Paul Pelosi, the husband of U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, was “violently” attacked after an intruder broke into the couple’s San Francisco home early Friday morning, according to a statement from the speaker’s office.
Drew Hammill, a spokesman for the Democratic speaker’s office, said in the statement that an assailant broke into the couple’s home and “violently assaulted Mr. Pelosi.”
A law enforcement source told The Times that Paul Pelosi, 82, was attacked with a hammer and sustained numerous upper-body blows. The house appears to have been intentionally targeted, sources added.
Pelosi was taken to a hospital, where he is expected to make a full recovery, Hammill said. Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) was not in the city at the time of the attack, according to the speaker’s office.
The San Francisco Police Department said in a statement that officers responded to the 2600 block of Broadway for a home break-in at around 2:30 a.m. Friday.
During the incident an “82 y/o male was attacked,” Sgt. Adam Lobsinger said. “The suspect was taken into custody. The victim was transported to a local hospital.”
The motive for the attack is under investigation, Hammill said.
“The Speaker and her family are grateful to the first responders and medical professionals involved, and request privacy at this time,” Hammill said in the statement.
President Biden spoke with Nancy Pelosi on Friday morning “to express his support after this horrible attack,” Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, said in statement.
“The President is praying for Paul Pelosi and for Speaker Pelosi’s whole family,” the statement said. “The President continues to condemn all violence, and asks that the family’s desire for privacy be respected.”
The U.S. Capitol Police said in a statement that it is assisting the FBI and the San Francisco Police Department in the investigation.
According to the Capitol Police, special agents with the agency arrived on scene, and investigators from the organization’s Threat Assessment Section have been sent from the East Coast to assist the FBI and the San Francisco police with the investigation.
The Pelosis live in Pacific Heights, one of San Francisco’s most exclusive neighborhoods.
Images of the four-bedroom brick home, built in 1938, are regularly featured on conservative websites.
The house has been the site of various protests in the past. Last year, someone used black spray paint to write a large letter “A,” for “anarchy,” and a severed pig’s head was left in front of the home.
The attack on Paul Pelosi comes 11 days ahead of the midterm election. Nancy Pelosi has been in campaign mode, raising millions for candidates and pushing to maintain the majority hold that Democrats have on the House as the party’s power hangs in the balance.
Although the motive for the assault remains a mystery, the violence has sparked alarm in part because of heightened concern about the safety of public officials at their homes and offices, particularly in the wake of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, where Nancy Pelosi was one of the targets.
In June, a Simi Valley man was charged with attempted murder of a U.S. Supreme Court justice after being found with a gun, knife and pepper spray near the home of Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh in Maryland.
Threats against members of Congress have increased dramatically over the last five years, according to data from the Capitol Police — from 3,939 cases in 2017 to 9,625 cases in 2021.
During the first three months of 2022, the latest time period for which data is available, Capitol Police have opened roughly 1,820 cases, the agency said.
Capitol Police said in an email to The Times that, for safety reasons, it “does not discuss potential security measures for Members.”
Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), Senate majority leader, said in a statement that “what happened to Paul Pelosi was a dastardly act” and that he spoke with Nancy Pelosi on Friday to extend his “deepest concern and heartfelt wishes” to the Pelosi family.
On Twitter, Meghan McCain, daughter of the late senator and former Republican presidential nominee John McCain said Friday that she felt “absolutely sick, horrified and disgusted” about the news of Paul Pelosi.
“What in God’s name is happening in this country?! Everyone join me and send support, love, prayers, anything you can to Speaker Pelosi, her husband and the entire Pelosi family,” she wrote. “This is a broken world.”
This is a developing story.