By W. James Antle III, Washington Examiner

Democrats are gearing up to use the attempted bomb attacks on frequent objects of President Donald Trump’s criticism, including the Clintons and former President Barack Obama, as part of their closing argument less than two weeks out from the midterm elections.

Although Trump denounced these “despicable acts,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said his “words ring hollow until he reverses his statements that condone acts of violence,” listing his reaction to Charlottesville, praise for a congressman who body-slammed a reporter, description of media outlets as the “enemy of the people,” and encouragement of fights at his raucous campaign rallies as examples of his coarsening of the public discourse and incitement of a violent political culture.

It’s a tactic that has worked before. Then-President Bill Clinton struck back at anti-government rhetoric in the aftermath of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing and eventually used a heroic survivor of that attack to rebuke congressional Republicans for government shutdowns. “I challenge all of you in this chamber: Never, ever shut the federal government down again,” he said in his 1996 State of the Union address.

Some have credited Clinton’s response to Oklahoma City with saving his presidency after the 1994 elections dramatically handed Congress to Republicans for the first time in decades.

“The haters and extremists didn’t go away, but they were on the defensive, and, for the rest of my term, would never quite regain the position they had enjoyed after Timothy McVeigh took the demonization of government beyond the limits of humanity,” Clinton wrote in his memoirs.

Others later invoked the 2011 shooting of then-Rep. Gabby Giffords, D-Ariz., to discredit the burgeoning Tea Party movement, which also used rhetoric sharply critical of liberals, politicians, and the federal government, though no link was ever found. Giffords survived the assassination attempt and became a gun control advocate.

Arguments about right-wing extremism and Trump’s incendiary rhetoric will be easily made now.

Bill Clinton and his wife, Hillary, along with progressive benefactor George Soros, former CIA Director John Brennan care of Trump’s least favorite network CNN, and Barack Obama were among the recipients of crude mailed explosive devices Wednesday morning. No one was injured in the attempted pipe bomb attacks, but Trump’s intense criticism of these individuals and the media was frequently noted in the aftermath.

“Unfortunately, I think Donald Trump too often has helped to incite some of these feelings of anger, if not violence,” Brennan said Wednesday.

Thursday, the mail-bomb scare widened as law enforcement officials seized three more suspicious packages – two addressed to former Vice President Joe Biden and one to actor Robert De Niro, who has been sharply critical of Trump.

For his part, Trump gave himself credit for restraint at a rally for Republican candidates in Wisconsin on Wednesday night.

Thursday morning, the president tweeted:

“A very big part of the Anger we see today in our society is caused by the purposely false and inaccurate reporting of the Mainstream Media that I refer to as Fake News. It has gotten so bad and hateful that it is beyond description. Mainstream Media must clean up its act, FAST!”

A very big part of the Anger we see today in our society is caused by the purposely false and inaccurate reporting of the Mainstream Media that I refer to as Fake News. It has gotten so bad and hateful that it is beyond description. Mainstream Media must clean up its act, FAST!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 25, 2018

Former CIA Director John Brennan, the target of one package sent to CNN, fired back in a Twitter response:

“Stop blaming others. Look in the mirror. Your inflammatory rhetoric, insults, lies, & encouragement of physical violence are disgraceful. Clean up your act….try to act Presidential.”

Stop blaming others. Look in the mirror. Your inflammatory rhetoric, insults, lies, & encouragement of physical violence are disgraceful. Clean up your act….try to act Presidential. The American people deserve much better. BTW, your critics will not be intimidated into silence. https://t.co/cS5qNiuU7o

— John O. Brennan (@JohnBrennan) October 25, 2018

It’s unclear whether already energized Democrats will need any extra motivation to turn out and vote against Republicans under Trump. But after months of speculation about a “blue wave” washing Democrats into power, momentum had shifted ever so slightly in the Republicans’ favor in recent days. This has given the GOP new hope for the Senate and even, to a lesser extent, the House.

At the very least, Wednesday’s events undermine the message that Republicans create jobs while Democrats produce mobs. Protesting politicians at restaurants will look less significant and the pipe bombs will help shape media coverage of Trump as voters head to the polls.

Late-breaking events like the suspicious packages sent to Democrats can help tip an election more decisively in one direction or the other.

The perpetrator has not yet been caught nor has any motive been established.

Republicans as well have been the targets of attacks. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., was severely wounded by a gunman last year and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., was seriously injured by an attacker.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.