>>> TONIGHT, CONGRESSMAN STEVE SCALISE REMAINS IN CRITICAL
CONDITION AFTER A GUNMAN TARGETED REPUBLICAN LAWMAKERS
THIS MORNING, SHOOTING SCALISE AND THREE OTHERS AT A PRACTICE
FOR TOMORROW'S CONGRESSIONAL BASEBALL GAME.
JOINING ME NOW WITH THE LATEST IS PETER WILLIAMS, NBC NEWS
JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT. PETER, WE'VE LEARNED QUITE A BIT
ABOUT THE SHOOTER TODAY. >> Reporter: YES, A GREAT DEAL.
ALL EXCEPT THE CRITICAL, WHAT WAS HE DOING HERE, AND WHY DID
HE SUDDENLY BECOME VIOLENT? WE KNOW HE'S 66-YEAR-OLD JAOLD
T. HODGKINSON, KNOWN TO HIS FRIENDS AS TOMMY.
THIS IS A PICTURE FROM AN EARLIER RUN-IN THAT HE HAD WITH
THE LAW. BUT FOR THE MOST PART, THE
POLICE SAY HE WASN'T MUCH TROUBLE.
THERE WAS AN INCIDENT AT HIS HOME IN BELLEVILLE, ILLINOIS,
WHICH IS A SUBURB OF ST. LOUIS, IN LATE MARCH WHEN HE WAS OUT IN
THE WOODS, TARGET PRACTICING. NEIGHBORS CALLED THE POLICE.
THE SHERIFF CAME AND SAID, YOU GOT TO GO SOMEWHERE ELSE, AND HE
SAID, FINE, AND DIDN'T PUT UP A FIGHT.
AT SOME POINT AFTER THAT, WE DON'T KNOW THE EXACT DAY,
INVESTIGATORS SAY, HE CAME TO THE WASHINGTON AREA IN A WHITE
CARGO VAN THAT HE'S APPARENTLY BEEN LIVING OUT OF EVER SINCE.
SOMETIMES EVEN SLEEPING ON A BENCH IN THE PARK WHERE TODAY'S
SHOOTING TOOK PLACE. HE SHOWERED APPARENTLY IN THE
YMCA WHICH IS JUST ACROSS THE STREET FROM THE BALL FIELD.
PEOPLE WHO CAME IN CONTACT WITH HIM HERE OVER THE PAST SEVERAL
WEEKS SAY HE NEVER APPEARED TO BE VIOLENT.
HE NEVER EXPRESSED VIOLENT TENDENCIES, DIDN'T SEEM TO BE
DANGEROUS. IN FACT, HE TALKED TO THE FORMER
MAYOR, WHO USED THE SAME YMCA, ABOUT TRYING TO FIND A JOB.
SO THE MOTIVE IS UNCLEAR. NOW, IT IS KNOWN THAT HE HAD
SOME VERY STRONG FEELINGS ABOUT THE REPUBLICAN PARTY IN GENERAL.
HE'S BEEN EXPRESSING THESE FOR AT LEAST THE PAST DECADE, FIRST
IN LETTERS TO THE EDITOR OF HIS LOCAL PAPER AND THEN WHEN SOCIAL
MEDIA BECAME A COMMON PLATFORM, HE EXPRESSED HIS VIEWS ON
FACEBOOK AND TWITTER. AND HE'D BEEN QUITE BITTER ABOUT
HIS OPPOSITION TO PRESIDENT TRUMP, USED OBSCENITIES TO TALK
ABOUT HIS HATRED FOR TRUMP. JUST AS RECENTLY AS TWO DAYS
AGO, WAS POSTING TO FACEBOOK ABOUT TRUMP.
AND WE KNOW THAT HE WAS ALSO LAST YEAR A VOLUNTEER FOR THE
BERNIE SANDERS CAMPAIGN AND ALSO IN 2011, JOINED THE OCCUPY WALL
STREET DEMONSTRATION IN ST. LOUIS.
