WASHINGTON — Members say a re-thinking should happen about how members of Congress are currently protected outside of the Capitol.
Republican Texas Rep. Joe Barton and Democratic Pennsylvania Rep. Mike Doyle, both Congressional baseball team managers for their respective parties, described to reporters Wednesday how the security situation was on the field.
When asked by The Daily Caller if security detail was only available because Louisiana Rep. Steve Scalise, a member of leadership who routinely have security, was on the field.
“There was, I believe, another security detail there from the Capitol Hill Police simply because there were a lot of congressmen there and they did assist in attacking the shooter,” Barton said. “But as Mike has pointed out there would have only been one officer or maybe two had not Congressman Scalise been the majority whip. So that is something that we are rethinking.”
Doyle pointed out the detail is usually not on the field with members.
“And they’re generally not on the field. At our practice, we have no security detail on the field. There was a Capitol police car in the parking lot with one officer about five hundred yards away. By the time he even figured out what the commotion was all about and called for backup,” Doyle said.
Barton went on to say, “And our officers were not on the field but they were out by the bleachers outside the vehicle and the shooter was outside. He never the shooter never got into the field. He was over on the third base side. And luckily for us all of our people always stay on the first base side and the gates on the third base side were locked and so he had to try to go around behind home plate and the Capitol Hill police and Mr. Scalia’s police and eventually fairly quickly the Alexandria police all kind of converged on him and prevented him from getting onto the field.”
Scalise was shot by the gunman, who was later shot and killed by law enforcement. Scalise is currently listed in critical condition. A lobbyist, congressional staffer and two officers were injured during the gunfire.