The House Intelligence Committee has released a blistering report exposing what it calls a politically motivated cover-up by the FBI under former Acting Director Andrew McCabe in its investigation of the 2017 Republican Congressional Baseball practice shooting. The tragic event, which took place in Alexandria, Virginia, saw left-wing activist and Bernie Sanders supporter James Hodgkinson open fire on a group of Republican lawmakers practicing for the annual bipartisan charity game. Six people were injured, including House Majority Whip Rep. Steve Scalise, who was critically wounded and nearly lost his life.
According to the Committee’s findings, the FBI grossly mismanaged the investigation from the outset, failing to treat the attack for what it clearly was: a politically motivated act of domestic terrorism. Instead, the Bureau, under McCabe’s leadership, intentionally downplayed Hodgkinson’s extremist ideology and motivations, opting to label the incident as “suicide by cop”—a narrative that contradicted both the facts and common sense.
The report, built on a detailed 3,000-page FBI case file turned over by current FBI Director Kash Patel, outlines alarming failures by senior leadership and investigators. Not only did the FBI refrain from conducting thorough interviews with survivors and eyewitnesses—including multiple members of Congress—but they also failed to construct a timeline of events, neglected to review months of surveillance evidence gathered by Hodgkinson, and misclassified the case in what the Committee alleges was an attempt to bury political motivations.
The Committee highlights that within just one week of the shooting, the FBI prematurely issued a public statement declaring there was “no nexus to terrorism.” This, the Committee argues, was a deliberate effort to distort public understanding of the event, driven by partisan politics rather than objective law enforcement. At the time, Hodgkinson was known to have expressed vehement hatred toward Republicans, shared violent rhetoric on social media, and even possessed a kill list with the names and physical descriptions of conservative members of Congress.
Handwritten notes recovered by the FBI—containing anti-Trump rants, detailed surveillance sketches of the baseball field, and targeting information—were ignored or omitted from public briefings. Photos and writings further supported the case for premeditated political violence, yet the Bureau allegedly disregarded this evidence in favor of an ideologically convenient narrative that aligned with Democratic talking points and avoided highlighting left-wing extremism.
The Committee slammed the Bureau for what it called “cherry-picking” facts to support its pre-determined conclusions, a pattern the report suggests has emerged in other high-profile cases, particularly those involving conservative or Trump-aligned individuals. The same FBI that aggressively pursued January 6 protesters—often labeling them domestic terrorists before trials even began—was hesitant to call Hodgkinson’s politically motivated assassination attempt what it truly was.
In 2021, amid growing pressure over transparency and consistency, the FBI quietly reversed course and updated Hodgkinson’s classification to “domestic violent extremist.” But this quiet revision—made four years after the attack—was seen by the Committee as too little, too late. The Bureau had already shaped public perception and undermined trust in its investigative integrity. This change only occurred after public outcry over the Bureau’s double standards and as congressional Republicans pressed for answers.
The report also exposes the intelligence community’s role in supporting the flawed narrative. It suggests that senior officials may have actively contributed to misleading the public and suppressing evidence, raising serious concerns about political bias at the highest levels of America’s law enforcement and intelligence agencies.
One particularly damning revelation is the FBI’s claim that Hodgkinson had only mentioned his trip to D.C. in passing, despite the fact that five separate family members gave the Bureau far more detailed accounts. The report reveals that these interviews were either ignored or selectively reported to support the “suicide by cop” theory—despite the absence of uniformed police at the scene and overwhelming evidence to the contrary.
The Committee draws a powerful comparison, stating that “terrorism” and “suicide by cop” are not mutually exclusive—just as the 9/11 hijackers committed an act of mass terrorism while knowingly facing certain death. This analogy underscores the Committee’s assertion that the FBI’s logic in 2017 was not only flawed but intentionally deceptive.
To begin restoring accountability, the Committee recommends a full internal review led by Director Kash Patel to determine how and why the Bureau arrived at its original conclusion. Key questions include whether the “suicide by cop” designation originated from McCabe himself or resulted from a systemic breakdown in FBI objectivity.
The report also calls for serious legislative action. One proposed measure would establish criminal penalties for politicizing intelligence assessments, a move aimed at restoring public confidence in federal law enforcement and ensuring that future investigations are not influenced by ideological agendas. Members of the Committee argue that the weaponization of the FBI must be addressed head-on if the agency is to regain credibility.
This latest revelation adds to a growing list of FBI scandals that have surfaced in recent years—from the Russia collusion hoax to the mishandling of the Hunter Biden laptop and the targeting of conservative parents at school board meetings. The Committee’s report paints a disturbing picture of an agency that has strayed far from its mission of impartial justice and become, in many instances, an instrument of political enforcement under Democrat-aligned leadership.
As this case gains renewed national attention, many Republicans are pointing to it as proof of why deep reforms—and possibly major personnel overhauls—are needed at the Bureau. With President Trump vowing to “clean house” if re-elected, the Committee’s findings may serve as further justification for conservative voters who believe that federal law enforcement must be depoliticized and brought back under the control of the American people.
The House Intelligence Committee has vowed to continue its investigations and hold all responsible parties accountable, with more hearings and oversight actions expected in the coming months. For many, the 2017 shooting wasn’t just an act of political violence—it was a litmus test for how seriously the FBI takes threats against elected officials, and whether justice applies equally to all Americans, regardless of political affiliation.
