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    <title>Nation &amp; World</title>
    <category>Nation &amp; World</category>
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    <description>Stay informed with the latest breaking news, local stories, sports, business, weather, and community events from Durango, Southwest Colorado, and the Four Corners region.</description>
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        <link>https://www.durangoherald.com/articles/nation-world/dc-gala-shooting-suspect-aired-grievances-against-trump-in-writings-to-family-2/</link>
        <title>DC gala shooting suspect aired grievances against Trump in writings to family</title>
        <description>Members of the U.S. Secret Service counter assault team stand on the stage after a shooting incident outside the ballroom during the White House Correspondents Dinner, Saturday in Washington. (Alex Brandon/Associated Press) WASHINGTON – The man accused of opening fire...</description>
        <pubDate>Sun, 26 Apr 2026 13:37:19 -0600</pubDate>
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        <content:encoded><![CDATA[Members of the U.S. Secret Service counter assault team stand on the stage after a shooting incident outside the ballroom during the White House Correspondents Dinner, Saturday in Washington. (Alex Brandon/Associated Press)WASHINGTON – The man accused of opening fire at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner railed against Trump administration policies and referred to himself as a “Friendly Federal Assassin” in writings sent to family members minutes before the attack that authorities increasingly believe was politically motivated, according to a law enforcement official familiar with the investigation.The writings, sent shortly before shots were fired Saturday night at the Washington Hilton, made repeated references to President Donald Trump without naming him directly and alluded to grievances over a range of administration actions and recent events, including U.S. strikes on drug smuggling boats in the eastern Pacific, the official said Sunday.The official was not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity.Investigators are treating the writings, along with a trail of social media posts and interviews with family members, as some of the clearest evidence yet of the suspect’s mindset and possible motives.Authorities also uncovered what the official described as numerous anti-Trump social media posts linked to the suspect, Cole Tomas Allen, a 31-year-old California man accused of trying to breach a security checkpoint at the dinner while armed with multiple weapons.Suspect's brother reached out to Connecticut policeAllen’s brother contacted police in New London, Connecticut, after receiving the writings, according to the official. In a statement, the New London Police Department said it was contacted at 10:49 p.m., about two hours after the shooting, by an individual who wanted to share information related to it. The police department said it then immediately notified federal law enforcement.Federal agents have also interviewed Allen’s sister in Maryland, who told investigators her brother had legally purchased several weapons from a California gun store and stored them at their parents’ home in Torrance without their knowledge, according to the official.She described her brother as prone to making radical statements, the official said.Allen legally bought a .38-caliber semiautomatic pistol in October 2023 and a 12-gauge shotgun two years later, according to the official and another law enforcement official who also spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.Acting head of Justice Dept. says Trump officials were targetsAuthorities are still trying to determine how specific Allen’s alleged targets were. Officials have said investigators are examining whether his grievances centered on Trump and Vice President JD Vance personally or reflected a broader hostility toward the administration.Allen is believed to have traveled by train from California to Chicago and then onto Washington, where he checked himself in as a guest days earlier at the hotel days earlier where the gala dinner was held with its typically tight security, said acting attorney general Todd Blanche. He is believed to have acted alone and is set to face criminal charges on Monday.Law enforcement officials who have interviewed Allen’s relatives and examined the gunman’s electronic devices and his writings preliminarily believe he intended to target administration members in attendance at the dinner. He attempted to charge into the cavernous ballroom at the Washington Hilton but was tackled to the ground in a violent scene that resulted in shots being fired, Trump being hurried off the stage unharmed and guests ducking for cover beneath their tables.