Condemning the Attacks on Minnesota Lawmakers in Brooklyn Park and Champlin, Minnesota, and Calling for Unity and the Rejection of Political Violence in Minnesota and Across the United States

Floor Speech

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Ms. MORRISON. Mr. Speaker, I rise with a heavy heart but a deep resolve as we confront the assassination and attempted murders of multiple State legislators in Minnesota.

What we witnessed last weekend was an unspeakable act. This is a scary time for our country, and it comes at a time of increasing political violence. There have been assassination attempts, kidnapping plots, arson, and insurrection.

As elected Representatives for the people of the United States of America, we have to take responsibility for our roles in this moment. As elected leaders, we play a prominent role in setting the tone in creating the atmosphere and shaping the narrative in determining what becomes normalized.

This cannot be normalized.

Our words, our posts, our responses, they all carry weight and have serious consequences. This is our wake-up call. The escalation and normalization of violent rhetoric and political violence have gone way too far.

We, as elected Representatives, have to take the lead and be the first to speak out and to start to model a better path forward.

We can argue about who is to blame and which side is worse, but let's make this the moment where we unequivocally condemn and commit to ending violent rhetoric, full stop. We have to make this horrific act of targeted political violence a watershed moment for our country.

We have to take a hard look at where we are, and we have to remember who is watching us. Our children, the next generation of leaders, are looking to us to learn how to behave and how to treat each other.

That includes creating a world where people aren't scared by the hatred and division they see in their lives every day, creating a world where our children have kind, compassionate leaders to look up to and aspire to be.

Do we really want our children to live in a world where our elected leaders bully and lead with hatred and cruelty? Remember, political violence isn't just an attack on legislators. It is an attack on the American people. It is an attack on our democracy.

Political violence threatens your right to be represented, your right to have your voices heard. It threatens who will be willing to run for office. As someone who was a doctor for almost two decades before I got into politics, I am passionate about recruiting people from different backgrounds to run because we need more diversity in who represents us.

Our democracy depends on good people running for office, and I am deeply concerned that this will have a chilling effect if we don't stop it in its tracks.

As we prepare to vote on this resolution, I come to my colleagues with a solemn plea. Devastated by the loss of my friend and colleague but more determined than ever with a deep love for the unrealized promise of our country, I implore my colleagues to not only vote in support of this resolution but to commit together to live by these words every day. Stand up, speak out, and safeguard our democracy.

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