Win McNamee/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — Members of the House of Representatives gathered at the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., Wednesday after the shooting at a Virginia park that injured five people, including U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise.
Democrats and Republicans held hands and prayed together at the start of the briefing, and leadership from both parties sat together throughout the briefing.
House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., took to the chamber floor to encourage prayers for the victims and give praise to the “tremendous bravery” of the U.S. Capitol Police.
“We are all horrified by this dreadful attack on our friends and on our colleagues who serve and protect this country,” Ryan said.
Ryan said the members of the house are “united” in their shock and anguish.
“An attack on one of us is an attack on all of us,” he said.
Pelosi echoed those sentiments in her remarks, calling the shooting an “injury in the family.”
Pelosi added that she hopes the tragedy will allow her and her fellow House members to “resolve our differences.”
The House adjourned for the day after the briefing. The Congressional Baseball Game, for which Scalise and his GOP colleagues where practicing when they were attacked, will continue as planned Thursday at Nationals Park, Ryan said.
Pelosi said, “Tomorrow we’ll go out on the field. We’ll root for our team. We want everyone to … do their best. And we will use this occasion to bring us together.”
President Trump was also among a wide range of politicians who reacted to the shooting, saying in a statement that he was “deeply saddened” by the attack.
“Our thoughts and prayers are the with members of Congress, their staffs, Capital Police, first responders and all others affected,” Trump tweeted of the incident that left the alleged assailant dead and five people injured, including Rep. Scalise.
Trump also described the Louisiana Republican as a “true friend and patriot.”
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