Marks. "Encouraging Violence" against him.
"I take these threats very seriously," Paul said in a statement on Tuesday. “As repeated targets of violence, it is condemnable that the Twitter C-list allows celebrities to encourage violence against me & my family. This weekend Richard Marx called for violence against me & now we have received this powder filled letter.
Earlier in the day, the FBI was reported to be investigating a large envelope containing an unknown white powder that was delivered to Paul's home in Kentucky on Monday. The US Capitol Police issued a statement saying, "Initial investigation revealed that the substance is not dangerous. As a precaution, it was taken to the FBI's lab for further investigation.
Marx has been known in recent years for his sharp tweets against right-wing positions & the politicians who support him, often retweeted by followers, who have come to enjoy his comment, even though he has been subject to his pop smash Whether a fan or not.
I take these threats immensely seriously. As a repeated target of violence, it is reprehensible that Twitter allows C-list celebrities to encourage violence against me and my family. https://t.co/e1rQ6uwPdf
— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) May 24, 2021
On Sunday, Marx tweeted, "I will say it again: If I ever meet Rand Paul's neighbor I'm going to hug him & buy him as many drinks as I can." Marx was referring to a 2017 incident in which Paul's neighbor pleaded guilty to assaulting a member of Congress after a non-political dispute that left the senator with broken ribs.
Marx has been a frequent critic of the severity of the COVID-19 crisis and Paul's lack of positions against masks & mass vaccination.
"You know who really put the lives of many people at potential risk?" Marx tweeted Monday night, linking to a March 2020 news of how Paul was the 1st senator to diagnose coronovirus.
You know who actually put multiple people’s lives at potential risk? https://t.co/WyxuTka0Iz
— Richard Marx (@richardmarx) May 25, 2021
Fox News reported on Monday night that there was a photographic image of Paul's neck brace, arm cast and crutches with white powder envelopes, with the message, "I will finish what your neighbor started, You motherfucker. " The FBI has not confirmed the veracity of Fox's report.
The singer has mostly been retweeting since Paul returned, though he showed that his sense of humor was intact when he responded to a tweeter that wrote, "How can you tell that Richard Marx was canceled?" I went?" Saying, "This is really a lot of fun" & adding a pair of clapping emojis.
Responding to another dissident on Twitter on Monday, Marx wrote, "It is I who have been dazed by the fact that someone who presents a genius like you has someone to disagree with their politics & their artistry Would not have the knowledge to like. I think John Voight is a mental traitor, but he's an amazing actor. "
Marx's representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The singer's memoir, "Stories to Tell," arrives on July 6.
Marx is not the only entertainer with whom Paul is engaged in a war of words. The senator on Tuesday dedicated several tweets to address TV host Stephen Colbert from his Twitter handle, apparently for something said on the air, as Colbert has not mentioned Paul on Twitter in recent weeks.