DENVER—NCSL’s legislator and legislative staff officers—NCSL President Wayne A. Harper, Utah Senate president pro tempore; NCSL President-Elect Marcus C. Evans Jr., Illinois assistant majority leader; NCSL Vice President Barry Usher, Montana Senate majority whip; NCSL President Emeritus Brian Patrick Kennedy, Rhode Island speaker pro tempore; NCSL Staff Chair John Snyder, staff administrator for the Kentucky Legislative Research Commission Transportation Committee; NCSL Staff Vice Chair Lonnie Edgar, deputy director of the Mississippi Joint Legislative PEER Committee; and NCSL Immediate Past Staff Chair Sabrina N. Lewellen, deputy director and assistant secretary of the Arkansas Senate—issued the following statement following the attacks on Minnesota Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and Sen. John Hoffman and their spouses.
“As leaders representing 7,386 state legislators and more than 30,000 legislative staff across the nation, our hearts are broken—but our convictions are resolute—after the criminal acts perpetrated against our colleagues and their families in Minnesota.
“Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman was an exemplar of service in our legislative community. Sen. John Hoffman is a bipartisan lawmaker who has earned the respect of his colleagues. We send our most sincere condolences to the speaker's family and friends as well as to our fellow legislators and legislative staff in Minnesota who serve the people of the North Star State. Our hearts are with you as you mourn. We pray earnestly for the recovery of Sen. Hoffman and his wife, Yvette.
“Elected officials have become targets because political differences have too often transcended civil debate. Too much dangerous rhetoric has crept into public discourse. We have seen assassination attempts on leaders like President Trump, Congresspeople Scalise and Giffords, and now Speaker Emerita Hortman and Sen. Hoffman. These mad acts cross party lines, and put us all at risk.
“That these lawmakers’ spouses were also targeted in these attacks is an unspeakable horror. Our families already sacrifice so much as part of our legislative service. We cannot accept a world in which they also feel threatened.
“The attacks in Champlin and Brooklyn Park targeted Sen. Hoffman and Speaker Hortman and their families, but they were aimed at the very heart of the democratic institutions we serve. We cannot, and will not, let terror be successful. We will continue representing our constituents with passion and love, not for a moment cowered in fear.
“We serve because we love our communities, states and nation. Even when debates run hot, we know our political opponents are not our enemies—they are Americans who love their country, and their states, every bit as much as we do.
“On behalf of state legislators and legislative staff from every state, commonwealth and territory in the nation, our prayers are with Speaker Emerita Hortman’s family, Sen. Hoffman, his wife and their family, and the entire Minnesota legislature.”
NCSL is a bipartisan organization that serves the legislators and staffs of the states, commonwealths and territories. It provides research, technical assistance and opportunities for policymakers to exchange ideas on the most pressing state issues and is an effective and respected advocate for the interests of the states in the American federal system.