“It does appear that he did in fact set out to target folks who work in the administration, likely including the president,” Blanche told NBC’s “Meet the Press.”A profile of the shooting suspect emergesSocial media posts that appear to match the suspect show he is a highly educated tutor and amateur video game developer.A May 2025 profile photo of Allen appears to match the appearance of the man in a photo of the alleged attacker being taken into custody that was posted Saturday night by Trump. The photo, posted to the social networking site LinkedIn, shows him in a cap and gown after graduating with a master’s degree in computer science from California State University, Dominguez Hills.Allen earned a bachelor’s degree in 2017 in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. He listed his involvement there in a Christian student fellowship and a campus group that battled with Nerf guns.A local ABC station in Los Angeles included an interview with Allen during his senior year of college as part of a story about new technologies to help people as they age. He had developed a prototype for a new type of emergency brake for wheelchairs.Allen contributed $25 to a Democratic Party political action committee in support of Kamala Harris for president in 2024, according to federal campaign finance records.Chaotic scene unfolded minutes after gala beganThe shooting at the security barricades happened minutes after the event got underway.The Secret Service and other authorities swarmed the room as guests ducked under tables by the hundreds. Gasps echoed through the ballroom as guests realized something was happening. Hundreds of journalists immediately got on phones to call in information.“Out of the way, sir!” someone yelled. Others yelled to duck. From one corner, a “God Bless America” chant began as the president was escorted offstage. Outside the hotel, members of the National Guard and other authorities flooded the area as helicopters circled overhead.After an initial attempt to resume the event, it was scrapped for the night and will be rescheduled.Trump was unusually conciliatory after what he saw as a third attempt on his life in less than two years. He suggested that his personal politics had made him a repeated target, but he also called for unity and bipartisan healing in an increasingly violent world.“It’s always shocking when something like this happens. Happened to me, a little bit. And that never changes,” Trump told reporters in a hastily organized news conference at the White House late Saturday.President Donald Trump speaks in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House after an unspecified threat at the annual White House Correspondents' Association Dinner, Saturday in Washington. (Jose Luis Magana/Associated Press)]]></content:encoded>
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        <link>https://www.durangoherald.com/articles/nation-world/democrats-grow-bolder-on-talk-about-removing-trump-from-office-after-his-iran-threats-2/</link>
        <title>Democrats grow bolder on talk about removing Trump from office after his Iran threats</title>
        <description>Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., attend an event marking the installation of a plaque commemorating Jan. 6 at the U.S. Capitol on March 25 in Washington. (Allison Robbert/Associated Press) WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s threats to...</description>
        <pubDate>Thu, 09 Apr 2026 14:32:21 -0600</pubDate>
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        <content:encoded><![CDATA[Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., attend an event marking the installation of a plaque commemorating Jan. 6 at the U.S. Capitol on March 25 in Washington. (Allison Robbert/Associated Press)WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s threats to wipe out Iran, “a whole civilization,” ended the restraint that Democrats have mostly practiced when it comes to questions of removing him from office in his second term.By the dozens, Democrats came out to say that Trump should no longer serve in the White House, either through the impeachment process or the 25th Amendment, which allows the vice president and the Cabinet to declare that a president is no longer able to perform the job.While Trump eventually pulled back on his threat and agreed to a two-week ceasefire with Iran, the episode highlighted the growing demands for Democrats to oppose the Republican president in the strongest possible terms. Calls about Iran flooded into congressional offices, lawmakers said.The breadth of the Democratic pushback underscored the gravity of Trump's apocalyptic threat to a country of more than 91 million people. It also served to raise the domestic political stakes for a conflict that is far from over. The Trump administration faces mounting calls to testify about the war and justify its demands for hundreds of billions of dollars in new military spending.“We cannot excuse what the president said as a negotiating tactic," Rep. Sara Jacobs, a California Democrat said at the Capitol Thursday.