By Eric Roper

A Senate panel voted Monday to absolve Sen. Gretchen Hoffman of ethics charges against her if she apologizes for a tweet sent this May during debate on the HHS budget.

Hoffman, a freshman Republican, tweeted that DFL Sen. Barb Goodwin had called people with mental illnesses "idiots and imbeciles." Goodwin was actually using those words to illustrate the language of a bygone era, noting how far society had advanced.

The Senate subcommittee on Ethical Conduct, chaired by Senate President Michelle Fischbach, voted after more than five hours of debate that Hoffman should: send Goodwin a written apology, retract the tweet in question and write a new one pointing her followers to the panel's resolution.

Once those steps are complete, the complaint will be dismissed.

Update by Rachel E. Stassen-Berger:

As of 8 am Tuesday, Hoffman had not deleted the May 18 tweet.