Congressman Steve Scalise, Aids, and Capitol Police Shot In ‘Deliberate Attack’ At Congressional Baseball Practice
Congressman Steve Scalise of Louisiana, congressional aides and Capitol Police officers were shot in the early hours of Wednesday. The "deliberate attack" took place at a GOP baseball practice in Virginia.
Scalise suffered injuries to his hips and according to media outlets, he is "badly injured," but expected to recover.
President Trump Tweeted
"The vice president and I are aware of the shooting incident in Virginia and are monitoring developments closely," President Trump said in a separate statement. "We are deeply saddened by this tragedy. Our thoughts and prayers are with the members of Congress, their staffs, Capitol Police, first responders and all others affected."
A statement on the Steve Scalise’s website reads: “Prior to entering surgery, the Whip was in good spirits and spoke to his wife by phone. He is grateful for the brave actions of U.S. Capitol Police, first responders, and colleagues," the statement says.
Information from the police shows that five people have been hospitalized.
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., told Fox News: "We were like sitting ducks."
"Without the Capitol Hill police it would have been a massacre," Paul said, describing the scene as "sort of a killing field."
A group that comprised of 20 to 25 Republican members of Congress were out of a congressional baseball game on Wednesday when according to Texas Rep. Roger Williams a rifle-wielding gunman opened fire around 7 a.m. A member of Williams’ staff was among those shot.
According to Sen. Jeff Flake, the 51-year-old Scalise was playing second base when he was shot by the gunman who stood off the third-base side of the field.
Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Ala. who was also present at the scene of the incident told the media, "We used my belt to help put a tourniquet around his leg," Brooks tells the media. "You have someone bleeding profusely from his leg you don't know how bad the injury is, but he was very brave. You see the bullet hole in his calf."
The FBI are investigating the incident.
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The controversy began when Republican Rep. Tom Tiffany—a leading candidate for the GOP gubernatorial nomination—accused Hong of historically supporting the abolition of the police, prisons, and the U.S. Senate.