“It is important that even though we were able to get this ceasefire, which I pray holds, that we hold this president accountable for what he threatened because threatening genocide is not just against international law, it’s against our federal law, too,” she added.Still, Democratic leaders and many moderates in the party have steered clear of endorsing impeachment, and any attempt to remove Trump from office is doomed to fail so long as Republicans control Congress.In the near term, Democratic leaders in the House and Senate are instead pushing Republicans to join them and pass legislation that would force Trump to get congressional approval before carrying out any more attacks on Iran.A few Democrats attempted during a brief session of the House on Thursday to pass what's known as a war powers resolution on Iran, but Republicans, who control the chamber, did not acknowledge their request.“We need Speaker Johnson to call us into session,” said Democratic Rep Emily Randall of Washington. “The American people deserve that.”At the White House, press secretary Karoline Leavitt has defended Trump's rhetoric as effective.“I think it was a very, very strong threat from the president of the United States that led the Iranian regime to cave to their knees and ask for a ceasefire and agree to reopening the Strait of Hormuz,” she said at a Wednesday White House press briefing.President Donald Trump speaks with reporters during a news conference in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Monday in Washington. (Mark Schiefelbein/Associated Press)Callers jam congressional phone linesAs they press their case against Trump, Democrats are responding to the worries of their own base and constituents. Congressional offices were bombarded with phone calls and emails this week, largely from people alarmed by the president’s rhetoric.In the House, the office of Rep. Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., received a “ton” of calls and emails Monday and Tuesday, mostly about Iran but also about impeaching Trump or removing him by deploying the 25th Amendment, said one aide who was not authorized to discuss the internal office situation and insisted on anonymity.When her district staffers in the state office took a break Tuesday, they returned to 75 voicemails on Iran an hour later, the aide said.“My office phones have not stopped ringing,” said Rep. Maxine Dexter, D-Ore., at a press conference in Portland, urging House colleagues to immediately return to Washington.Dexter’s office received more calls on Tuesday, 257, than it has ever received in a 24-hour period since the first-term lawmaker’s team began keeping track.The groundswell appeared to be organic, rather than an orchestrated campaign to pressure lawmakers to act.While outside groups have been circulating some discussion points, including the legal details around invoking the 25th Amendment, there has not been an organized effort to flood the congressional offices with a strategic message, said one Democratic strategist familiar with the situation who insisted on anonymity to discuss the private conversations.It was simply the “horror” of what Trump was saying, the strategist said, and the scale of the president’s threats, that appeared to have sparked the mobilization.On the political right, several prominent figures including former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, also suggested Trump should be removed from office through the 25th Amendment.Will Democrats make an impeachment push?Democrats twice impeached Trump for actions taken during his first term, but he was acquitted each time. They have tried to avoid such debates for the last 16 months as they tried to center their midterm message on kitchen table issues rather than opposing a president who narrowly won the popular vote.Republicans also have the majority in the House and have easily fended off two previous efforts to impeach Trump in his second term. A significant number of Democrats have either joined with Republicans or voted “present” as the House blocked impeachment resolutions sponsored by Rep. Al Green, D-Texas.Then came Trump's threat on Tuesday morning to wipe out “an entire civilization.”“Temporary ceasefire or not, Trump already committed an impeachable offense. Congress needs to get back to work and remove him from office before he does more damage to our country and the world,” said Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts, a veteran of the war in Iraq.It’s unclear how House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries will handle the demands for another impeachment push. But Democratic leaders are holding a call on Friday with members of the House Judiciary Committee that is focused on “Trump administration accountability and the 25th Amendment.”Standing on the Capitol steps Thursday, Rep. Madeleine Dean, D-Pa., said she supports impeachment, but nevertheless hit the brakes on it for now, as the Democrats are in the minority. Instead, she called on Republicans to stand up to Trump’s threats, including by invoking the 25th Amendment.She predicted the imperative to remove Trump from office could only grow as negotiators navigate a fragile framework for a peace deal. Dean and other Democrats criticized the plan as “chaotic” and unworkable.Yet Dean said Trump's threat to destroy Iranian civilization should have already been enough. “The president brought the entire globe to watch his madness,” she said.]]></content:encoded>
