DNC Chair Adjourns Party Meeting In Wake of Mass Shooting
C-SPAN
Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin announced on Wednesday that the DNC’s annual summer meeting would adjourn early, in light of the nearby shooting at the Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis.
A gunman opened fire on a Catholic church on Wednesday morning, fatally shooting two children and injuring 17 others. Students at the Annunciation Catholic School were attending a school-wide mass when the shooting occurred– the school year having begun on Monday. Police confirmed the gunman to be in his early 20s with no criminal history, killed himself in the parking lot.
The DNC’s summer meeting, also held in Minneapolis, began on Monday and was slated to end on Wednesday, though later in the day. Ken Martin, who was criticized earlier in the week for some elements of the convention, spoke to the meeting when the news of the shooting broke, decrying the “evil” act.
“By now, many of you have heard there was a shooting this morning that took place at Annunciation Church and Catholic School in South Minneapolis, no more than 10 minutes from where we are now,” he said. “At this moment, we are praying for the families, the students, and the teachers at Annunciation. We are praying.”
He continued:
What we know is that emergency responders are on the scene. And while we wait for more details about what happened this morning, we are sending our support to all the first responders, law enforcement officers, hospital and medical workers, and everybody who is supporting the response.
This is the first week of school for students at Annunciation. These families woke up this morning to celebrate milestones in their children’s lives. Milestones like the first week of kindergarten. We are heartbroken. This is a tragic day for our city— and a tragic day for Minnesotans. On the heels of a tragic year where we already lost our dear friends Melissa and Mark Hortman. And it’s unacceptable. It is far too commonplace in our nation. It’s just far too commonplace. Folks, we need your prayers. We need your faith. And we need leadership to stop this evil.
The chairman then moved to announce the shortened proceedings, ending the committee’s annual summer meeting before its scheduled close.
Martin called on Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-OH) who proposed a motion to suspend the rules and bring the meeting to an expedited end. The motion was seconded and adopted with a vote of two-thirds. Vice Chair for Civic Engagement and Voter Participation Reyna Walters-Morgan then proposed a motion to adjourn the meeting which passed on a voice vote with no audible “nays.”
