The investigation continues this week into the failed detonation of an improvised explosive device in Colorado Springs, and yesterday, Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) made a point to shine a spotlight on the incident.
Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), a leader during the civil rights movement, said he was “deeply troubled” by the Tuesday detonation of an explosive device outside of a building in Colorado that houses a local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).“It reminds me of another period. These stories cannot be swept under the rug,” he said in a tweet.
The FBI has taken the lead in the investigation and is reportedly looking for “a balding white man in his 40s who may be driving a dirty pickup truck which could have an open tailgate or a missing or covered license plate.”
As KUSA, Denver’s NBC affiliate, reported last night, investigators consider this a possible act of domestic terrorism, but they have not yet determined whether the NAACP offices were specifically targeted.
The same report noted that the explosive device “was placed next to a gasoline can and detonated, but the gas didn’t ignite and the explosion caused only ‘minimal’ damage.”
This is obviously a story worth watching closely, and if there’s reason to believe the NAACP was targeted for by a domestic terrorist, a serious public conversation should ensue.
As for msnbc’s coverage, our pals at “The Ed Show” had a good segment on this yesterday, as did the fine folks at “All In with Chris Hayes.”
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."