Representative Scholten urges compassion, calls for transparency after Minneapolis shooting

Representative Scholten addressed the House on Jan. 26 in a personal-privilege statement reacting to a shooting that took place in Minneapolis the prior weekend.

Scholten described feeling "compelled" to speak after listening to faith leaders and said, "my heart hurts." He urged members to avoid finger-pointing while calling for transparency and proper investigation, noting that several U.S. senators had asked for the same. He referred to the incident in Minneapolis by saying, "We can all agree that an American citizen was shot by ICE agents," and also stated, "a VA ICU nurse is dead." Scholten said many Iowans with ties to districts across the state live in the Twin Cities and are "hurting right now." He asked for "grace and compassion these days" and invoked the Preamble and the pursuit of a more perfect union as a guide in troubled times.

Scholten did not propose legislative action on the House floor during the remarks; his statement was a call for empathy, transparency from investigators and restraint in public discourse.