WASHINGTON — Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, is facing backlash over a pair of social media posts he shared over the weekend, including from some of his colleagues in the Senate.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., “condemned” the language included in Lee’s posts that featured photos of Vance Luther Boelter, the key suspect who was arrested in connection to the shooting of two Minnesota lawmakers resulting in the death of one. Boelter has since been arrested on charges of two counts of murder and two of attempted murder.
“I have condemned what Mike Lee did here at home, and I will speak to him about this when I return” to D.C., Klobuchar, who said she was friends with the victims of the shooting, told MSNBC on Monday. “And what I’m going to tell him is, this isn’t funny what happened here.”
Later, Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., told CNN she spoke to Lee in person and told him she thought the post was “brutal and cruel.”
She added, “I wanted him to hear from me directly how painful that was and how brutal that was to see that on what was just a horribly brutal weekend.”
Smith said Lee didn’t say much in response, adding that he seemed “kind of surprised to be confronted.”
The first post Lee shared to X this weekend featured a surveillance photo reportedly of Boelter in a mask and uniform as a way to disguise himself as a police officer, according to law enforcement. Lee shared the photo with the caption: “This is what happens when Marxists don’t get their way.”
Lee later posted the same photo alongside a headshot of Boelter with the caption: “Nightmare on Waltz Street,” an apparent reference to Gov. Tim Walz, who ran for vice president last year, although the name is misspelled.
Lee also reposted another photo of Boelter on X calling Marxism “a deadly mental illness.”
Theories about Boelter’s political affiliation began to spread on social media after it was revealed he was twice appointed to a state economic panel by two Democratic governors, including Walz. However, a man who identified himself as a close friend and former roommate of Boelter told local news outlets that Boelter had supported Trump in the 2024 election.
The posts prompted anger online, with several accounts calling for Lee to apologize or step down. It’s not clear whether Klobuchar would push for any punishment for the Utah senator, but said she would have a conversation with him when the Senate reconvenes on Monday.
Timing for that meeting is not clear, and spokespeople for both Klobuchar’s and Lee’s offices did not respond to requests for comment by the Deseret News.
Meanwhile, Lee’s official government account had a different response to the Minnesota shooting, posting this statement: “These hateful attacks have no place in Utah, Minnesota, or anywhere in America. Please join me in condemning this senseless violence, and praying for the victims and their families.”
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill have since called for increased security at home, especially after it was revealed Democratic members of Congress were among the 70 names listed in Boelter’s writings that was found in his car during the police investigation. Senators are set to be briefed by U.S. Capitol Police on Tuesday morning about the incident.