Shootings a 'new normal' for Hill-aide-turned-YouTube-employee

His former boss, Republican Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona, survived a mass shooting at a congressional baseball practice last June that left House Majority Whip Steve Scalise gravely wounded and several others with injuries, including two Capitol Hill police officers.

Months later in October, his sister was at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival in Las Vegas where a gunman mowed down dozens and injured hundreds from his hotel room windows with firearms altered to fire at a rapid pace.

Neither Samuels' sister nor Flake were injured in either of the shootings that captured the nation's attention and sparked debates over gun laws and security for lawmakers.

Samuels, himself, was in Mountain View, California, for his last day of training for his communications job as national news outlets turned to wall-to-wall coverage of an active shooter situation at YouTube's headquarters in San Bruno, California.

Samuels tweeted Tuesday evening, "The feeling that this is somehow the new normal is just heartbreaking."

"In June my boss was shot at in #Alexandria. In November my sister was shot at in #LasVegas. Today my new coworkers were shot at in #SanBruno. And I'm sure there are others with similar stories. The feeling that this is somehow the new normal is just heartbreaking."

Flake, who's retiring from the Senate at the end of his term, later re-tweeted Samuels' tweet. The senator is among some Republicans who've called for gun control measures to address gun violence after the Parkland, Florida, high school shooting in February.

Flake's been working with Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California on a bipartisan bill that would raise the age requirement to purchase rifles and shotguns from 18 to 21, the same age minimum as for handguns.