Summary
We are going to bring this live blog to a close. Here’s a quick roundup of what we know.
- Early this morning, about 25 Republican legislators, along with staff and some security personnel, were conducting baseball practice at an Alexandria, Virginia, field for Thursday’s annual congressional charity game.
- Just after 7am, a lone gunman, 66-year-old James Hodgkinson, appeared with a rifle and began firing. Eyewitnesses recalled 50-100 rounds being fired before the he was shot by US Capitol police.
- Louisiana congressman Steve Scalise; Zachary Barth, a congressional aide; and lobbyist Matt Mika were taken to hospital with gunshot wounds. Capitol police officers Krystal Griner and David Bailey were also injured. A second congressman, Roger Williams, sprained his ankle.
- The FBI is in control of the investigation with assistance from the ATF and local and state police. Officials would not comment on whether the incident is being considered an act of terrorism.
- Hodgkinson appears to have been a leftwing activist who frequently penned screeds against Donald Trump and Republicans, and who allegedly volunteered for the Bernie Sanders campaign during the Iowa primary.
- The charity game the legislators were preparing for against congressional Democrats, scheduled for Thursday, will go on as planned.
Updated
Authorities identify James T. Hodgkinson as shooter
The DC Capitol Police Board has officially identified James T. Hodgkinson, whose name has been reported widely for several hours, as the shooting suspect who attacked members of congress this morning with a rifle before being shot and killed.
The 66-year-old home inspector and contractor from Belleville, Illinois had apparently moved to Alexandria about two months ago, and by some accounts, was living out of a duffle-bag and showering at the local YMCA for some period of time since he arrived.
Hodgkinson appears to have been a strong critic of President Donald Trump and the Republican party from his social media posts and letters written to his local newspaper.
The Belleville News-Democrat published nearly 30 letters to the editor that he submitted between 2008 and 2012 making statements like “There’s a new version of what GOP stands for. It’s not the Grand Old Party anymore. It’s the Greedy One Percenters.”
His Facebook page features pictures of Bernie Sanders, whose campaign he allegedly campaigned for in Iowa, and calls for Democratic Socialism. Sanders strongly disavowed Hodgkinson’s actions a short while ago on the Senate floor.
In April 2006, he was arrested for domestic battery and discharge of a firearm after allegedly punching a woman in the face before striking her boyfriend in the head with the stock of his shotgun and opening fire, according to St Clair County sheriff’s department records.
Read more on Hodgkinson, A leftwing activist with record of domestic violence.
Updated
Hospital says Rep Scalise is in "critical" condition
Rep. Scalise was critically injured and remains in critical condition. The other patient is in good condition.
— MedStar Washington (@MedStarWHC) June 14, 2017
The America Hospital Association defines this as an unfavorable condition where vital signs are unstable and not within normal limits. The patient may be, but is not necessarily unconscious. Previous reports had described Scalise’s condition as stable, which, it should be noted, is not mutually exclusive with “critical”. Stable merely means that no immediate change is anticipated.
The Congressional Baseball Game is a summer institution in Washington. Every year, staffers, reporters, lobbyists and interns spend a night combining American politics and America’s pastime. The game pits Democrats versus Republicans in fierce but friendly competition often held in a Major League stadium played to benefit charity.
Despite their disappointing performance at the ballot box in recent years, Democrats have dominated on the diamond. With the election of former college pitcher Cedric Richmond to their ranks in 2010, Democrats have won five of the past six games. Richmond, a Louisiana Democrat, is also a good friend of Scalise and vouched for the House Majority Whip when reports emerged that Scalise had once spoke before a white supremacist group in 2002.
Although a number of former pro athletes have served in Congress including former Kentucky congressman and senator Jim Bunning, who was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1996, perhaps the most impressive athletic achievement in the game came from an unlikely figure. In 1979, Ron Paul became the first member of Congressto hit a home run over the fences at the annual baseball game.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi says congressional charity baseball game will go on tomorrow as scheduled
Sports are a wonderful thing in our country. Probably one of the most unifying - I think the arts, we like the same music, plays - but sports really bring us together in our cities. You see people who have the biggest differences of opinion on politics and yet, when their team is on the field, people come together.
