WASHINGTON _ Majority whip Steve Scalise has sold himself as a pragmatic and unifying conservative since he joined the House in 2008.
That reputation has served him well during a tumultuous time for the Republican Party. In recent weeks, Scalise, 51, has been credited with working behind the scenes to move signature bills _ for both the party and President Donald Trump, whom he backed in the Republican presidential race last year. That legislation includes the recent House health care reform bill and a pending effort to overhaul the tax code.
"No one knows more about what it takes to move legislation during the Trump era than Scalise," a recent profile in the Washington Examiner said. "And if the Republican legislative agenda doesn't crash and burn, Scalise will deserve a lion's share of the credit."
As the number three in House Republican leadership, Scalise had a security detail assigned to him at all times. Other members who were practicing with Scalise said things would have much worse had that detail not been present.
Scalise, who has served in the House since 2008, joined the Republican leadership team in June 2014. As the former head of the influential Republican Study Committee, a caucus of over 150 House conservatives, he has worked to bridge a divide between Republican leaders and House conservatives.
He served in the Louisiana state legislature for more a decade and registered with the Republican Party the day he turned 18.
