Latest news with #MinnesotaDemocrats
Yahoo
20 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Minnesota shooting suspect identified as Vance Boelter, manhunt ongoing; dozens of Democrats on list, sources say
Authorities said they've identified 57-year-old Vance Luther Boelter as a suspect as they search for the gunman who allegedly shot and killed a state representative and shot and wounded a state senator in a targeted act of violence early Saturday. Authorities said they're still investigating if Boelter knew the victims in Saturday's shooting: State Rep. Melissa Hortman and State Sen. John Hoffman. "There's certainly some overlap with some, you know, public meetings, I will say, with Sen. Hoffman and the individual," authorities said. Police released this photo of Boelter taken on Saturday. Dozens of Minnesota Democrats were on a target list written by the gunman, according to law enforcement sources. The Minnesota Democrats on the list included Gov. Tim Walz, U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, U.S. Sen. Tina Smith and state Attorney General Keith Ellison, according to law enforcement sources familiar with the matter. MORE: Minnesota lawmaker Melissa Hortman killed, State Sen. John Hoffman wounded in 'targeted political violence' Police said the list -- which was retrieved from the suspect's vehicle -- also named Hortman and Hoffman. Both victims are Democrats and Hortman was formerly the Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives. The shooter's list of potential targets also included the names of abortion providers and pro-choice activists, several sources told ABC News. Many of the Democratic lawmakers on the list have been outspoken about pro-choice policy positions, two sources said. Security resources have been dispatched to protect those people named on the list, authorities said. The Capitol Police said it's "working with our federal, state and local partners." MORE: Gov. Tim Walz, other Minnesota leaders pay tribute to legislators shot at homes The shootings began around 2 a.m. Saturday when Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were both shot multiple times at their home in Champlin, Minnesota, authorities said. "We're cautiously optimistic they will survive this assassination attempt," Walz said at a news conference. MORE: What to know about Melissa Hortman, John Hoffman After Hoffman was shot, officers headed to pro-actively check on Hortman, who lived in the nearby town of Brooklyn Park, police said. Around 3:35 a.m., the officers found the suspect -- who was dressed as a police officer -- coming out of Hortman's house, police said. The suspect fired at the officers; gunfire was exchanged and the suspect was able to escape and flee on foot, authorities said. Hortman and her husband, Mark, were both found fatally shot at the house, police said. The suspect's vehicle -- which looked like a police vehicle, including police lights -- was in Hortman's driveway, authorities said, and the list of potential targets was found inside the car. A manhunt for the gunman is ongoing. Brooklyn Park is under a shelter in place order, officials said Walz said in a statement, "We are not a country that settles our differences at gunpoint. We have demonstrated again and again in our state that it is possible to peacefully disagree, that out state is strengthened by civil public debate. We must stand united against all forms of violence." "We will spare no resource in bringing those responsible to justice," he added. Walz warned, "out of an abundance of caution," Minnesotans should not attend any political rallies in the state until the suspect is caught. Fliers reading "No kings," were found in the suspect's car, authorities said. Thousands of "No Kings Day" protests are set to be held across the U.S. on Saturday to protest Trump's administration and to counterprogram the military parade in Washington, D.C. This is a developing story. Please check back for updates. ABC News' Luke Barr, Mike Levine and Katherine Faulders contributed to this report. Minnesota shooting suspect identified as Vance Boelter, manhunt ongoing; dozens of Democrats on list, sources say originally appeared on
Yahoo
20 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
What Did They Do To Make People Hate Them So Much?
What did Rep. Melissa Hortman and the other victims do that made someone hate them enough to kill? That's the question Minnesota Democrats are scrambling to answer after the former House Speaker and her husband were gunned down in their Brooklyn Park home in what police have called a politically motivated assassination. The man accused of pulling the trigger — Vance Luther Boelter — isn't a right-wing extremist. He's a Democratic insider who held official appointments under Gov. Tim Walz and former Gov. Mark Dayton, both Democrats. A 2019 state documents confirm Boelter served on the Governor's Workforce Development Board as recently as 2023. So why would someone from within the party kill two of its most prominent figures? Just days before her death, Hortman cast the lone Democratic vote to cut taxpayer-funded healthcare for adult illegal immigrants, siding with Republicans to get the state's budget over the finish line. The move stunned progressives and triggered an emotional reaction even from Hortman herself, who broke down in tears at a press conference following the vote. In the video, she defends her decision: 'I did what leaders do… I stepped up and I got the job done for the people of Minnesota.' Video footage of the emotional moment — captured by KTTC News and widely shared on social media — shows Hortman visibly shaken by the backlash. Days later, she was dead. Boelter wasn't some unaffiliated madman. He was deeply embedded in Minnesota's Democratic establishment for nearly a decade. But recent evidence suggests he had turned on the very party that had empowered him: Police recovered a manifesto and a 'kill list' from Boelter's vehicle naming top Democrats: Gov. Walz, Rep. Ilhan Omar, Sen. Tina Smith, and AG Keith Ellison Flyers promoting 'No Kings' — a phrase tied to far-left anti-establishment ideology — were also found in his car Law enforcement says the killings were politically motivated — but so far, no evidence points to any Republican ties. Everything suggests Boelter was targeting Democrats exclusively. Theories are swirling: Was Boelter a radical leftist who believed moderate Democrats like Hortman were betraying the cause and weren't left enough? Or was this something darker — did Democrats kill their own so they could turn around and blame Republicans? What seems clear is this: There's no evidence this was a right-wing plot. Boelter was a Democrat who allegedly turned violent against his own. Hortman's death has exposed a deeper rift inside the Democratic Party — between those who demand ideological purity and those, like Hortman, who choose compromise to govern. Her final act as a lawmaker was to break with her party and side with Republicans on a politically explosive issue — and days later, she was killed, allegedly by a fellow Democrat. Was it revenge? Radical extremism? Or a symptom of growing volatility in American politics? Whatever the motive, one chilling question remains: What could she have done to provoke someone from her own side to kill her?
