In June, a Bernie Bro opened fire on a baseball field coincidentally filled with Republican lawmakers. While his motives may never be known, this Bro's actions helped reveal the bravery and fortitude of the Capital Police and Washington Free Beacon Man of the Year Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R., Ohio).
The shooter injured four people during a 10-minute gunfight with the Capitol police and local law enforcement before being incapacitated. Several GOP lawmakers were able to assist the wounded, including Rep. Mo Brooks (R., Ala.), who applied a tourniquet to an injured staffer's leg wound.
Wenstrup is credited with saving the life of House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, who suffered a gunshot wound to the hip that required hours of emergency surgery. Wenstrup is a colonel in the Army Reserve and earned a Bronze Star for his actions as a combat surgeon while serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom. He rushed to Scalise's side, applied a tourniquet to stem the bleeding, and tended to the wound until medical services arrived to transport him to the hospital.
"I felt like I was back in Iraq," Wenstrup later told CBS News.
Scalise is alive today because Wenstrup's instincts never left him. And Wenstrup is a Free Beacon Man of the Year as a result.
