Let the Va. shooting spur recommitment to civility

The shootings early Wednesday morning on a serene baseball field in suburban Washington, D.C, once again has enveloped this nation in shock and disbelief. It once again has galvanized a nation in gratitude for the first responders who likely saved so many lives. Yet, unlike the immediate aftermath of far too many other mass shootings in our nation’s recent history, it has brought hope for greater civility in our nation’s political discourse.

As of Thursday night, House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., remained in critical condition in a capital hospital, as did Matt Mika, a lobbyist for Tyson foods who was helping out at the practice of Republican lawmakers in advance of Thursday night’s charity baseball game between congressional Democrats and Republicans. Several others, including two Capitol Police officers and at least one other U.S. representative, suffered nonlife-threatening injuries in the attack.

That triggerman, 66-year-old James T. Hodgkinson of Belleville, Ill., died in custody from wounds he suffered in a shootout with members of Scalise’s security detail.

As in other mass shootings such as those in Charleston, Orlando and Newtown, once again, Americans are reminded of just how easy it is for an individual with deranged thought patterns to access the needed tools and gain easy access to his targets, as was likely the case in Alexandria, Va.

The timing – early in the morning – and the targets – seemingly Republican elected leaders – make this crime even more insidious. As a result, we hope federal authorities spare no resources toward uncovering the underlying motivations behind Wednesday’s attack and prosecute any potential accomplices.

Encouraging aftereffects

Yet amid the anguish and carnage rise a few encouraging aftereffects. We commend the professional response by Alexandria safety forces, Capitol Police and other first responders to the Eugene Simpson Stadium Park. Their bravery and skillful commitment to duty likely prevented mass carnage.

U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who was at the park during the shooting, said, “These guys were real heroes, and I think without them everybody probably would have been killed. Steve Scalise is in leadership and that’s the only reason there was security detail there at all. I’m sad that he was shot, but he actually saved everybody’s life by being there.”’

U.S. Rep. Roger Williams, R-Texas, who suffered minor injuries in the shooting, estimated “there could have easily been 25 deaths or more.”

Another heartening outgrowth of the day’s grisly attack played out later Wednesday in the chamber of the U.S. House, in which leaders of both major political parties replaced acidic rhetoric with calls for unity and bipartisanship.

Even the strangest of bedfellows – House Speaker Paul Ryan, R.-Wisc., and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. – issued much needed common pleas for unity, compassion and cooperation.

“We are united. We are united in our shock. We are united in our anguish. An attack on one of us is an attack on all of us,” Ryan said.

Pelosi echoed that conviction: “We will use this occasion as one that will bring us together and not separate us further.”

That is a goal that all members of Congress and yes, all Americans, should commit to achieve.

President’s response

President Donald J. Trump deserves credit for his immediate appeal for calm and unity in a statesmanlike national address.

In it, Trump said this: “We had a very, very divided country for many years. And I have a feeling that Steve has made a great sacrifice, but there could be some unity being brought to our country. Let’s hope so.”

Perhaps all also can learn from this tragedy that our words – particularly when those words are crafted out of hatred and spewed for the whole world to see – do have consequences.

It is our hope that the tamped-down rhetoric and bipartisanship forged in the aftermath of this shooting can mark a turning point toward greater civility in Americans’ political speech – both written and spoken.