U.S. House Majority Whip Tom Emmer is calling on Minnesota lawmakers to repeal the state’s so-called “trans refuge” law following Wednesday’s deadly shooting at a Catholic school in Minneapolis.
“They should immediately repeal it, but they won’t,” Emmer told the New York Post in an interview published Thursday.
Authorities say 23-year-old Robin Westman, born Robert, opened fire inside Annunciation Catholic Church and School on Wednesday morning, killing two children and injuring 18 others, before fatally shooting himself.
Court records show that in 2019, Westman’s mother petitioned Dakota County court to change her minor child’s name from Robert Paul Westman to Robin M. Westman when the minor was 17.
The order granting the request said that, “Minor child identifies as a female and wants her name to reflect that identification.”
The request was granted in early 2020, records show.
Shooter expressed regret over transition
In a manifesto posted to YouTube before the attack, Westman reportedly expressed regret over identifying as transgender. “I am tired of being trans, I wish I never brain-washed myself,” he wrote, according to a translation reviewed by the Post.
“You look at the sadness of these tortured human beings — because they do have regrets later — and no, we should have never started it. It should not be allowed,” said Emmer.
The Republican congressman, who represents Minnesota’s Sixth Congressional District, accused Gov. Tim Walz and other Democrats of “encouraging this type of confusion” through the 2023 legislation.
“We got to respect everyone. We got to have compassion for everyone. But we got to understand that we’ve got some serious mental health issues that are being exacerbated by these types of messages by people like Tim Walz and everybody who supported that law,” Emmer told the New York Post.
The law is designed to provide legal protections for minors who travel to Minnesota seeking so-called “gender-affirming care.” But as the New York Post explains, critics of the law have argued that it could result in parents losing custody of their children if they object to gender transition procedures.
Additionally, Minnesota adopted a “conversion therapy” ban in 2023, which prohibits therapy that “seeks to change an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity, including efforts to change behaviors or gender expressions …”
“[Westman] clearly had serious mental health issues and rather than actually helping him, they were actually exacerbating it,” Emmer told the outlet.
According to Emmer, Walz’s “transgender sanctuary” law allows any minor to transition without parental consent.
Emmer supports FBI investigating as hate crime
Emmer told the New York Post that he supports the FBI’s decision to investigate the massacre as both an anti-Catholic hate crime and an act of domestic terrorism.
“Somebody had to know,” he said. “Somebody in his neighborhood, somebody in his family, somebody in his network, somebody had to know that he had these serious mental health issues and why didn’t someone speak up? Why didn’t somebody offer him some help?”
Jenna Gloeb
Jenna Gloeb is an Edward R. Murrow Award-winning journalist, media producer, public speaker, and screenwriter. Most recently, she worked as a reporter and on-air host for CCX Media. Jenna is a Minnesota native and resides in the Twin Cities with her husband, son, daughter, and two dogs.
