On Tuesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave Congressman Steve Scalise (R-LA 1st District) an IDF Paratrooper’s red beret, in appreciation of his support for Israel.
On June 14, 2017, Scalise was shot at a practice session for the congressional baseball team in Virginia, and was taken to the hospital in critical condition. On September 28, 2017, he returned to the House.
Scalise told the AIPAC conference on Tuesday: “…after I was shot, on the day I was shot we get a call from Prime Minister Netanyahu. Now, I was out of it for three days. I didn’t come to after I had surgeries, fighting for my life, infections, and finally by day three I woke up. And my wife was there. My family was there. They started sharing some of the stories of the people that were praying all around the world. And one of the things that stood out, they said, Prime Minister Netanyahu called for you.
“And I said, Prime Minister Netanyahu called for me? I know he’s busy. There’s so many threats and problems that he’s dealing with. And they said, he wants you to call him when you’re able to. So finally, about another day went by and the fog had kind of lifted and I said, okay, I’d love to talk to him. And so we arranged the call, and we spent just a wonderful conversation on the phone. And he shared with me some of his personal experiences.
“You all know his brother died in a shooting in his service to the military, but he also shared some other personal stories with me. And it was just such a warm expression of the kind of person he is. The fact that he called told me a number of things about him, but it also said something about our relationship. Why would he call a member of the United States Congress who had been shot when he’s the prime minister of Israel?
“You know why? Because our countries love each other. Our countries care about each other. This is a relationship that’s built on this kind of love and respect for what we do. What you do is so important to maintaining it. Let’s continue to do this great work to stand up for the Jewish State of Israel.”
Yes, OK, he earned the red beret…