Kari Lake, the Republican nominee for governor of Arizona, made light Monday of the violent assault against Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) husband on Friday.
“It is not impossible to protect our kids at school. They act like it is,” Lake said at a campaign stop along her “Ask Me Anything” tour.
“Nancy Pelosi — well, she’s got protection when she’s in D.C. Apparently her house doesn’t have a lot of protection,” Lake said, prompting laughs and applause from the crowd and the event moderator beside her.
The Speaker was in Washington, D.C., when an intruder broke into her California home and attacked her 82-year-old husband, Paul Pelosi, with a hammer. Paul Pelosi underwent surgery for a skull fracture and significant injuries to his right arm and hands, according to the lawmaker’s spokesperson.
The suspect, David DePape, had allegedly called for Nancy Pelosi as he entered the home.
Police have said the suspect told officers from the San Francisco Police Department that he wanted to kidnap the Speaker and hold her hostage and that he would break her kneecaps if she “lied.”
Lake argued at the Monday event that children at school should have protection “if our lawmakers can have protection.”
Former President Trump, who has endorsed Lake in her gubernatorial bid, on Sunday called the attack on Paul Pelosi a “terrible thing” and tied the incident to Democrat policies on crime, a stance leaned on by a number of GOP figures in the wake of the incident.
Members of both parties have pointed fingers for what may have facilitated or encouraged the attack. Democrats have called out their Republican colleagues, arguing that fiery political rhetoric against the Speaker and her party may spur political violence, while Republicans argue that Democrats’ crime policies embolden perpetrators.
Donald Trump Jr., the eldest child of the former president, was among the right-wing figures who made fun of the attack on social media.