Representative Tom Emmer of Minnesota, the House Republican whip, on Thursday reportedly urged his state to repeal its 2023 “trans refuge” law, blaming the measure for fostering mental health crises in the wake of a mass shooting at a Minneapolis Catholic school carried out by a transgender-identifying man.
The law, signed by Democratic Gov. Tim Walz two years ago, established Minnesota as a safe haven for parents seeking transgender medical interventions for their children, even if such procedures were banned in their home states. Critics say the measure encouraged vulnerable young people to pursue irreversible treatments rather than addressing underlying psychological conditions.
“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.
His comments came just one day after Robin Westman, a 23-year-old man who had identified as a woman and previously went by Robert, opened fire during a school Mass at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis. The attack killed two children, ages 8 and 10, and left 18 others injured.
“They should immediately repeal it, but they won’t,” Emmer said of the 2023 statute. “They have been encouraging this type of confusion. This poor young man was tortured. He clearly had serious mental health issues and rather than actually helping him, they were actually exacerbating it.”
Emmer, who represents Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District, framed the law not as compassion but as complicity in worsening the mental anguish of troubled individuals. “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,” he said.
Evidence from Westman’s own writings appeared to support Emmer’s argument. Portions of journals left behind revealed profound ambivalence and regret about his transgender identity. “I only keep [long hair] because it is pretty much my last shred of being trans. I am tired of being trans, I wish I never brain-washed myself,” Westman wrote in one entry. In another section, he admitted, “I know I am not a woman but I definitely don’t feel like a man.”
Authorities said Westman’s writings were “full of hate,” revealing not only his identity struggles but also a broader pattern of violent and extremist thought. He expressed hostility toward Jews and Catholics and even mused about assassinating President Donald J. Trump.
Emmer emphasized that Westman’s deterioration should have been noticed earlier. “Somebody had to know,” he told the Post. “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?”
The massacre has reignited debate over how cultural messages and state policies intersect with questions of mental illness and violence.
For conservatives like Emmer, the tragedy underscores what they see as the recklessness of laws that blur biological distinctions while neglecting the real psychological needs of young people.
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