So when this team was on the field practicing with such camaraderie and brotherhood... for this person to take this action was so cowardly...
But we cannot let that be a victory for the assailant or anyone who would think that way. So tomorrow we will go out on the field, we’ll root for our team, we want everyone to do his or her very best and we will use this occasion as one that brings us together and not separates us further.”
Updated
Paul Ryan, the most senior Republican in Congress, has been speaking to his fellow legislators about the the shooting:
“We are united in our shock. We are united in our anguish. An attack on one of us is an attack on all of us,” the House speaker said to sustained applause for the members of Congress in attendance.
Ryan said he spoke with Krystal Griner and David Bailey, the two Capitol Hill officers injured incident shortly before coming to the House floor.
“I expressed our profound gratitude to them. It is clear to me, based on various eyewitness accounts, that without these two heroes, Agent Bailey and Agent Griner, many lives would have been lost.”
Ryan went on:
Knowing Steve Scalise as we all do, he is likely really frustrated that he’s not going to be able to play in the baseball game. I also know Steve wants us to commend the bravery of those who came to the side of the wounded. In the coming days we will hear their stories and we will have the chance to hold up their heroism.
My colleagues there are so many memories from this day that we will want to forget, and there are so many images that we will not want to see again. But there is one image in particular that this house should keep, and that’s a photo I saw this morning of our Democratic colleagues gathered in prayer this morning after hearing the news.
Every day we come here to test and to challenge each other. We feel so deeply about the things that we fight for and the things that we believe in, at times our emotions can clearly get the best of us. We’re all imperfect. But we do not shed our humanity when we enter this chamber. For all the noise and the fury, we are one family. These were our brothers and sisters in the line of fire. These were our brothers and sisters who ran into danger and saved countless lives. So before this house returns to its business, let’s just slow down and reflect, to think about how we’re all being tested right now. Because, we are being tested right now.
Updated
Vermont senator Bernie Sanders has just released a statement addressing reports that this mornings assailant was a supporter and volunteer on his campaign:
I have just been informed that the alleged shooter at the Republican baseball practice is someone who apparently volunteered on my presidential campaign. I am sickened by this despicable act. Let me be as clear as I can be. Violence of any kind is unacceptable in our society and I condemn this action in the strongest possible terms. Real change can only come about through nonviolent action, and anything else runs against our most deeply held American values.
My hopes and prayers are that Representative Scalise, congressional staff and the Capitol Police Officers who were wounded make a quick and full recovery. I also want to thank the Capitol Police for their heroic actions to prevent further harm.”
Updated
South Carolina representative Jeff Duncan, who left baseball practice early, said he thinks he spoke to the gunmen in the parking lot before the shooting.
Duncan, a Republican, said the conversation wasn’t out of the ordinary, though the man asked him which party the players represented.
Duncan told reporters he was “shaken up” by the incident. “The world changed for us a little bit as members,” he said.
"I'm shaken up. My colleagues were targeted" -- @RepJeffDuncan (R-SC) pic.twitter.com/6UwjPUVlvn
— Scott Wong (@scottwongDC) June 14, 2017
President Trump from the White House:
Everyone on that field is a public servant. Our courageous police, our congressional aides, who work so tirelessly behind the scenes with enormous devotion, and our dedicated members of congress who represent our people. We may have our differences, but we do well in times like this to remember that everyone who serves in our nation’s capitol is here because, above all, they love our country.
We can all agree that we are blessed to be Americans, that our children deserve to grow up in a nation of safety and peace, and that we are strongest when we are unified, and when we work together for the common good. Please take a moment today to cherish those you love and always remember those who serve and keep us safe. God bless them all, God bless you, and God bless America.
