White House denies receiving letter from FLDS member

WASHINGTON — The White House has not received a letter from those seeking help in the aftermath of the polygamous sect raid in Texas despite comments by an FLDS member that he gave one to “presidential staffers” at Bush’s Crawford ranch.

A White House official said Monday they had not received the letter that Willie Jessop, a member of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, told another newspaper he hand-delivered to Bush staffers.

Jessop told the Deseret News that he gave it to the staffers and had a “cordial” conversation with them about the letter. It was unclear whom Jessop was referring to as the staffers and he did not return calls for comment on Monday.

Jessop’s letter pleaded for Bush to intercede on behalf of the FLDS group.

“Mr. President, it does not require a foreign country to commit terrorist acts on American soil,” Jessop wrote. “Terrorist acts can be committed by federal, local, and private entities that are operating under the guise of ‘protecting the public.’”

But it’s questionable how close Jessop could have got to the Texas ranch on a weekend when Bush’s daughter Jenna wedded Henry Hagar in a private ceremony at the ranch. Security was tight in the area around the ranch, and even White House-credentialed reporters weren’t allowed near.

And since the 2001 anthrax scare in Washington and New York, people attempting to deliver letters to the White House or other top government properties typically are turned away. Secret Service agents do not accept letters on behalf of the president, either.

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