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        <link>https://www.durangoherald.com/articles/nation-world/artemis-ii-astronauts-describe-their-lunar-voyage-as-surreal-and-profound-ahead-of-earth-return/</link>
        <title>Artemis II astronauts describe their lunar voyage as surreal and profound ahead of Earth return</title>
        <description>The Artemis II crew captured this view the Moon and Earth are shown on Monday. (NASA via AP) HOUSTON – Drawing ever closer to Earth, the Artemis II astronauts tidied up their lunar cruiser for its upcoming “fireball” return and...</description>
        <pubDate>Thu, 09 Apr 2026 14:21:13 -0600</pubDate>
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        <content:encoded><![CDATA[The Artemis II crew captured this view the Moon and Earth are shown on Monday. (NASA via AP)HOUSTON – Drawing ever closer to Earth, the Artemis II astronauts tidied up their lunar cruiser for its upcoming “fireball” return and reflected on their historic journey around the moon, describing it as surreal and profound.As the next-to-last day of their flight dawned Thursday, humanity's first lunar explorers in more than half a century were less than 150,000 miles from home with the odometer clicking down.“We have to get back. There’s so much data that you’ve seen already, but all the good stuff is coming back with us. There are so many more pictures, so many more stories," said pilot Victor Glover, adding that "riding a fireball through the atmosphere is profound as well.”Being cut off from all of humanity for nearly an hour while behind the moon was especially “surreal,” according to commander Reid Wiseman.Astronaut and Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman takes a moment on Monday during the seven-hour lunar observation period where the crew reported to the ground team their observations including color nuances, which will help enhance scientific understandings of the Moon. (NASA via AP)“There’s a lot that our brains have to process ... and it is a true gift," he said late Wednesday during the crew's first news conference since before liftoff.While out of contact behind the moon Monday, Wiseman, Glover, Christina Koch and Canada's Jeremy Hansen became the most distant humans ever, clocking in at a record 252,756 miles from Earth before heading back. As they emerged from behind the moon, they experienced a wondrous total solar eclipse as the orb blocked the sun from their perspective.Launching from Florida on April 1 diminished the amount of illumination on the lunar far side, Glover noted, but the eclipse was the consolation prize “and it was one of the greatest gifts."Friday's reentry and Pacific splashdown off the coast of San Diego — as dynamic and dangerous as liftoff — now topped everyone's minds. The recovery ship, USS John P. Murtha, was already at sea, with a squadron of military planes and helicopters poised to join the operation.It's the first time that NASA and the Defense Department have teamed up for a lunar crew's reentry since Apollo 17 in 1972. Their Orion capsule will come screaming back, hitting the atmosphere at a predicted 34,965 feet per second — or 23,840 mph — not a record but still mind-bogglingly fast.The Artemis II crew, from left, Commander Reid Wiseman, mission specialist Christina Koch, pilot Victor Glover and Canadian astronaut and mission specialist Jeremy Hansen, answers media questions during a video conference Wednesday. (NASA via AP)Mission Control will be paying close attention to how the capsule's heat shield holds up. During the only other Orion test flight to the moon — in 2022 without a crew — the heat shield suffered considerably more damage than expected from the 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit of reentry.Instead of replacing Artemis II's heat shield, which would have forced another lengthy delay, NASA tweaked the capsule's descent through the atmosphere to reduce the blisteringly hot exposure. Next year's Artemis III and beyond will fly with redesigned heat shields.Artemis III will see astronauts practice docking their capsule with a lunar lander or two in orbit around Earth. Artemis IV in 2028 will attempt to land two astronauts near the moon's south pole, setting the stage for what NASA hopes will be a sustainable lunar base.The Artemis II crew photographed the Moon's craters on Monday, April 6, 2026. (NASA via AP)NASA officials have been loath to provide their risk assessment numbers for the nearly 10-day mission, acknowledging launch and entry as the biggest threats.“We’re down to the wire now,” said NASA's Lakiesha Hawkins. "We’re down to the end of the mission, and obviously getting the crew back home and getting them landed safely, is a significant part of the risk that’s still in front of us.”The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.The Artemis II crew captured this image of the of Carroll Crater, a name suggested by the crew for Reid Wiseman’s late wife Carroll Taylor Wiseman on Monday. (NASA via AP)]]></content:encoded>
