After President Donald Trump told reporters he would not be calling Minnesota Governor Tim Walz following the shootings of two Minnesota state lawmakers and their spouses—calling it a "waste" of time—Walz's spokesperson shared Walz's much classier response.
Last Saturday, state Representative Melissa Hortman was assassinated along with her husband at their home in Brooklyn Park. Earlier that morning, state Senator John Hoffman and his wife were shot in their home in Champlin, another Minneapolis suburb, and were hospitalized (Hoffman and his wife are expected to survive). The shooter has since been captured and charged for the murders, firearm offenses, and stalking.
Speaking to reporters early Tuesday aboard Air Force One after the Group of Seven summit, Trump said he had no plans to call Walz:
“I think the governor of Minnesota is so whacked out. I’m not calling. Why would I call him?”
"The guy doesn’t have a clue. He’s a mess. So, you know, I could be nice and call, but why waste time?
You can hear his remark in the video below.
But rather than engage in petty squabbles, Walz's spokesperson Teddy Tschann released the following statement:
“Governor Walz wishes that President Trump would be a President for all Americans, but this tragedy isn’t about Trump or Walz. It’s about the Hortman family, the Hoffman family, & the State of Minnesota, and the Governor remains focused on helping all three heal."
Trump is Walz's polar opposite in his response to the shootings—and he was harshly criticized in response.
The suspect in the Minnesota shootings had a "hit list" of 45 elected officials, all of whom are Democrats.
At a Saturday news conference, state police said they recovered a list of names from what they identified as the suspect's vehicle. Among those listed were Hortman, Hoffman, Walz, Senator Tina Smith, and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, as well as Planned Parenthood locations the shooter intended to target.
The Minnesota shootings are the latest in a troubling pattern of politically motivated violence nationwide. A report released last year by the Brennan Center for Justice found that nearly half of state legislators surveyed had faced threats or physical attacks. Meanwhile, the U.S. Capitol Police have reported a sharp increase in threats targeting members of Congress.
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