Our State Legislators are the Best of Us

Friends –

The CN4 Team, like so many of us, spent this weekend following the horrific tragedy unfolding in Minnesota. The assassination of Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, and the attempted assassination of Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette, is a rubicon moment in our nation’s history. And it must stop now.

We work everyday with state legislators across the country. It is our favorite piece of the political world because our clients come directly from the communities they serve, and they know firsthand the challenges their neighbors are facing. Sometimes, they face them themselves. Their empathy shines through their legislative work, and it’s an honor to work alongside them as they push their colleagues to make progress that works for everyone. Our state legislators are truly the best of us.

But the realities of this moment have shaken us to our core. We know that, in many states, a part-time legislative salary and little to no staff means that legislators are increasingly vulnerable to tragedies like what unfolded this weekend, with little to no resources to protect themselves. Even in states with full time legislatures and more robust staff, heightened security is still out of reach.

We must all join together, today and every day, to protect the public servants that work tirelessly to make our states better places. In this time of intense political divisions and an inability to get guns out of the hands of those who intend to harm others, we must recommit ourselves to protecting each other and defeating extremism.

Taking care of each other is our only path forward, and we will get through this together.

– Ansley