For many in his native Louisiana, Steve Scalise is a well-known and popular politician. But for other people in the United States and around the world as well, at least for those who might not be very familiar with people in political office in the United States, he was not really known.
That changed, however, when in June 2017, Scalise was shot during a congressional baseball practice. At the time of the shooting, Scalise was the majority whip in the United States House of Representatives and a representative from Louisiana’s 1st congressional district. Let’s discuss who he is and the details of that fateful day in June.
Who is Steve Scalise?
Scalise was born on October 6, 1965 in New Orleans, Louisiana. He was born of three children to his parents, his father Alfred Joseph Scalise, a real estate broker and his mother Carol Schilleci.
His full name at birth was Steven Joseph Scalise, and his siblings are Glenn and Tara Scalise. Steve Scalise attended Archbishop Rummel High School in Metairie, where he enrolled at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. At LSU, Scalise went on to earn a Bachelor of Science degree with a major in computer science and a minor in political science. It was while he was in Louisiana that he made his debut as a politician. Scalise has twice been elected president of the LSU Student Government Association.
He entered politics when he won the seat of Republican State Rep. Quentin D. Dastugue after the latter unsuccessfully attempted to become governor of Louisiana. Scalise was the Dastugue District 82 headquarters representative and was re-elected in 1999 and 2003. He remained there until 2007.
In October 2007, Steve Scalise was elected to the District 9 seat in the Louisiana Senate which had been vacated by Ken Hollis of Metairie. His mandate was part of a non-partisan primary primary and counted for 61% of the vote.
In 2007, when Bobby Jindal was elected to become Governor of Louisiana, Scalise announced his intention to run for his seat in the United States House of Representatives. Scalise first had to defeat fellow State Representative and Republican, Timothy G. Burns, in the Republican primaries and then Democratic candidate, Gilda Reed, in the electoral ballot, with 75.13% of the vote.
In 2012, the politician was elected chairman of the Republican House Conservative Study Committee. Steve Scalise launched a campaign in 2014 to replace Rep. Kevin McCarthy as House Majority Whip, who himself had replaced Rep. Eric Cantor as House Majority Leader. Scalise won the race.
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Why was he shot and by whom?
United States politics has over the years deepened in its division along party lines. This partisan divide just seems to grow and widen if we take recent events into account. One of the ways touted to help bridge that divide is the annual Congressional baseball game, which takes place in high spirits with politicians on both sides of the aisle.
On Wednesday, June 14, 2017, the Republican Party’s members were training for the annual game at a baseball diamond in Alexandria, Va., when left-wing extremist, later identified as 66-year-old James Hodgkinson of the Illinois, opened fire on the players. Hodgkinson emerged as a supporter of Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders ahead of the 2016 general election. The election of President Donald Trump angered him. Anti-Trump rhetoric was found on his social media accounts.
Hodgkinson reportedly visited the grounds previously and on the morning of filming. It is said that he asked which congressional team had his practice. When he learned it was the Republicans, he opened fire. This happened around 7:06 a.m. He fired from outside the third base dugout located behind the fence surrounding the field.
Capitol Police Special Agents David Bailey and Scalise routine security member Crystal Griner returned fire. Unfortunately, Steve Scalise was at second base when the shootout started and was hit in the hip. He got off and had to crawl to the outfield, leaving a trail of blood.
Agent Griner was shot in the ankle while exchanging fire with Hodgkinson. Matt Mika, a Tyson Foods lobbyist, was also shot. Zachary Barth, legislative correspondent for Rep. Roger Williams, was also hit, as was David Bailey of the Capitol Police.
Alexandria Police officers arrived three minutes after the initial 911 call. Officer Alexander Jensen and David Bailey got the better of the blows that struck the suspect.
Between 7:06 a.m. and 7 a.m.: Hodgkinson reportedly fired at least 70 rounds from his weapons, including an SKS-style semi-automatic assault rifle and a 9mm handgun. Hodgkinson was pronounced dead in hospital and died of his injuries.