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        <link>https://www.durangoherald.com/articles/nation-world/what-to-know-about-the-new-u-s-israel-attacks-on-iran/</link>
        <title>What to know about the new U.S.-Israel attacks on Iran</title>
        <description>U.S. military said it was looking into reports of civilians killed in Saturday’s strikes</description>
        <pubDate>Sat, 28 Feb 2026 16:15:26 -0700</pubDate>
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        <content:encoded><![CDATA[U.S. military said it was looking into reports of civilians killed in Saturday’s strikesThis image from video shows a missile being launched from a U.S. Navy ship in support of Operation Epic Fury on Saturday. (U.S. Central Command via AP)dur-i-synThe U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Saturday in what President Donald Trump said was a massive operation to destroy the country’s military capabilities and eliminate the threat of it creating a nuclear weapon. Two Israeli officials told The Associated Press that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed.Iran launched counterattacks, firing drones and missiles at Israel and strikes aimed at U.S. military installations in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar. The exchanges of fire continued into the night. Iranian state media, citing the Red Crescent, said on Saturday evening that at least 201 people had been killed and more than 700 injured.The strikes came two days after the latest U.S.-Iran talks as Trump had pressured Tehran for a deal to constrain its nuclear program, building up a fleet of American warships in the region. Iran’s theocracy also has been struggling with growing dissent following nationwide protests that began over the economy but turned into anti-government ones.The U.S. military said it was looking into reports of civilians killed in Iran in Saturday’s strikes. More than 80 people were reported killed and dozens wounded at a girls’ school in the south, the local governor told Iranian state TV.This image from video shows a missile being launched from a U.S. Navy ship in support of Operation Epic Fury on Saturday. (U.S. Central Command via AP)Supreme leader's compound was one of the first targetsIsrael said it had worked with the U.S. for months to plan the attacks. The U.S. military said targets in Iran included Revolutionary Guard command facilities, air defense capabilities, missile and drone launch sites and military airfields.One of the first strikes hit near Khamenei’s offices. The two Israeli officials who said Israel had confirmed his death both spoke on condition of anonymity pending a formal announcement. There was no immediate comment from the U.S. or Iran on his status.The 86-year-old Khamenei has ruled since 1989 and holds ultimate power.Earlier, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told NBC News that Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian are alive “as far as I know.”The U.S. and Israel also struck Iran last June during earlier nuclear talks, greatly weakening Iran’s air defenses, military leadership and nuclear program.This image from video shows a missile being launched from a U.S. Navy ship in support of Operation Epic Fury on Saturday. (U.S. Central Command via AP)dur-i-synThe Trump administration has asserted that Iran had been rebuilding its nuclear program, which Tehran has insisted is for peaceful purposes.Iran strikes back at Israel and U.S. basesIran responded Saturday by launching missiles and drones targeting Israel and strikes targeting U.S. military installations in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar.About 12 hours after the attacks began, the U.S. military reported no U.S. casualties and minimal damage at U.S. bases despite “hundreds of Iranian missile and drone attacks.”Israel’s military said Iran fired “dozens” of missiles at Israel, with many intercepted. Emergency responder Magen David Adom noted 89 “lightly injured” people.Smoke rises on the skyline after an explosion in Tehran, Iran, on Saturday. (Vahid Salemi/Associated Press)dur-i-synSaudi Arabia said Iran had targeted its capital and eastern region in an attack that was repelled. Bahrain said a missile attack targeted the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet headquarters in the island kingdom, and three buildings were damaged in the capital, Manama, and Muharraq city by drone strikes and debris from an intercepted missile.Kuwait’s civil aviation authority said a drone targeted the main international airport, injuring several employees. Kuwait’s state-run news agency said three troops were injured by shrapnel from strikes that hit Ali Al-Salem air base. Explosions could also be heard in Qatar. Jordan said it “dealt with” 49 drones and ballistic missiles.Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen, meanwhile, have vowed to resume attacks on Red Sea shipping routes and on Israel, said two senior Houthi officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because there was no official announcement from leadership.Trump tells Iranians it’s time to topple their governmentIn an 8-minute video on social media, Trump announced “major combat operations” and indicated the U.S. was striking for reasons far beyond Iran's nuclear program. He listed grievances stretching back to the beginning of the Islamic Republic after a revolution in 1979 that turned Iran from one of America’s closest allies in the Middle East into a foe.Trump told Iranians to take cover but urged them to later rise up and topple the Islamic leadership.“When we are finished, take over your government,” Trump said. “It will be yours to take. This will be probably your only chance for generations.”The attacks came a day after Trump voiced frustration about lack of progress in negotiations to stop Iran’s ability to develop nuclear weapons.Vehicles line up outside a gas station after Israeli strikes in the city, in Tehran, Iran, on Saturday. (Vahid Salemi/Associated Press)dur-i-synU.S. military has been building up in the regionThe U.S. had assembled a vast fleet of fighter jets and warships in the region to try to pressure Iran into a deal over its nuclear program.The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and three guided-missile destroyers arrived in January to bolster the number of warships. The world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, and four accompanying destroyers later were dispatched from the Caribbean to head to the Middle East and are now in the Mediterranean.The fleet has added more than 10,000 U.S. troops to the region.Vehicles drive along a highway after Israeli and U.S. strikes in Tehran, Iran, on Saturday. (Vahid Salemi/Associated Press)dur-i-synFighting disrupts commercial air travelThe fighting disrupted air travel in the region. Tens of thousands of travelers around the globe were stranded.Israel, Qatar, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait and Bahrain closed their airspace, while Oman’s Muscat International Airport shut down and all flights were restricted over the United Arab Emirates, according to flight tracking website FlightRadar24.Major airlines based in the Middle East canceled hundreds of flights, while many other travelers were diverted to airports across Europe or flown back to departure airports.The strikes also could rattle global markets, particularly if Iran makes the Strait of Hormuz unsafe for commercial traffic. A third of worldwide oil exports transported by sea passed through the strait in 2025.Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv, Israel, and Josef Federman in Jerusalem contributed.]]></content:encoded>
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        <link>https://www.durangoherald.com/articles/nation-world/minnesotas-slain-democratic-leader-saw-liberal-victories-then-brokered-a-budget-deal-out-of-power/</link>
        <title>Minnesota’s slain Democratic leader saw liberal victories, then brokered a budget deal out of power</title>
        <description>House Speaker Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, attends a press conference on June 14, 2021, in St. Paul, Minn. (Glen Stubbe/Star Tribune via Associated Press file)dur-i-syn MINNEAPOLIS – The Minnesota House’s top Democrat helped shepherd a package of liberal initiatives to...</description>
        <pubDate>Sat, 14 Jun 2025 14:45:23 -0600</pubDate>
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        <content:encoded><![CDATA[House Speaker Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, attends a press conference on June 14, 2021, in St. Paul, Minn. (Glen Stubbe/Star Tribune via Associated Press file)dur-i-synMINNEAPOLIS – The Minnesota House’s top Democrat helped shepherd a package of liberal initiatives to passage when her party had a narrow majority two years ago. After Democrats lost their majority, she helped broker a deal to keep state government funded and provided a crucial vote to pass it, though her party hated it.State Rep. Melissa Hortman, 55, the House's Democratic leader and former speaker, was shot to death early Saturday in her Minneapolis-area home along with her husband by someone posing as a law enforcement officer. Another prominent area lawmaker, state Sen. John Hoffman, was shot and wounded, along with his wife, in their home about 15 minutes away in what Gov. Tim Walz described as “targeted political