Merkley’s account — Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., said he was crossing the Capitol grounds with Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Bob Casey, D-Pa., headed toward Dirksen Senate Office Building when he saw multiple police cars racing up Constitution Avenue about 30 yards away.

“Then a series of shots rang out. I initially didn’t realize they were shots. I thought they were police cars running over a steel plate,” he said. “Just then an officer yelled at us to get down and take cover.” The senators ducked behind parked cars, he said.

By this time, just moments after the shots were fired, Capitol Police officers were running toward the incident, he said.

After the shooting ended, Merkley and the others hurried back to the Capitol building. Initially, they were locked out, but after a short delay they made it inside.

Knowing that word of the incident would spread quickly, Merkley said he called his wife and his mother to let them know he was OK. He then called his office to check on his staff, who were all safe and accounted for. Later, after the lockdown ended, he used an underground tunnel to return to his office.

“I didn’t immediately think it was an armed confrontation or anything of that nature,” he said. “I figured somebody had probably inappropriately presented themselves when trying to get into the building or trying to pass through one of the barricades with their car.

“This (incident) reminds us that the Capitol Police are out there putting their life on the line, every day,” Merkley said. “They make it possible for us to do our job, and we should be deeply thankful for their service.”

Because they have been deemed essential, Capitol Police are working during the government shutdown, but they are not getting paid while the shutdown persists.

— Andrew Clevenger, The Bulletin