Former Alexandria mayor says he talked daily with alleged shooter James Hodgkinson

Almost every day for the last month and a half, former Alexandria Mayor Bill Euille and alleged congressional baseball shooter James Hodgkinson chatted when they bumped into each other at the local YMCA. Euille, a Democrat and the city's first black mayor, told The Washington Post that Hodgkinson was usually there when he went for his morning workout. "After the first or second week, he asked about good places to eat ... within walking distance. A long weekend was coming up, and he asked what was going on in town. ... That was the type of conversation we had," Euille said.

Euille said they never talked politics, though he noted Hodgkinson "indicated he agreed with" Democrats when news shows played in the gym's lobby. At one point, Euille, who works as a general contractor since he lost his re-election race last year, said that Hodgkinson asked him about available jobs. He tried to help out, but Hodgkinson said he didn't have a bachelor's degree.

Euille told the Post that Hodgkinson appeared to be "living out of the gym bag" and would "sit in the Y's lobby for hours and hours." "He was a very friendly person," Euille said. "But what I did notice about this gentleman is he'd open up his gym bag and in it, he had everything he owned."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Read more about Euille's daily talks with Hodgkinson at The Washington Post.