Rep. Ryan Costello of Pennsylvania narrowly missed his ride for a GOP baseball practice in suburban D.C. Wednesday, only to get an “ugly jolt” when he saw TV reports that a gunman had opened fire at that very session, wounding House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, a congressional aide and two police officers.
Mr. Costello said he missed the 6 a.m. cutoff for catching a ride with Rep. Rodney Davis of Illinois and other guys by two minutes.
“I would have been in the line of fire,” Mr. Costello, clearly emotional, told reporters at the Capitol.
He said he called his mom and wife to let them know he was OK, while noting the focus should be on those who were actually at the Alexandria park.
The congressman said he heard about the shooting when anchors on his office television referred to a “baseball practice shooting” and “Congress.”
“I looked up, and that’s the field that we practice at,” Mr. Costello said. “Then, for just a brief few seconds, I didn’t think it was real. Like something wasn’t right, I was hearing something wrong.”
Mr. Costello got choked up talking about the footage of Mr. Scalise being carried on a stretcher, though he said people shouldn’t forget the other people who were wounded.
“They have families. Their families are scared right now,” Mr. Costello said.
Mr. Costello said he hadn’t heard whether Thursday night’s annual game between Republicans and Democrats would proceed, though he extolled it as a positive reprieve from the partisan food fights that consume Capitol Hill.
“To wake up this morning and have this happen,” he said. “it’s an ugly jolt on what happens from time to time in our country.”
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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