Updated
Trump: Shooter has died
Donald Trump is speaking now. He has just announced that the assailant has died of his injuries.
Updated
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has released the following statement on this morning’s shooting:
I know the entire Senate will join me in echoing the sentiments of the president this morning. We are deeply saddened. We are concerned for all those injured. We will keep them in our prayers, we will continue to send them every wish for a quick and full recovery.
We are grateful for all those who stepped in to help: those practicing on the field, the first responders, and of course the Capitol Police Officers on the scene. We are deeply indebted for their service, we again salute their continuing and unfailing bravery on behalf of the Capitol community. The Congressional Baseball Game is a bipartisan charity event. I know the Senate will embrace that spirit today as we come together in expressing both our concern and our gratitude.”
House Speaker Paul Ryan is also expected to deliver remarks around noon from the Senate floor, and President Trump is expected to speak from the White House at any moment.
Updated
An acquaintance of suspected shooter James Hodgkinson told the Washington Post that he met and became friendly with the man while campaigning for Bernie Sanders in Iowa.
Charles Orear, 50, a restaurant manager from St. Louis, said in an interview Wednesday that Hodgkinson was a passionate progressive and showed no signs of violence or malice toward others.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Orear said when told of the incident by phone. “I met him on the Bernie trail in Iowa, worked with him in the Quad Cities area.”
Orear described Hodgkinson as a “quiet guy” who was “very mellow, very reserved” when they stayed overnight at a Sanders’s supporter home in Rock Island, Ill., after canvassing for the senator.
“He was this union tradesman, pretty stocky, and we stayed up talking politics,” he said. “He was more on the really progressive side of things.”
The Post reached out to Orear after seeing that he liked one of Hodgkinson’s Facebook posts.
Updated
Police chief: FBI taking over investigation
Updates from the late morning law enforcement press briefing in Alexandria:
Alexandria Police Chief Michael Brown:
This is not an active incident, the city is safe. We have an active investigation but I want to reassure the community here in Alexandria that the city is safe.
Because this case involves an assault on a federal officer, the FBI will be taking over the investigation.
I couldn’t be more proud of the men and women who were involved from the Alexandria Police Department, they did an outstanding job.
Capitol Hill Police Chief Matthew Verderosa:
My units of our dignitary protection were on site with a congressional protectee [Steve Scalise], when we the incident occurred. They did engage in gunfire with the suspect and were assisted by the Alexandria police.
The US Capitol Hill Police officers who were injured are in good condition and have not suffered any life threatening injuries at this point.
FBI Agent Tim Slater:
“It’s too early to say right now” whether the shooting constitutes an act of terrorism. “We are exploring all angles”
Slater would not confirm whether the members of congress were targeted for that reason or not, or any other details about the shooter, the weapon, or questions he may have asked.
Virginia governor Terry McAuliffe:
I want to compliment members of the US Capitol police for their extraordinary quick action. Through their heroic action and others, they saved a lot of lives today.
Asked by reporters if more should be done to protect politicians, McAuliffe replied: “I think we need to do more to protect all of our citizens. I have long advocated – this is not what today is about – but there are too many guns on the streets.”
He then misspoke, claiming: “We lose 93 million Americans a day to gun violence. I have long talked about this. Background checks and shutting down gun show loopholes, and that’s not for today’s discussion, but it’s not just about politicians. We worry about this every day for all of our citizens.”
Prompted by a journalist, McAuliffe later clarified that 93 individuals, not 93 million, die every day from gun violence.
Updated
The AP is reporting that the suspected shooter has been identified as Illinois man James T. Hodgkinson by at least one government official. The Guardian cannot independently confirm the name of the individual who is in custody and receiving medical attention.
.@RepJoeBarton and his sons board the subway in the Capitol after a shooting at the Republican's baseball practice in Va. #baseballshooting pic.twitter.com/4lrc80frcj
— Tom Williams (@pennstatetom) June 14, 2017
Our Lauren Gambino is on Capitol Hill getting reaction from legislators:
Mark Meadows says the shooting showed "the worst in humanity today ... but you also see the best."
