SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
In Minnesota, the funeral is being held for state Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark.
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UNIDENTIFIED CHOIR: (Singing)The lord is my shepherd. Nothing shall I want.
SIMON: The Hortmans were killed in their home two weeks ago by a man authorities say posed as a police officer. The gunman is also accused of wounding a state senator and his wife and planning other attacks. Attendance at the funeral was limited, but it was livestreamed, and Minnesota Public Radio's Catharine Richert joins us from St. Paul. Catherine, thanks for being with us.
CATHARINE RICHERT, BYLINE: Thanks for having me, Scott.
SIMON: Please tell us about the scene there.
RICHERT: Well, you know, Hortman was a very prominent Democratic leader who earned respect from politicians from across the political spectrum. So it's really no surprise that so many members of both political parties have been mourning her and her husband. Hundreds of guests gathered at the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis for a traditional Catholic mass this morning. And they wore buttons with lilac and sage. This is a nod to how much Melissa Hortman loved gardening. Guests also include former President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, as well. And a choir sang as Melissa and Mark were brought into the front of the basilica by pallbearers, who included - that included Governor Tim Walz. And he spoke as well.
TIM WALZ: Melissa Hortman will be remembered as the most consequential speaker in Minnesota history. I get to remember her as a close friend, a mentor and the most talented legislator I've ever known. For seven years, I have had the privilege of signing her agenda into law.
RICHERT: You know, Walz and millions of Minnesotans got to live better because of Hortman's work, and he listed accomplishments that expanded preschool to clean energy.
RICHERT: And of course the funeral is being held at a time when people have been concerned about political violence in recent months. How did speakers address this at the funeral?
SIMON: A lot of lawmakers are rattled by these shootings, and not just in Minnesota. How are people there feeling about the political violence we've seen recently?
RICHERT: Well, you know, I'd say overall the focus has very much been on how the Hortmans will be remembered and what the Hortmans stood for. But Father Dan Griffith did make some brief remarks during his homily about the particular historical moment that we're living in. He pointed out that five years ago, Minneapolis was where George Floyd was murdered at the hands of a police officer, what he called an act of racial injustice.
DAN GRIFFITH: And now we are the ground zero place for political violence and extremism. Both of these must be decried in the strongest possible terms as they are respectively a threat to human dignity and indeed our democracy.
RICHERT: You know, he says that instead of being ground zero for violence, Minnesota now has the opportunity to be ground zero for peace.
SIMON: And, Catharine, today's ceremony was not open to the public, but the Hortmans lay in state yesterday into the Capitol Rotunda. What did you see?
RICHERT: You know, the Minnesota Capitol sits on this hill in St. Paul, and thousands of people were lined up across that sweeping front lawn. And that line even snaked around the building. Hortman was a prominent Democrat, as I said, but she also was known for being a political bridge builder, and that's why a lot of people came out. Visitors paused at two caskets surrounded by potted trees and ferns - one for Melissa, one for Mark. And in between them was an urn which holds the ashes of their golden retriever, Gilbert, who was also shot. The Hortmans adopted him after he failed to graduate from a service dog training program, and it's really moved people here. Service dogs cycled in and out of the Rotunda to keep watch over Gilbert yesterday. And I'd say today the service is being livestreamed, and I think that's a way for people who didn't know the Hortmans but felt touched by their lives to honor their legacy.
SIMON: Minnesota Public Radio's Catharine Richert. Thank you so much for being with us.
RICHERT: Thank you, Scott.
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