Over the weekend, a glory-seeking terrorist with delusions of grandeur killed a Minnesota politician and her husband, then shot another state legislator and wounded his wife, who used her body to protect young kids. He had a long list of targets as well.
Thankfully, most politicians in America, regardless of political party, condemned the political killings. That bipartisan condemnation of attacks, not sarcasm or insults, is the first step to stopping politically extremist attacks.
The assassin, whose name I won’t mention because he clearly craves attention, had a kill list of 45 politicians, all Democrats, all the way from Minnesota and Wisconsin to Texas. He dressed as a law enforcement official as part of his act, an attempt to discredit our police and sheriffs’ deputies. And he showed himself to be the coward, not the “brave man” he thought of himself, by targeting kids and running off to hide. He deserves lifelong scorn.
Hopefully, he won’t be seen as some kind of hero, as some think of those who tried to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer. Or the nut who beat Nancy Pelosi’s husband with a hammer.
I was proud of those Republicans who joined Democrats in condemning the assassinations. Georgia GOP Governor Brian Kemp led the way. 11 Alive News reported “In a post on the social media platform, X, Kemp condemned political violence and urged Georgians to pray for the victims, their families, and the officers still searching for the suspect. “There is no place in America for political violence of any kind,” Kemp wrote. “Marty, the girls, and I ask that all Georgians join us in keeping their families, friends, and colleagues in our thoughts and prayers, as well as the law enforcement hunting down the madman responsible for this tragedy.”
Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock and Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens also condemned the shootings, according to WABE.
The Minnesota Republican Party, House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune also expressed support for the victims and condemned the attacks, according to The Guardian. Yet there’s always someone who just can’t resist attempting to exploit these tragic events for a few laughs and notoriety.
A senator not only put out a pair of cringeworthy tweets, but doubled down on them, citing a special right to be sarcastic about such events (which he does have). But we all know that had it been a member of his party who was killed, he would not likely have tried to mock the deaths of the victims. Tweets and posts often reveal something about a person’s character.
One of his colleagues had the guts to stand up to the senator. North Dakota Republican Kevin Cramer wrote “The move to remove the X posts came amid criticism from a Republican colleague Tuesday. Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota told reporters [the Senator’s] decision to comment online over the weekend “seems insensitive, to say the least, inappropriate, for sure” and “not even true,”” according to Calen Razor and Connor O’Brien with Politico. Thankfully, the bipartisan criticism led the tweets to be pulled down.
President Biden condemned the two terrorists who tried to assassinate candidate Donald Trump, calling it “sick violence.”
Hopefully, President Trump will join his Republican colleagues in bipartisan condemnations of political violence and coordinate with Minnesota state officials.