Pittsfield, Massachusetts

Suspicious letters, some containing a white powder, were sent to multiple members of Congress and secretaries of state election offices across the country in recent days. In Massachusetts, offices of Reps. Richard Neal, Seth Moulton, Joe Courtney, Lori Trahan, Stephen Lynch, Ayanna Pressley and Jake Auchincloss all reported receiving similar mailings. A letter addressed to Neal's Pittsfield office was intercepted before delivery by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, while a letter opened at Courtney's Enfield office prompted a hazmat-style response; testing found no substances of concern. The FBI and Postal Inspection Service are investigating and working to identify those responsible. Lawmakers condemned the mailings as acts of intimidation amid heightened political tensions.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren visited Pittsfield to promote the "21st Century Road to Housing Act," a bipartisan housing reform bill she co-sponsored with Sen. Tim Scott that became law without President Trump's signature after he demanded passage of a separate voter ID measure, the SAVE America Act, first. Warren said the housing law includes nearly 50 provisions aimed at boosting housing supply and, notably, bars private equity firms from buying up single-family homes.

Warren also addressed reports of CIA involvement in strikes on suspected drug boats near the Galapagos Islands, calling for a congressional investigation, and criticized the Pentagon's handling of conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln. She framed the 2026 midterms as a check on Trump, urging Democratic turnout to guard against election interference.

The visit coincided with other Massachusetts political developments: a new poll showing Democratic primary challenger Patrick Roath narrowing the gap against Rep. Stephen Lynch in the 8th District, and a congressional inspection of an ICE detention facility in Plymouth County by Reps. Jim McGovern, Lynch and Ayanna Pressley.