Read original article by Sarah N. Lynch and Ross Colvin on the Reuters or read a quick summary below;
- A man who had posted angry messages against President Donald Trump and other Republicans on social media opened fire on Republican lawmakers practicing for a charity baseball game on Wednesday, wounding a senior U.S. House member and three other people.
- Steve Scalise, the No. 3 Republican in the House of Representatives, was shot in the hip. He was tended to by fellow lawmakers including Representative Brad Wenstrup, who is a physician, before being transported to a hospital, where he was listed in critical condition.
- Congressmen at the ballpark described hearing loud noises like the sound of firecrackers and 15 to 20 people lying on the ground and realizing they had only baseball bats to defend themselves against bullets.”When he started shooting, he was shooting to kill people. And thank God he wasn’t a very good shot,” said Representative Joe Barton, the Republican team’s manager.
- Also wounded were a congressional aide and one former aide who now works as a lobbyist, officials said. One Capitol Hill police officer suffered a gunshot wound and another officer twisted an ankle and was released from a hospital, police said.
“It was not only chaotic but it was a combat situation,” Alexandria Police Chief Mike Brown told reporters.
- Wednesday’s shooting revived debate about gun rights in America. Virginia’s Democratic governor, Terry McAuliffe, urged gun control measures. “This is not what today is about, but there are too many guns on the street,” McAuliffe said at a news conference near the scene of the shooting.
