House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., said on Thursday that he can’t wait to return home.
“I wish I could be there in person but I’m still recovering at a rehabilitation hospital and I can tell you, I cannot wait til the day that I can get back home,” Scalise said in an audio recording message that was played at the Louisiana Family Forum’s annual legislative awards gala on Thursday.
The Republican lawmaker was being honored with the Louisiana Family Forum’s “Gladiator Award,”
“Within the last couple weeks, he [Scalise] recorded a similar audio message for a Louisiana Restaurant Association event he also could not attend,” Lauren Fine, spokesperson for Scalise told the Washington Examiner. “He wanted to ensure he was honoring his commitments back home while he still focusing on his recovery at an in-patient rehabilitation facility.”
Scalise audio message was met with a standing ovation by gala attendees, according to a Louisiana outlet, the Advocate.
Scalise, 51, underwent three surgeries after he was shot during a Congressional Baseball Game practice in Alexandria, Va., on June 14. Following weeks of recovery, the congressman has since been transferred from MedStar Washington Hospital Center to a rehabilitation center in D.C. for physical therapy.
Fine said that Scalise will be returning to the Capitol as soon as his doctors will allow.
