Joe Biden and Kamala Harris Attend Funeral of Slain Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman
Former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman will be laid to rest on Saturday, following her tragic death in a politically motivated assassination. Hortman, 55, and her husband Mark were shot and killed on June 14 in their Brooklyn Park home.
On the same day, Democratic state Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were also attacked at their nearby residence but fortunately survived. In a historic tribute, Hortman and her husband, along with their golden retriever who perished in the attack, lay in state at the Minnesota Capitol rotunda on Friday.
This marked the first time a woman has received such an honor in the state’s capitol, attracting thousands of mourners. Hortman served as speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives starting in 2019 and had transitioned to the role of speaker emerita under a power-sharing agreement established with Republicans earlier this year.
The funeral services drew a large gathering of notable politicians, including former President Joe Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris, alongside Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. The private ceremony was held at the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis.
During his eulogy, Governor Walz remembered the Hortmans as close friends, referring to Melissa as “the most consequential speaker in Minnesota history.” He emphasized the need for a recommitment to civility in political discourse. Father Daniel Griffith, who led the service, shared sentiments reflecting on the broader issues of violence in Minnesota, stating, “Our nation is in need of deep healing.” The Hortmans’ murders are part of a concerning trend of planned political attacks, with authorities charging Vance Boelter for the shootings and suggesting a wider network of threats against politicians, particularly those supporting abortion rights.
This incident underscores an alarming rise in political violence in the United States, a topic that has recently garnered bipartisan concern.