‘Why waste time?’ Trump says he won’t call Walz after deadly shootings
U.S. President Donald Trump says he won’t be speaking with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz following the targeted shootings of two state officials because it would “waste time.”
One of the lawmakers and her husband were killed in the attacks.
Trump told reporters on Tuesday, while aboard Air Force One after leaving the G7 summit in Alberta early, that he would not be calling Walz because the Minnesota governor is “slick” and “whacked out.”
“I’m not calling him,” he added.
Trump denied claims — which he blamed on French President Emmanuel Macron — that he left because of heightened tensions between Iran and Israel.
“Publicity seeking President Emmanuel Macron, of France, mistakenly said that I left the G7 Summit, in Canada, to go back to D.C. to work on a ‘cease fire’ between Israel and Iran. Wrong! He has no idea why I am now on my way to Washington, but it certainly has nothing to do with a Cease Fire. Much bigger than that. Whether purposely or not, Emmanuel always gets it wrong. Stay Tuned!” he wrote on Truth Social early Tuesday morning.
It is customary for presidents to speak with elected officials to offer support in times of hardship.
“The guy doesn’t have a clue. He’s a mess. So, you know, I could be nice and call him, but why waste time?” Trump said of Walz.
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Over the weekend, Ontario Premier Doug Ford sent well wishes to the Minnesota governor, saying, “All of Ontario is thinking of the Hortman family and our friends in Minnesota,” for which Walz expressed his gratitude.
“My thanks to Premier Doug Ford of Ontario, who called to express his condolences to the Hortman family and the people of Minnesota. In times of tragedy, I’m heartened when people of different views and even different nations can rally together around our shared humanity,” he wrote on X on Monday.
Former House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, were shot dead in their Brooklyn Park home early Saturday.
Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were injured at their Champlin home, about 15 kilometres away.
Bullet holes mark the front door of the house of Minnesota state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, who were shot earlier in the day, Saturday, June 14, 2025, in Champlin, Minn.
Bruce Kluckhohn / The Associated Press
Vance Boelter, 57, is accused of impersonating a police officer while carrying out the attack, which he carefully planned during several surveillance operations.
Boelter surrendered to police on Sunday after he was apprehended in a wooded area near his home following a two-day manhunt.
This booking photo provided by the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office shows Vance Boelter in Green Isle, Minn., on June 16, 2025.
Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office via AP
Acting U.S. attorney Joseph Thompson told reporters on Monday that Boelter took meticulous notes on the homes and people he was targeting in the lead-up to the fatal shootings.
Police recovered a list of 70 names from inside the fake police car that was left at the crime scene outside the Hortmans’ home, officials said Sunday.
The writings and list of names included prominent state and federal lawmakers and community leaders, along with abortion rights advocates, and information about health-care facilities, according to the officials.
Walz was the vice-presidential running mate for 2024 Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, who lost her bid for the presidency to Trump. During the campaign, Walz often branded Trump and other Republican politicians as “just weird.”
— With files from The Associated Press and Global News’ Michelle Butterfield.
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.