A called-in bomb threat forced police to clear the White House briefing room in the middle of a briefing Tuesday afternoon and search it, the White House press secretary told reporters after the room was deemed safe and they were allowed to head back inside. Earlier in the afternoon, reports of suspicious packages forced evacuations of two Senate office buildings and halted an oversight hearing on the Transportation Security Administration. Capitol police ordered congressional staffers away as they investigated the reports at the Russell Senate Office Building and the Dirksen Senate Office Building, both steps from the Capitol.
