Questions loom about how to keep publicly elected officials safe after authorities in Minnesota say that Vance Boelter, the man arrested and charged with murdering one state lawmaker and wounding another, possessed a "hit list" with the names of dozens of other elected officials.
Officials say Boelter, 57, shot and killed Democratic state Rep. Melissa Hortman, and her husband, Mark, in their Brooklyn Park, Minn., home while impersonating a police officer. Before going to Hortman's home, Boelter allegedly shot and wounded Democratic state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, at their home in nearby Champlin, Minn.
State police said on Saturday that they found a notebook inside the alleged shooter's car, which contained a list with the names of at least 45 Democratic lawmakers and officials in Minnesota and several other states. Hortman and Hoffman were on that list along with other lawmakers, including Democratic Rep. Hillary Scholten of Michigan.
Scholten told Morning Edition that it was "truly chilling" to discover her name was on the hit list.
"We didn't know at the time what these lists were for or if the shooter was working alone or as part of a larger group, but we did know he was still at large and in a nearby state," Scholten said. "And I'm a mom of two kids. My first thought was for my children."
Police arrested Boelter late Sunday in rural Minnesota. He faces six federal charges, including two counts of murder for the killings of Hortman and her husband, which can carry the death penalty if he's convicted. He also faces federal charges for shooting Hoffman and his wife. At the state level, officials charged Boelter with two counts of second degree murder and two counts of attempted second degree murder. Though officials say they do plan to pursue first degree murder charges.
Minnesota's acting U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson has described the Minnesota shootings as a "political assassination."
Former U.S. Secret Service Special Agent Bill Gage, who served for 13 years, said "It is nearly impossible to fully protect every member of Congress," though he insists local and state officials need better training from federal officials and departments.
"As a security professional, we really have to do a better job of doing threat assessments," Bill told NPR's Steve Inskeep. "And some of the state and local agencies have really got to receive some better training and some assistance from our federal partners, the Secret Service and the FBI, to really be able to find these people before they attack."
Boelter, who is in federal custody, will have a preliminary hearing on June 27, and a judge will decide whether or not to set bail.
Scholten and Gage shared more about their responses to the Minnesota shootings and how they will move forward.
The following excerpts have been edited for length and clarity.
Lawmaker postpones town hall after political attacks
A Martínez: You postponed a town hall last night. Will these shootings and everything that's happened, will it change maybe the way you approach public appearances?
Rep. Hillary Scholten: We're always going to be smart. The town hall that we were supposed to have last night, several hundred people coming out. It had been less than 24 hours since we found out that my name was among the documents there and what they meant. And so, out of an abundance of caution and the safety of our community, we decided just to postpone this event. But I want to be so clear, we in no way are going to stop showing up for our community. We're going to continue being smart about this so that folks can feel safe engaging with their elected officials. But we're not going to let acts like this, which are truly domestic terrorism, intimidate or stop me from showing up for our community.
Martínez: You have two sons. And sometimes politicians bring their families out to campaign events. Are you thinking about maybe not having your sons with you at these things?
Scholten: I have a lot of trust in our law enforcement, and I want to give them an immense note of gratitude for their quick response and the way that they have doubled down to take care of me and my family. I think we trust that if we are going out there, we're asking our community to show up for events, that's a situation that I believe that we can trust for me and my family to be out there.
Martínez: If you have a gun, are you thinking about taking it with you when you go places? And if you don't, are you thinking about buying one?
Scholten: Personal protection is certainly top of mind for lawmakers today and especially after this incident. We are reviewing a lot of our own internal safety protocols to see what else we might be able to do to keep ourselves safe, even in our own home. Even with the best security, we see here that it wasn't enough to stop or wouldn't have necessarily been enough to to stop the shooter in this instance.
Martínez: What do you think this story says about the state of politics today?
Scholten: It's undeniable that political violence is on the rise. It is incumbent on elected officials on both sides to help lower the temperature, because we need representatives to be able to do their jobs.
Secret Service agent on protecting politicans
Steve Inskeep: As a security professional, what stood out to you when you heard about this attack?
Bill Gage: Several things. The most striking is that he impersonated a police officer. Banging on the door in the middle of the night, people rush to their door thinking that there's actually an emergency. So, that struck me and also the level of planning. Some of the materials in the criminal complaint were extensive planning. He had conducted some open source searches.
As an American, it's really scary that there are these people out there that are violent political ideologies. Very scary, as an American. As a security professional, we really have to do a better job of doing threat assessments. And some of the state and local agencies have really got to receive some better training and some assistance from our federal partners, the Secret Service and the FBI, to really be able to find these people before they attack.
Inskeep: I want to follow up on a couple of things that Rep. Scholten said. She said that she postponed a town hall meeting. She didn't say she cancelled one. Public officials have to be in public, have to shake hands. How do we preserve that?
Gage: We're having these same conversations, Steve. It is nearly impossible to fully protect every member of Congress. We live in a free democratic system. That Congresswoman is exactly right. Our elected leaders have got to be out in the public. Our elected leaders do not operate in secret, behind closed doors like they do in a lot of countries. They have to get out and interact with the public. That has to happen for our democracy to function. I think they're really ironing out some of the clues that the shooter might have left to make sure that this wasn't part of a broader conspiracy — that he acted alone. So, I think that was smart for the congresswoman to do that.
Inskeep: Would you tell public officials to arm themselves, bring along more armed security, do anything else in particular?
Gage: Yeah, I would not tell somebody not to arm themselves or to arm themselves. I would just encourage America's elected leaders to follow the advice of your local law enforcement.
Obed Manuel edited the digital piece.
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