— Lauren Gambino (@laurenegambino) June 14, 2017
He said it is "certainly not the appropriate time" to start a debate on policy over gun control and background checks https://t.co/VCVvczBzMn
— Lauren Gambino (@laurenegambino) June 14, 2017
Our David Smith is on the scene of the shooting and talking to local residents:
Megan Hacala, a fitness professional, said nothing like this had happened before in the neighborhood. “It’s a peaceful place. A lot of baseball is played. There’s a dog park right next to the field. It’s just sad.”
A growing band of reporters, photographers and TV crews are gathered behind police tape at the corner of DeWitt and Monroe Avenues, close to the redbrick Anglican Catholic Church: St Andrew & St Margaret of Scotland. It is affluent neighbourhood of detached redbrick houses, front porches, neat lawns and trees.
One resident of the street, who did not wish to be named, came out on her front path to view the commotion. She said she walked by the baseball field every day and described it as a safe area where locals walk their dogs.
Updated
Zachary Barth, a staffer for GOP Rep. Roger Williams of TX, posted on FB that he was shot but is "okay." Gave permission to post thru friend pic.twitter.com/ruUuNrtqn6
— Jon Ward (@jonward11) June 14, 2017
From the office of Steve Scalise to members of Congress:
Members are advised that, given today’s events, no votes are expected in the House today. In addition, there will be no morning hour speeches at 10:00 a.m.
Updated
Update on the condition of majority whip Steve Scalise from his congressional office:
“This morning, at a practice for the congressional baseball game, Whip Scalise was shot in the hip. He was transported to MedStar Washington Hospital Center, where he is currently undergoing surgery. He is in stable condition.
“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 US Capitol Police, first responders and colleagues.
“We ask that you keep the Whip and others harmed in this incident in your thoughts and prayers.”
Rep Ron DeSantis of Florida, who was in attendance at the baseball practice recalls: “A guy...walked up to us that was asking whether it was Republicans or Democrats out there.
“I don’t know if that was the guy, but I think it’s important to put that information out there and it was a little bit different than someone would do that. He was really interested in wanting to know who was out there.”
Updated
The House Natural Resources Committee has cancelled a vote scheduled for this morning that would have make it easier for gun owners to obtain firearm suppressors.
UPDATE: House Natural Resources Committee says the hearing on @RepJeffDuncan's bill to deregulate gun silencers has been canceled
— Kira Lerner (@kira_lerner) June 14, 2017
Video from Arlington Police Chief Michael Brown’s press conference a short while ago:
APD Chief Michael Brown updated media. 5 transported to local hospitals, including suspect. We will not ID victims or suspect right now. pic.twitter.com/pPYlqEjACM
— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) June 14, 2017
Congressman Mo Brooks’s full recollection of the incident on CNN:
I was on deck about to hit batting practice on the third base side of home plate and I heard a loud ‘bam’ and I look around and behind third base and the third base dugout which is cinderblock, I see a rifle. And I see a little bit of a body and I then hear another ‘blam’ and I realize that there’s an active shooter.
At the same time I heard Steve Scalise over near second base scream, he was shot, he’s our majority whip. The gun was a semi-automatic. It continues to fire at different people. You can imagine all the people on the field scatter. I run around to the first base side of home plate. We have a batting cage that’s got plastic wrapped around it to stop foul balls, and hide behind the plastic. You know the plastic’s not real good. And I was lying on the ground with two or three others as gunfire continues.
I heard a break in the gunfire and decided to take a chance, ran from home plate to the first base dugout, which is also cinderblock and down about two or three feet so you can have better cover. There were a number of congressman and congressional staffers who help us lying on the ground. One of them was wounded in the leg. I took off my belt and myself and another congressman I don’t remember who applied a tourniquet to try to slow down the bleeding.