violence.”The shooting shocked officials in both parties in a state that prides its politics as being “Minnesota nice,” despite higher partisan tensions in recent years. While Minnesota hasn't voted for a GOP presidential candidate since 1972, and all of its statewide elected officials are Democrats, the Legislature is nearly evenly divided, with the House split 67-67 until Hortman's death and Democrats holding a 34-33 majority in the Senate.Hortman led fellow Democrats in boycotting House sessions for almost a month starting Jan. 14 to prevent the GOP from using a temporary vacancy in a Democratic seat to cement power over the chamber instead of working out a power-sharing arrangement.Yet when the partisan split in the House threatened to prevent the Legislature from passing a budget to keep state government running for the next two years, she not only helped broker the final deal but secured its passage by being the only Democrat to vote yes on a key part of the deal.“She wasn’t only a leader — she was a damn good legislator, and Minnesotans everywhere will suffer because of this loss,” said Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin, a former Minnesota state party chair and a friend of Hortman's.State Rep. Melissa Hortman, D-Brooklyn Park, smiles during the nomination process before she was elected speaker of the Minnesota House as the 2019 Legislature convened, Jan. 8, 2019, in St. Paul, Minn. (Jim Mone/Associated Press file)dur-i-synThe wounded senator chairs a key committeeHoffman, 60, is chair of the Senate Human Services Committee, which oversees one of the biggest parts of the state budget. He lives in Champlin, in the northwest part of the Minneapolis area, and owns a consulting firm, and he and his wife, Yvette, had one daughter.He previously was marketing and public relations director for a nonprofit provider of employment services for people with mental illnesses and intellectual and developmental disabilities and supervised a juvenile detention center in Iowa. He was first elected to the Senate in 2012.In 2023, Hoffman supported budget legislation that extended the state MinnesotaCare health program to immigrants living in the U.S. illegally, starting this year. On Monday, he voted against a bill to end that coverage for adults on Jan. 1 – a GOP goal that was a key part of the budget agreement that Hortman helped broker.Last year, Hoffman sponsored a bill designed to prevent courts from blocking people with disabilities from adopting children, and in 2023, he proposed an amendment to the state constitution to create a fund to pay for long-term care by taxing the Social Security benefits of the state's wealthiest residents.Hortman had served nine years as Democratic leaderHortman had served as the House Democrats' leader since 2017, and six years as speaker, starting in 2019. She had to give up the speaker's job this year after the 2024 elections produced the even partisan split. Her official title this year was speaker emerita.She and her husband, Mark, lived in Brooklyn Park, another suburb in the northwest part of the Minneapolis area. They had two adult children.A lawyer, she twice lost races for the House before first winning her seat in 2004. U.S. Sen. and Minnesota Democrat Amy Klobuchar recalled campaigning door to door that year with Hortman, when Klobuchar was the elected chief prosecutor for Hennepin County, which includes Minneapolis. Klobuchar praised Hortman's support for free school lunches, women's rights and clean energy, calling her “a true public servant to the core.”“She was beloved by her colleagues,” Klobuchar said in a statement.Vice Chair John Hoffman, left, attends an Anoka-Hennepin School Board meeting, Jan. 9, 2012, in Coon Rapids, Minn. (Carlos Gonzalez/The Star Tribune via Associated Press file)dur-i-synHortman helped push through a sweeping agenda in 2023Hortman became part of the Democrats' leadership team at the state Capitol in 2007 and House minority leader in 2017, before Democrats recaptured a House majority in 2019.In 2023 and 2024, Democrats controlled both chambers and used their majorities to enact a sweeping liberal agenda and practically everything on an ambitious wish list. The measures included expanded abortion and trans rights, paid family and medical leave, universal free school lunches, child care credits and other aid for families.She previously proposed state emission standards for automobiles like ones imposed in California and a ban on the sale of products containing mercury. She also proposed studying the feasibility of ending state investments in fossil fuel companies.“She knew how to stand firm on her values but understood the importance of teamwork and compromise and never backed down from hard choices," Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said in a statement. "She was tough, she was kind, and she was the best of us.”Hanna reported from Topeka, Kansas.]]></content:encoded>
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