The staff of Americans For Tax Reform were briefly evacuated from their DC headquarters this morning as police responded to a bomb threat against the building. No explosives were found and the staff has returned to work.

The call came in around 9:10 Monday morning, according to a police spokesperson contacted by TPM. The officer could not say how long the staff was evacuated but said police had allowed them to return to work by the time we called at around 11:00 AM.

ATR is run by Grover Norquist, who has become a central player in the debate over the debt ceiling. The group controls the anti-tax pledge so many Republicans in Washington have signed, and many look to Norquist for the conventional GOP wisdom on what does or does not constitute a tax increase. That's become a main sticking point as Republicans and Democrats try to work out a deal to lower the deficit and raise the debt ceiling before the nation defaults in just about a week.

A spokesperson for ATR did not immediately respond to TPM's request for comment.

Republished with permission from TalkingPointsMemo.com. Authored by Evan McMorris-Santoro. Photo via AP. TPM provides breaking news, investigative reporting and smart analysis of politics.