In the meantime, I’m towards the right field side of the dugout and there’s gunfire within about five six seven feel of my head and I look up and there’s a guy with a gun blasting away. Fortunately, it was one of the good guys. One of our security detail who was shooting back. Of course it was pistol versus rifle, our pistols versus the shooter’s rifle on the third base line just outside the chain link fence and he was warning us to stay down. Another security detail person was closer to home plate, probably, I couldn’t see him but probably on the home plate side of the dugout, outside the fence line using the dugout as cover as he’s firing back.
And there must have been 50 to 100 shots fired. Hard to uh, itemize ‘em. Eventually it seems that the shooter shot both of our security detail people. There were some congressman on phones screaming for reinforcements.
Seemed like a long time and we weren’t even hearing sirens from local police officers which tells me they probably did not yet know what was going on. Eventually the shooter starts circling around third base. This is my understanding. Of course I’m down on the ground helping a guy who’s got a bullet hole in his leg. And the shooter starts coming around home plate towards we are outside the fence line and my understanding is that’s where our security detail, maybe some of the ones who were wounded, still defending us, took him down.
At which point, once we got the all clear that the shooter was down, we ran out to second base for Steve Scalise. He had crawled into the outfield leaving a trail of blood. We started giving him some liquids. I put pressure on the wound in his hip. And Brad Wenstrup, congressman from Ohio, Cincinnati, fortunately is a physician, he started doing what you need to do to minimize the blood loss.
Shorty thereafter more the police showed up. Again, it seemed like forever but it was probably shorter that what it seemed. A helicopter landed in center field and took away whomever folks decided was the most wounded, most critical. I don’t know who that person was. At that time the police were causing all of us to gather outside the first base line and the chain link fence and cordoning off the area to help ensure if there was a second shooter we would be better protected.
Donald Trump has tweeted thoughts and prayers for Scalise.
He describes Scalise as having been badly injured but says he is expected to full recover. House Speaker Paul Ryan’s office has said his wounds are not life-threatening.
Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana, a true friend and patriot, was badly injured but will fully recover. Our thoughts and prayers are with him.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 14, 2017
Gabrielle Giffords, the former congresswoman who was shot in the head in 2011 and campaigns against gun violence, has tweeted:
My heart is with my former colleagues, their families & staff, and the US Capitol Police- public servants and heroes today and every day.
— Gabrielle Giffords (@GabbyGiffords) June 14, 2017
Senator Rand Paul on the Capitol Hill Police:
Nobody else had a weapon so he was just killing everyone - or he would have. I think the Capitol Hill Police, both were wounded and I hope they survive. They deserve our gratitude for saving - it would have been a massacre without them.
“Our lives were saved by the Capitol police,” said Sen. Rand Paul, adding, “the field was basically a killing field.”
— Michael Tackett (@tackettdc) June 14, 2017
On the baseball game the legislators were practicing for:
It’s really one of the best things we do, it’s a bipartisan thing, i’ve gotten to know many Democrats through this game. We joke around, it’s collegial, it’s for charity. We’re set to raise $600,000 for the literacy project of the Boys and Girls Club of DC. It’s a good thing. Who would want to kill people trying to do something good. It’s just really sick and very sad.
Updated
Congressman Jeff Flake says about 25 Republican lawmakers were on the field at the time of the incident. Here is a partial list from Representative Mo Brooks’s recollection:
- Steve Scalise, Louisiana
- Rand Paul, Kentucky
- Roger Williams, Texas
- Joe Barton, Texas
- Ron DeSantis, Florida
- Chuck Fleischmann, Tennessee
- Jeff Flake, Arizona
- Brad Wenstrup, Ohio
- Gary Palmer, Alabama
- Mo Brooks, Alabama
Updated
Here is video from the scene:
Updated
Rand Paul, the Republican senator for Kentucky, told MSNBC he was practising in a batting cage just outside the fence to the baseball field when the shots started.
He heard a succession of five or 10 shots and then realised the Republican majority whip senator Steve Scalise was hit on the baseball field and was “trying to drag himself through the dirt towards the dugout”.
