Davis calls baseball shooting ‘political terrorism’ – Politico

Rep. Rodney Davis on Sunday called the shooting he witnessed last week while practicing for the congressional charity baseball game an act of “political terrorism.”

Appearing on “Fox News Sunday,” the Illinois Republican said the shooter, James Hodgkinson, was on a mission to “politically kill innocent people,” which the congressman suggested added to the growing partisan divide across the country.

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“The polarization has seemingly continued to rise, creating the fringes on the right and the left,” said Davis, a catcher for the Republican congressional baseball team.

Davis was among colleagues warming up in Alexandria, Virginia, for the annual congressional ballgame on Thursday when Hodgkinson opened fire, critically wounding House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) and wounding four others. On Saturday, doctors upgraded Scalise’s condition from critical to serious.

“It’s still pretty surreal,” Davis said. “It’s been a very humbling event.”

Without elaborating further, the congressman suggested changes could arise from Wednesday’s gun violence.

“There are things I’m going to do differently in my life and my workplace,” he said. “I don’t care what side you’re on, no one deserves to have the violence we experienced just four days ago.”