BUT IT'S A LONG TRIP TO COME HERE FROM BELLEVILLE, ILLINOIS,
TO WASHINGTON. AND IT'S ALSO A LONG TRIP
METAPHORICALLY TO GO FROM SOMEONE WITH STRONG VIEWS TO
SOMEONE WHO SUDDENLY PICKS UP AN ASSAULT RIFLE AND OPENS FIRE
AFTER ASKING A WITNESS NEARBY WHETHER THE PEOPLE WHO ARE
PLAYING BASEBALL TODAY ARE REPUBLICANS OR DEMOCRATS.
SO WHY HE DID THAT, WHY HE CAME HERE, WHY HE BECAME VIOLENT IS
WHAT THE FBI IS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT, CHRIS.
AND TONIGHT THEY SAY THEY DON'T KNOW.
>> PETE WILLIAMS, THANKS FOR JOINING US.
>> YOU BET. >>> BEFORE TODAY, THE MOST
RECENT SHOOTING OF A MEMBER OF CONGRESS TOOK PLACE ON JANUARY
8th, 2011. >> IT IS WITH A HEAVY HEART
TODAY THAT I JOIN MY COLLEAGUES IN PAYING RESPECTS TO THE
VICTIMS OF THE SENSELESS TRAGEDY THAT TOOK PLACE LAST WEEKEND IN
ARIZONA. I EXTEND MY PRAYERS TO THE
FAMILIES OF THOSE WHO LOST THEIR LIVES, TO THE WOUNDED, AND THE
RECOVERING, AND TO OUR DEAR COLLEAGUE GABBY GIFFORDS.
>> THAT OF COURSEOURSE WAS CONGRESSMAN STEVE SCALISE ON THE
HOUSE FLOOR MORE THAN SIX YEARS AGO AFTER ARIZONA CONGRESSWOMAN
GABBY GIFFORDS WAS SHOT IN THE HEAD WHILE MEETING WITH
CONSTITUENTS OUTSIDE A SUPERMARKET IN TUCSON.
SIX PEOPLE DIED THAT DAY. CONGRESSWOMAN GIFFORDS SURVIVED
THANKS IN LARGE PART TO THE QUICK THINKING OF 20-YEAR-OLD
INTERN DANIEL HERNANDEZ. JOINING ME NOW IS DANIEL
HERNANDEZ, NOW DEMOCRATIC STATE REPRESENTATIVE FOR ARIZONA.
DANIEL, THANK YOU FOR MAKING TIME.
I WANTED -- I THOUGHT OF TODAY, AND I THOUGHT OF YOUR STORY AND
WONDERED WHAT YOUR REACTION -- WHAT YOU MADE OF TODAY.
>> YOU KNOW, THE ATTACK TODAY ON THE GOP MEMBERS OF CONGRESS
REALLY WAS AN ASSAULT ON OUR DEMOCRACY.
FOR ME IT WHAT REMINDED ME WHAT HAPPENED IN THE IMMEDIATE
AFTERMATH OF THE SHOOTING IN TUCSON WHERE THERE WAS A LOT OF
CHAOS AND A LOT OF CONFUSION. BUT I THINK A LOT OF QUESTIONS
AS TOW WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE. I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I
HEARD REPRESENTATIVE THAT I THINK WAS REALLY HEARTENING WAS
WE NEED TO COME TOGETHER. BUT TO HEAR NOT JUST DEMOCRATS
BUT REPUBLICANS SAYING WE NEED TO WORK ON FINDING SOLUTIONS.
HE SAID HE HOPES THIS NEVER HAPPENS AGAIN, AND I THINK IT'S
TOTALLY WITHIN THE REALM OF POSSIBILITY TO PREVENT SOMETHING
LIKE THIS HAPPENING AGAIN. BUT A HOPE WITHOUT A PLAN IS
JUST A DREAM.