Two Congressional staffers were also on the ground, with shots kicking up dirt all around them, he said.
Paul, who hid behind a tree with a staffer who leapt over a high fence, described shots landing in the dirt in the outfield and around them.
He said at one point the gunman, who he thought was armed with a rifle must have reloaded and then there were 50 or 60 shots.
“Everybody probably would have died except for the fact that the Capitol Hill police were there,” he said.
The Republicans have been having regular morning practice at the field for about two months in advance of Thursday’s charity congressional baseball game at Nationals Park.
Armed police were there because Senator Scalise, a member of the leadership is on their team, Paul said.
“The Capitol Hill police, incredibly brave, probably saved the lives of everybody there. Had they not been there it would have been a massacre because there’s no escape, a guy, if he has got 100 bullets, we had no weapons and no place to hide.”
So if he had advanced on the rest of us, there would have been no chance ... shots were returned by the Capitol Hill police. From what I understand, they both were shot, I hope they are OK. One still protected the scene after being shot.”
Congressman Mo Brooks said that Scalise “crawled into the outfield, leaving a trail of blood”.
“We started giving him the liquids; I put pressure on his wound in his hip,” Brooks said.
NBC News and Reuters are both reporting that Congressman Steve Scalise as well as two capitol hill police officers struck by gunfire are in stable condition.
Donald Trump has issued a statement to say he is monitoring the shooting:
The Vice President and I are aware of the shooting incident in Virginia and are monitoring developments closely. 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.
Republican senator Rand Paul of Kentucky told MSNBC that he heard as many as 50 shots.
Shots landed near aides taking cover on the ground, he said, and one staffer scrambled over a fence to escape.
Representative Mike Bishop of Michigan said Scalise was standing on second base when he was shot.
“I was looking right at him,” Bishop told Detroit radio station WWJ. “He was a sitting duck.”
Representative Jeff Duncan said in a statement that he was at the practice and “saw the shooter”.
“Please pray for my colleagues,” Duncan said.
Alexandria police have now confirmed that the suspect is in custody.
UPDATE: Suspect is in custody and not a threat. PIO will be onscene shortly to share updates.
— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) June 14, 2017
A congressional aide has told AP Steve Scalise is in stable condition at George Washington University Hospital. In Mo Brooks’ CNN interview, he said Scalise had a “hip wound”.
Updated
Congressman Mo Brooks is giving a remarkable eyewitness interview on CNN.
Of the shooter he said:
I don’t know if he was killed but I tell you I don’t have any kind thoughts about the shooter so let’s leave it at that.
He appeared to be a white male. But bear in mind I saw him for just a second or two, a fraction of a second.
If I had to guess, middle aged … he wasn’t skinny, but he did not appear to be obese either.
Describing the situation, Brooks said:
You’re pretty helpless. It’s not a good situation to be in. I don’t know what took our security detail as long as it took them to start exchanging fire … It seemed like a long time but it might have been seconds … They exhibited tremendous bravery.
I got a glimpse of the shooter which meant he also could see me if he looked in my direction. At that point I ran around home plate.
There were probably 10, 20, 30 shots fired while two or three of us were seeking cover.
At least five people were hit with bullets.
Updated
Police are investigating a shooting at a congressional baseball practice session in Virginia.
Steve Scalise, the Republican House majority whip, and at least four others have been shot, Alabama congressman Mo Brooks told CNN.
The extent of Scalise’s injuries are unknown.
Other lawmakers at the gathering in Alexandria are now secure, Brooks told CNN.
Alexandria police said the suspect was believed to be in custody.
More details soon ...
ALERT: APD investigating multiple shooting 400 block E Monroe St. Suspect believed in custody. Stay from area, let emergency vehicles thru.
— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) June 14, 2017
APD PIO heading to scene, updates will be posted when available. Victims being transported to hospitals.
— Alexandria Police (@AlexandriaVAPD) June 14, 2017
