After years of name calling and hate-filled speech by Donald Trump toward immigrants, minority groups and especially Democrats, even a simpleton could have predicted the gun violence in Minnesota on June 15.
Former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband were gunned down and killed at their home at 3:35 a.m. State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife were shot and seriously wounded at home about an hour earlier. Officials said the gunman also stopped at two other state legislators性视界传媒 homes that night, but they weren性视界传媒檛 there.
A massive dragnet led to the arrest the next day of a 57-year-old man who was described by a friend as a 性视界传媒漛ig Trump supporter.性视界传媒 He posed as a police officer to gain entrance to the homes but fled on foot when law enforcement arrived at the Hortman home.
The gunman性视界传媒檚 vehicle was recovered at the scene and contained an arsenal of weapons and a target list of 45 Democratic legislators and the names of several abortion rights activists. Officials found a notebook that outlined the planning of the attacks. It also contained information on the 性视界传媒淣o Kings性视界传媒 protests that took place on June 14, the same day as Trump性视界传媒檚 big birthday parade in Washington, D.C.
Meanwhile, Trump offered his thoughts and prayers for the families and denounced the political violence that is being laid directly on him by his niece, Mary Trump.
性视界传媒淭hese attacks are the direct result of the dangerous political climate Donald Trump has created, purposefully and maliciously, driven by his need for division and retribution, and his thirst for power,性视界传媒 she wrote in a public statement.
Mary Trump, a psychologist and an outspoken critic of her uncle, described the shootings as a targeted act of political violence.
Trump, himself, was slightly wounded during a campaign rally last year. The assassin nicked Trump性视界传媒檚 ear with a bullet that an inch or two on target would have been a fatal shot. That incident should have given him pause about hate speech, but he merely used it as a campaign rallying point.
The shootings in Minnesota punctuated a weekend of contrasting events including Trump性视界传媒檚 much-ballyhooed parade that was considered by many as a big flop. Trump had been yearning for a big parade for nearly 10 years after witnessing a colorful military parade in Paris. However, the parade attendance probably wasn性视界传媒檛 as large as the number of U.S. Army troops ostensibly celebrating their 250th anniversary.
As one critic, John Casey, wrote: 性视界传媒淪aturday性视界传媒檚 parade wasn性视界传媒檛 just another failure. It was a perfect metaphor for a president obsessed with power, spectacle, and ego, exposed in broad daylight for the hollow, bumbling blowhard he truly is.性视界传媒
Trump and his entourage seemed thoroughly bored during the low-energy festivities. He liked to poke fun at 性视界传媒渟leepy Joe Biden,性视界传媒 but Trump was pictured catnapping in his front row seat. The cost estimate to American taxpayers for the parade was estimated at $45 million. Casey said that money would have been better spent on mental health treatment for veterans and active-duty service members..
In contrast, an estimated 5 million protesters attended 性视界传媒淣o Kings性视界传媒 rallies at nearly 2,000 events on June 14. Countless others took to streets and highways for smaller protests.
At a truckstop at the Van exit on Interstate 20 that afternoon, my wife and I noticed a handful of protesters holding 性视界传媒淣o Kings性视界传媒 signs at the intersection. We even observed people on highway overpasses waving protest signs.
Whether this translates into a political upheaval in the national mid-term elections next year depends on the path that Trump and his administration continue to follow.