FOR ME, HEARING THE NEWS TODAY,
IT BROKE MY HEART WEDNESDAY AGAINST TO SEE A MEMBER OF
CONGRESS, BUT ANY PEOPLE BEING TARGETED AND ATTACKED ABOUT GUN
VIOLENCE. BUT ALSO IT REMINDED ME THERE'S
SO MUCH WORK WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO DO TO MAKE SURE THIS DOESN'T
HAPPEN AGAIN. >> IF YOU SERVE THE INSTITUTION
OF CONGRESS, YOU'RE CONNECTED TO YOUR COLLEAGUES, CURRENT AND
FORMER, BY A SHARED SENSE OF SERVICE TO IDEALS FAR GREATER
THAN YOURSELF. THIS SHOOTING IS AN ATTACK ON
ALL WHO SERVE AND PARTICIPATE IN OUR DEMOCRACY.
I WANT TO ASK YOU AS SOMEONE WHO EXPERIENCED THIS AS A PUBLIC
EVENT, THIS HORRIBLE THING HAPPENED.
THEN YOU YOURSELF CHOSE TO GO INTO POLITICS.
I TALKED TO HAKEEM JEFFRIES AND LEONARD LANCE HOW IMPORTANT IS
TO BE IN CONTACT WITH THE PUBLIC.
WHAT MADE YOU STILL WANT TO GO AND BE OUT TALKING TO PEOPLE?
>> I'D ALWAYS WANTED TO HELP PEOPLE FROM THE YOUNG AGE OF
ABOUT 6 WHEN I WANTED TO GO INTO HEALTH CARE.
AND HAVING THE EXPERIENCE WITH CONGRESSWOMAN GIGIFFORDS, IT
TAUGHT ME ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF PUBLIC POLICY AND THE WAY IT
IMPACTS PEOPLE'S LIVES, I DECIDED I WANT TO GET INVOLVED
SO I INTERNED. AFTER THE SHOOTING, I DECIDED
THE BEST WAY FOR ME TO BE ABLE TO IMPACT PEOPLE WITH THE
PROBLEMS THEY HAVE EVERY SINGLE DAY WAS TO RUN FOR OFFICE AT THE
LOCAL LEVEL. NOW I'M SERVING AS A STATE
REPRESENTATIVE, BUT IT REALLY STRGS STRENGTHENED AND CEMENTED
MY DESIRE TO BE OUT THERE TALKING TO PEOPLE.
I THINK IT'S ONE OF MY RESPONSIBILITIES AS AN ELECTED
OFFICIAL TO BE OUT THERE IN THE PUBLIC.
WE CANNOT SEGREGATE OURSELVES. WE NEED TO BE OUT THERE TALKING
TO OUR CONSTITUENTS AND HEARING DIRECTLY FROM THEM WHAT THEIR
NEEDS ARE. THAT'S WHY I THINK AT SOME
POINT, WHAT REPRESENTATIVE JEFFRIES SAID, WE NEED TO BE
TALKING TO OUR CONSTITUENTS. WE CANNOT BE IN A GLASS HOUSE.
WE NEED TO BE OUT THERE TALKING TO FOLKS.
I THINK THAT'S FOR ME ONE OF THE REASONS WHY I REFUSE TO BE
TERRORIZED. I'VE HAD DEATH THREATS.
I'VE HAD THINGS HAPPEN TO ME OVER THE LAST SIX YEARS WHERE
PEOPLE HAVE SAID THINGS THAT ARE NOT GREAT.
BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN THAT I'M GOING TO BACK AWAY FROM
REPRESENTING THE FOLKS THAT I GOT ELECTED BY, BUT ALSO TALKING
ABOUT THE ISSUES THAT I CARE ABOUT, WHETHER IT'S LGBT RIGHTS
OR GUN VIOLENCE PREVENTION. WE NEED FOLKS BEING VOCAL ABOUT
THE THINGS WE CARE ABOUT IF WE WANT TO ACTUALLY