Minnesota House Majority Leader Joyce Peppin (R) says he caucus will likely file a protest and dissent letter over a comment made by House Minority Leader Melissa Hortman on the floor last night.

Hortman noted that many members were missing and not listening to the speeches on the floor about an anti-protest bill that targeted tactics used by Black Lives Matters in Minnesota.

“I hate to break up the 100 percent white male card game in the retiring room, but I think this is an important debate,” said Hortman.

Rep. Bob Dettmer (R-Forest Lake) stood up and asked Hortman to apologize. “I’m a white male. I respect everybody. But I really believe that the comments made by the Minority Leader were really not appropriate.”

“I have no intention of apologizing,” said Rep. Hortman. She said she was “really tired of watching women of color in particular being ignored. So I’m not sorry.”

“Not a lot of new issues,” “It’s just stories”

Peppin said calling out race and gender on the House floor is not appropriate and said a copy of the House ethics code of conduct would be placed on every member’s chair today.

Asked if “white guys” aren’t paying attention to this debate, Peppin said that wasn’t true. “I think that there were members of both parties and both genders back in the retiring room and listening to the debate.”

Noting the debate had gone on for “quite a while”, Peppin said “at some point there’s not a lot of new issues, it’s just new stories about how a certain thing impacts them.”