By Danny R. Johnson – Political News Editor
WASHINGTON – San Diego County News has learned from sources who work in the White House that President Donald Trump has instructed the FBI Director, Kash Patel, and Attorney General Pam Bondi not to make any official comments and clear all information on any pending investigations with him first into the Sunday morning bombing of Pennsylvania’s Democratic and vocal critic of Trump, Governor Josh Shapiro’s residence in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Sources say that Trump is “very sensitive” about “pissing off” white nationalists who support him.
As of 11:00 PM EST on Sunday evening, the Trump administration has not expressed support for Shapiro following the incident. San Diego County News reached out to the White House Press Secretary, Karoline Levitt, and is currently awaiting a response.
Police arrested Cody Balmer, 38, of Harrisburg, Pa., for allegedly setting fire to Shapiro’s official residence early Sunday. The home was evacuated, state police commissioner Col. Christopher Paris announced at a news conference later that day.
Balmer climbed an iron fence, avoided the police, and broke into the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion, setting a fire that caused significant damage and forced Gov. Josh Shapiro and his family to evacuate. Shapiro, who had been celebrating Passover with his family, was alerted by state troopers around 2 a.m. No injuries were reported.
The fire badly damaged the inside of the large room that is often used for entertaining crowds and art displays. Large west- and south-facing windows were utterly missing their glass panes, shattered glass littered the pathways, and doors stood ajar amid signs of charring. Window panes and bricks around doors and windows were blackened and charred.
Balmer’s Facebook and other social media accounts show that he deeply opposes Democrats and left-leaning politicians. State investigators have yet to disclose the level of cooperation or assistance from the FBI or DOJ. Balmer’s social media profile also offers an insight into his mind. The 38-year-old Harrisburg father had made chilling posts about former President Joe Biden and his supporters, arguing that they ‘shouldn’t exist’ and even suggesting Biden was going to be killed.
Pennsylvania State Police Colonel Christopher Paris stated that the investigation is ongoing. Authorities have not disclosed the individual’s motive, but Shapiro, a potential Democratic candidate for the 2028 presidential election, expressed his resolve. Shapiro asserted that if Balmer intended to inhibit him from performing his duties, he would intensify his efforts. He further stated that Balmer will not prevent him from practicing his faith.
“When we were in the state dining room last night, we told the story of Passover” and the exodus of the Jews from slavery in Egypt to freedom, Shapiro said. “I refuse to be trapped by the bondage that someone attempts to put on me by attacking us as they did here last night. I refuse to let anyone with evil intentions like that stop me from doing the work I love.”
Why The Silence from the White House
Trump has made a point of emphasizing antisemitism on college campuses as his hallmark agenda for the DOJ, only when it involves perceived pro-Palestinians who protest Israel’s war in Gaza; the trick is, according to a source in the White House, “What do you do when a Trump supporter commit antisemitism violence against a Jewish liberal governor?”
On January 29, 2025, Trump signed an executive order that restricted free speech in the name of combatting antisemitism in schools. In response, Ben Olinsky, senior vice president for structural reform and governance at the Center for American Progress, issued the following statement:
“This executive order weaponizes antisemitism for political gain. It does nothing to keep Jewish students or any other Americans safe from hate or prevent terrorism, which poses legitimate threats to America’s Jewish communities. Instead, it forsakes education and dialogue while attacking protected political speech. It’s clear that Trump’s real goal is to silence opposing voices, whether they be from pro-Palestinian protesters on college campuses, Black Lives Matter marchers, clergy who pray for mercy, or journalists who report news that is critical of him. The right to free speech, protest, and exercise of any religion or none are bedrocks of America and must be protected in our schools and universities.
If President Trump cared about the very real rise in acts of antisemitism, he would start by firing Elon Musk for making what appeared to be a Nazi salute last week. President Trump’s repeated refusal to condemn antisemitism when it comes from his supporters is helping to enable the troubling rise in antisemitism that we see today.”
During a January 30, 2025, Senate confirmation hearing for then FBI Director nominee, Patel was questioned by U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) regarding his alleged ties with antisemite trolls: Durbin mentioned at least three individuals accused of promoting conspiracy theories and engaging in antisemitic rhetoric whom Patel appeared with in recent years. They include Laura Loomer, a self-described Islamophobe and conspiracy-theory promoter; Stew Peters, a Christian nationalist and a Holocaust denier; and Ted Nugent, who has posted antisemitic rants on Facebook. Loomer has leaned into her Jewishness to attack critics and echoed Trump’s insults of Jews who vote for Democrats. During her first unsuccessful congressional run in 2020, she faced backlash for using photos of concentration camp victims to attack incumbent Florida Rep. Lois Frankel, who is also Jewish. In 2018, to protest being banned from Twitter, Loomer chained herself to the social network’s New York headquarters wearing a yellow star, resembling the ones Nazis forced Jews to wear during the Holocaust.
At the hearing, Durbin said that in 2023, Patel shared a photo with Loomer promoting his book, “Government Gangsters,” and he held up her recent book, Loomered. Durbin said one of the Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee described her as a “crazy conspiracy theorist who regularly utters disgusting garbage,” and another called her “really toxic.”
“Given all this, why did you associate with Miss Loomer?” Durbin asked.
Patel maintained that he was not responsible for the views of individuals who attended his events and pointed to his background as an Indian American. “I certainly don’t believe that an individual who was the first minority to serve as a deputy director of national intelligence for this country is a racist in any way,” he said. “And I detest any conjecture to the contrary.”
Based on the attacks on eliminating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives within the federal government, critics of the Trump administration have no reassurance that the administration will abandon its unconstitutional disregard for the Bill of Rights and vigorously seek out and prosecute white nationalists who commit antisemitic violence in the name of promoting the white racist superiority ideology.
