Sen. Smith calls out Utah lawmaker’s posts about political shootings

Soon after the shootings of Minnesota House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman, Sen. John Hoffman and their spouses, Republican Sen. Mike Lee took to social media to make baseless claims about the alleged shooter’s connection to the political far left.

His posts on X have led to numerous calls for his resignation from both sides of the aisle and a confrontation by Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith, a Democrat. Smith joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer on Morning Edition Tuesday to explain what happened and how her constituents took Lee’s words.

The following has been lightly edited for clarity. Listen to the full conversation by clicking the player button.

Editor’s note: At the time of publication, Sen. Mike Lee has removed his social media posts.

What happened when you tracked Sen. Lee down?

Well, the things that he put out on social media were so disturbing and so painful to those of us who love and respected Melissa [Hortman], and I wanted to tell him directly how I felt about what he had done. And often in the Senate, it’s not uncommon for us to speak to one another through other people. But I wanted him to look me in the eye.

So I was looking for him on the Senate floor. He didn’t really come onto the Senate floor when he voted. So I kind of tracked him down. He was in a Republican caucus room getting ready to have a meeting, and I asked if he would speak with me, because I wanted to be able to tell him directly.

I approached it by saying, let’s have a conversation about this. Because I think that the impact of your words on me and people in Minnesota, I want you to understand. I think he was honestly pretty surprised he [was] confronted.

What did you make of Lee’s body language and demeanor toward you?

You know, I felt so clear about what I wanted him to know and what I wanted him to hear from me that I honestly didn't notice that until I saw the picture later. I actually felt like I was a little bit taller than he was when we were talking to one another, and I didn't feel the least bit intimidated, because, you know, in this moment, he and I should be colleagues.

We should be able to respect one another even if we have political disagreements. And so I thought that he was listening to what I was saying. Didn't offer an apology. And of course, those terrible social media posts are still out there, and he should take them down, because it's just misinformation, and it’s also so hurtful to people in Minnesota.

He didn’t apologize, but what did he say?

Well, he really didn’t say that much. He sort of looked at me. He got kind of red in the face, as I said, I don’t think he’s used to having people tell him to his face that they think he’s wrong. He mumbled a few things about, “I’m sorry if what I said upset you,” which is not the same as taking accountability for the impact of your words. That was kind of all he said.

How do you feel about confronting him?

I’ve gotten so many messages from Minnesotans who have basically said some version of “you did what I wanted to do.” I wanted to tell him how his words hurt, and that, I think, was reassuring to me in this horrible moment where there’s just been so much pain and so much sadness, to have the opportunity to tell him that he was making it worse and not better, and that his words have consequences.

You know, seven million people saw his his saw his post.

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