A Florida GOP congressman sent his colleagues inert grenades as a welcome gift to the House

Rep. Cory Mills. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

• Florida congressman Cory Mills gifted his colleagues inert grenades.
• The grenades, Mills said, were made for an MK19 grenade launcher.
• "These are manufactured in the Sunshine State and first developed in the Vietnam War," Mills wrote.

A GOP congressman from Florida gifted his colleagues inert 40mm grenades to celebrate being named to the House Armed Forces and Foreign Affairs Committees.

Rep. Cory Mills on January 20 sent a letter welcoming his colleagues "to a mission-oriented 118th Congress," along with a dummy grenade. Mills said he was "eager to get to work for the American people" and was honored to serve on the committees.

"In that spirit, it is my pleasure to give you a 40mm grenade, made for an MK19 grenade launcher," Mills wrote. 'These are manufactured in the Sunshine State and first developed in the Vietnam War." 

The letter to his colleagues assured them in a postscript that "these Florida manufactured 40mm grenades are inert." 

—Morgan Phillips (@_phillipsmorgan) January 26, 2023

Mills' letter was posted to Twitter on Thursday by Daily Mail reporter Morgan Phillips.

"Per the letter, the grenades are inert, and were cleared through all security metrics," Mills' spokesman Juan Ayala said in an email to The Washington Post. "I just wish they tagged our official account."

It's unclear how many grenades Mills gifted to his colleagues. Representatives for the congressman did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

Mills, a congressman backed by former President Donald Trump, in November won his seat in Florida's 7th Congressional district.

In May, Mills bragged about supplying law enforcement agencies with tear gas used against Black Lives Matter protesters. Mills has also parroted Trump's claims that the election was rigged, per the Orlando Sentinel.