Short-term memory loss at CNN.
Host Audie Cornish opened CNN This Morning's coverage of the arrest of the man suspected of assassinating a Minnesota state legislator and her husband, and wounding two others, with a clip of Gopher State Governor Tim Walz telling people that "rather than arguing, shake hands, find common ground."
This is the same guy who recently boasted, speaking of Trump supporters, that he can "kick most of their ass."
And just last month, here was Walz's proposal to fight back against Trump:
"Be a little meaner, maybe it’s time for us to be a little more fierce. We have to ferociously push back on this. When the bully is an adult like Donald Trump, you bully him back.”
In May, the national media couldn't seem to locate Walz ranting in a commencement speech at the University of Minnesota Law School that "Donald Trump's modern-day Gestapo is scooping folks up off the streets." How's that for "shaking hands, finding common ground"?
There was not a word in CNN's segment about kick-ass Timmy. Only the highlighting of his handshake exhortation, and criticism from former Obama official Juliette Kayyem about how people, including a Republican senator, are trying to distort the shooter's politics.
Kayyem finds it "shameful" to speculate politically after violent attacks, but less than two weeks ago on this show, Cornish and Kayyem suggested Trump's spending cutbacks may have made possible the violent fire-bombing attack on pro-Israel protesters in Boulder, Colorado.
This Obama aide has herself has employed inflammatory language regarding her political opponents, particularly President Trump. Last month, we caught Kayyem telling far-left Mother Jones magazine in an article entitled "How Trump Unleashed a Domestic Terrorism Movement":
“The term ‘dog whistle’ is too benign here. This is true incitement. The president was promoting terrorism.”
No handshakes or hugging it out for Juliette!
Here's the transcript.
CNN This Morning
6/16/25
6:02 am EDTAUDIE CORNISH: The suspect is now facing charges for the killing of State Representative Melissa Hortman and the shooting of State Senator John Hoffman. Both were shot in their homes early Saturday morning along with their spouses.
Governor Tim Walz says the attacks were politically motivated.
TIM WALZ: This cannot be the norm. It cannot be the way that we deal with our political differences. Now is the time for us to recommit to the core values of this country. And each and every one of us can do it.
Talk to a neighbor rather than arguing. Debate an issue, shake hands, find common ground.
. . .
CORNISH: I just want to ask you one more thing, which is about what Governor Walz said at the top of our conversation here, talking about finding common ground, raising this issue of people coming together.
But I have seen wildly sort of conflicting approaches on social media in talking about this. Speculation about the shooter's motivations, certainly about his politics. Can you talk about how that can affect how these things are seen by the public?
JULIETTE KAYYEM: Right now, in this case, we have considerable evidence supported by the FBI and verified by the police that he attacked Democrats, had a bunch of Democrats and progressives on the list, and that was his plan.
This is not to say that he represents non-democrats, right? It's simply to say, in this case, that is where the investigation goes.
But in social media, you see people trying to mute that ideology, his ideology. They try to confuse it, say that he was this or that, or he wasn't a devout Christian, or whatever it is, as a way in some ways to apologize or make it unclear to audiences and the American public the nature of the harm that occurred this weekend.
It is dangerous, it is unfair, and it also does nothing to stop the next attack, which could go to a Democrat or a Republican legislature.
It was shameful what we saw online, including by senior members of the Senate who were speculating or just trolling. And I think everyone needs to just grow up a little bit, know what their responsibility is as a leader, be clear that this is actually a black and white issue. It is very clear we do not use violence to attack politicians or as part of our democracy, and we can all align around that.
