WASHINGTON _ Republican members of Congress described feelings of fear and running for cover in the wake of a gunman opening fire on them during their practice for the Congressional Baseball Game.
House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, two staffers and two Capitol Police officers were wounded in the shooting before members of Scalise's security detail shot the gunman, who was armed with a rifle.
Rep. Gary Palmer of Alabama said that the team was taking batting practice while he was playing shortstop and Rep. Trent Kelly was at third base. Capitol Police Chief Matthew Verderosa said at a Wednesday morning news conference that none of the injuries were believed to be life-threatening.
"I heard a gunshot and I yelled to Trent, 'That was a gun!' And Trent looks over, he says, 'It's a shooter,'" Palmer said. "I think the guy shot at Kelly and missed him. And then he shot again and I started running in and I saw Scalise go down."
Palmer said he and Kelly then took cover.
"I ran off the field and a bunch of us took cover behind (a big oak tree)," he said. "And then Scalise's security detail said the guy was moving around that side. We took cover behind the big block building."
Rep. Mo Brooks said while he was taking cover, he was weighing the risk of getting up.
"If you get up and run you know you're in sight of the shooter and he can try and take you out," he said.
Afterward, Brooks said he saw Sen. Rand Paul head to the dugout.
"Still I'm hearing no return fire," Brooks said. "I'm in the dugout, I see a staffer who's got a leg wound."
Brooks said he took off his belt and he and another person used it as a tourniquet.
"Then I'm lying, along with some others, face-first to the ground breathing dugout dust," he said. "And to the far end, I'm in the dugout now on the first base side and to my right I start hearing 'Bam, bam, bam, bam,' and I look up, there's a guy with a pistol."
Brooks said he then wondered if it was a double-shooter situation.
"It took a second to figure out it was one of our guys and he was firing back," he said. "It was one of the best sights I've seen in my life."
