An L.A. mental health worker takes credit for horse manure package left at Steven Mnuchin’s house.
LOS ANGELES/BEL AIR DISTRICT >> A clinical psychologist with the county of Los Angeles Department of Mental Health has taken credit for the package of horse manure that was left at the Bel Air home of U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin over the weekend.
Dr. Robert Strong, who goes by “Dr. Robert” on Twitter, cited the $1.5 trillion tax overhaul that was approved last week by the U.S. Congress and signed Friday by President Donald Trump as his motivation. Strong agrees with critics who say the policy favors the rich at the expense of the poor and working class.
“If the GOP can fleece the American people in such a brazen fashion (then) like Hunter S. Thompson once said, “when the going gets weird, the weird turns pro.”
The package, discovered at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at 965 Bel Air Road, was a box filled with manure and wrapped in Christmas paper, Sgt. R. Briggs of the LAPD West Los Angeles Station said.
The bomb squad X-rayed the package and opened it to reveal the contents, she said.
It was determined the package contained a “pretty good quantity” of horse manure, police officials said.
Strong also included a handwritten note reading “Dear Misters Trump and Mnuchin, we are returning your Christmas gift of the Republican tax plan because it’s complete horse …. Sincerely, the American people.”
A neighbor discovered the package and alerted authorities, according to media reports.
No injuries were reported and no evacuations were ordered.
Bel Air Road was closed during the investigation, but the scene was cleared at 8 p.m. Saturday.
Officials with the Secret Service were aware of the stunt and planned to pick up the package, according to media reports. So far, Strong said he had not been contacted.
But he told KPPC radio that he realizes he could get fired and face other consequences.
“In the long run,” he said “if we don’t do stuff like this, what are we going to have left.”
It’s not clear that any local laws were violated even though the package provoked an extensive law-enforcement response early Saturday evening, said Officer Ray Barron, of the West Los Angeles Division of the L.A. Police Dept.
“There was nothing other than insulting comments,” said Barron, describing a note that accompanied the box. “There was nothing dangerous in the box — no controlled substances. No threats were made.”
So I drove over to Mr. Mnuchin’s home. I had never been in Bel Air before. Surprisingly there is no gate guard at the entrance. The street is lined with gated mansions that cannot be seen thanks to high walls and very tall shrubbery. Dropping the manure on the street was sending a message. I can empathise with Dr. Robert Strong viewpoints. It may have felt good dropping the manure. Was it worth his job? I guess the answer is yes!
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