Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are on edge after the shooting death of a state lawmaker in Minnesota, fearful that the tragic episode is evidence that the heated political environment around the country has heightened the threat to members of Congress, as well.
Leaders in both chambers quickly called on Capitol Hill’s security forces to step up protections for lawmakers in the wake of Saturday’s deadly attacks, which killed Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman (D) and her husband, and wounded state Sen. John Hoffman (D) and his wife. After a two-day manhunt, the authorities on Sunday night arrested Vance Boelter, 57, in the suburbs of Minneapolis. He is facing numerous state and federal charges, including first-degree murder.
While Boelter’s motivations remain unclear, The Minnesota Star Tribune reported that he had an extensive list of targets, including abortion providers and political figures — virtually all of them Democrats, including U.S. Sens. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), and U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.). The revelation led quickly to accusations that the shootings were politically motivated.
“This was an act of targeted political violence,” Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) said.
The episode led House Republican leaders to hold an emergency call with their GOP conference on Saturday. It prompted at least one House Democrat to scrap plans to hold town halls during the week-long House recess. And it sparked immediate calls for additional security precautions for sitting members of Congress.
The Senate on Tuesday will be briefed by the chamber’s sergeant at arms on enhanced protections — a step, requested by top lawmakers, that has not been taken on scale since the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
“We have to reevaluate how we are protecting members of Congress and staffs in the face of rising threats,” Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said.
After the House Republicans held their call on Saturday, some lawmakers aired immediate frustrations that rank-and-file members — who, unlike leadership, don’t generally have security details — have been left vulnerable to political violence even as threats have increased and the national discourse has grown more belligerent.
“Everybody is dissatisfied,” one GOP lawmaker said afterwards. “And our leadership — everybody is saying this, and I talked to Democrats this morning, as well, and they’re upset because their leadership … — they all have a security detail and they’re not paying us any attention. And nothing has changed since the shootings today.”
The lawmaker cited widespread “confusion” about the guidelines for lawmakers who request special security protection in response to threats, particularly as it pertains to who pays the tab.
“I just asked what’s the procedure. They keep saying they’ve got one that’s in place, that all you got to do is call, but it’s so much confusion… It’s like, oh, who pays for it?” the lawmaker said.
“And then the Speaker told everybody to turn their rhetoric down. People are very, very upset with our leadership and their lack of response.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) is also under pressure from Democrats to reevaluate the security posture for members.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.), the top Democrat on the House Administration Committee, called on Johnson to increase the member allowance that can be used for security, noting threats have skyrocketed since 2016.
“While we differ in many areas related to policy and our vision for America’s future, Member safety must be an area of common ground. Representatives from both sides of the aisle have endured assassination attempts that changed their lives and careers forever. Too many other patriotic public servants have left Congress because they no longer felt safe carrying out their duty as elected officials. We must act to protect each other and preserve this great American institution,” they wrote.
“That responsibility starts with you.”
Since Saturday’s shooting, Minnesota officials have said Boelter’s targets extended beyond Minnesota, to include elected lawmakers in other states as well as federal officials — another detail that’s unnerved lawmakers in the Capitol.
Rep. Greg Landsman (D-Ohio) said he was informed Sunday morning that he was included in Boelter’s list of targets.
“Since the suspect was still at large at that time, we worked very closely with the Cincinnati Police Department to arrange for increased security for my family and me,” Landsman said in a Monday statement.
“We are relieved the suspect has been arrested.”
Capitol Police said in a Monday statement that they are working on “providing proactive enhancements,” but declined to offer specifics.
“Since we were notified of the violence targeting lawmakers in Minnesota, we have been working around the clock with our Congressional, federal, state and local partners to ensure that the Members of Congress impacted by this terrible event have a strong security plan. We continue to closely coordinate with the House and Senate Sergeant at Arms to enhance security for Members of Congress. Their partnerships, along with assistance from local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies across the country, are extremely important to keep everyone safe,” Capitol Police said.
The violence aimed at politicians is reminiscent of other tragic episodes targeting lawmakers in the past, including the near-fatal shootings of former Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-Ariz.) in 2011 and Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) in 2017.
Now, as then, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have condemned the violence. Yet the Minnesota shooting has also led to plenty of partisan finger-pointing over who bears the blame for the incendiary rhetoric that practically defines much of the debate on Capitol Hill.
Elon Musk dove in, suggesting Boelter represents the “far left” — a group the billionaire deemed “murderously violent.”
Several Democrats countered by pointing to comments from President Trump, who has repeatedly alluded to violence in targeting Democrats, journalists and other political adversaries.
“We have seen over the last eight or ten years this proliferation of political violence against members of both parties. And I think one thing that has really contributed to it is the coarsening of the political dialogue, the way that people refer to their political opponents, the ad hominem nature of the attacks. The flirtation with violence in some of the things, for example, that the president says, they I think are an encouragement to these reprehensible acts,” Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) said during an appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” before saying action was needed within his own party as well.
“We all have to acknowledge on both sides of the aisle the need to bring about a more civil discourse, but the need to condemn political violence no matter who the target is.”
And Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) pointed to the “tone” of the Trump administration.
“I also think it’s more than appropriate to step back and say, why are tensions so high, not just in Los Angeles, but throughout the country? And I can’t help but point to the beginning of, not just the first Trump term, but the – the beginning of the campaign. The tone with which the president launched his first campaign for president, served throughout his first term and continues in this term,” he said.
For his part, Trump called the attacks “terrible” before swiftly pivoting to criticism of Walz.
“Well, it’s a terrible thing. I think he’s a terrible governor. I think he’s a grossly incompetent person. But I may, I may call him, I may call other people too,” Trump told ABC News on Sunday.
Numerous Republicans swiftly condemned the attack, including Johnson.
But some Republicans appeared to make light of the attack, with Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) showing a picture of Boelter and saying “This is what happens when Marxists don’t get their way.”
Lee also posted a photo of Boelter, who was wearing a rubber mask, describing it as “nightmare of Waltz street,” an apparent nod to Walz as well as Freddy Krueger in Nightmare on Elm Street.
Hours later, Lee condemned the attack on X, saying, “These hateful attacks have no place in Utah, Minnesota, or anywhere in America.”
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), a friend of the Hortman’s, had dinner with her Friday — the day before she and her husband were killed.
“I have condemned what Mike Lee did here at home, and I will speak to him about this when I return,” Klobuchar said during an appearance on MSNBC. “And what I’m going to tell him is: This isn’t funny.”
“This was an incredible woman, her husband, her two kids — yesterday on Father’s Day, there was no Father’s Day for them,” she said. “They lost both their parents.”
Mychael Schnell contributed reporting.
