Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords shot at public event
A Democratic congresswoman from Arizona is out of surgery and in critical condition after being shot in the head at a public event, according to CNN.
Gabrielle Giffords, 40, was hosting a "Congress on your corner" meeting outside a Safeway store in northeastern Tucson when an assailant opened fire.
The Washington Post has reported that Giffords is expected to survive.
Six others were killed, including Arizona Federal Court Chief Judge John Roll. President Barack Obama called it an "unspeakable tragedy".
Giffords represents one of 20 House Democratic districts that Republican Sarah Palin's political action committee had in the sights of gun targets before the 2010 election.
Last year, Giffords was elected for a third term in Arizona's eighth district, which encompasses the southeastern part of the state. She defeated a candidate supported by the Tea Party.
In her last interview before being shot, Giffords called for members of Congress to cut their pay by five percent. She called the debt and deficit the "greatest national security threat" facing the United States.
Giffords is married to astronaut Mark Kelly, who has been expected to head up a mission to the International Space Mission.
Giffords sits on the armed services and science and technology committees in the House of Representatives.
Comments
2 Comments
Beth
Jan 8, 2011 at 1:11pm
Horrible. Let's see the repugnant Palin talk her way out of her crosshairs viciousness. CNN just said a 9-month-old baby was one of those who was killed in this tragedy, which makes it that much more tragic, if that's even possible. And for what? For WHAT?! Sickening.
Beth
M. Bizon
Jan 12, 2011 at 8:52pm
Disclaimer: I have no sympathy for the shooter. Killing a nine-year old child is beyond the pale. My sincere hope is that the gun toting lad will share a cell with an ill tempered Hell's Angel.
That being said, the whimpiness of the modern political elite never ceases to amaze me. The very congress critters who routinely cough up funding for various undeclared wars are surprised that one of them is being shot at?! Shouldn't they rather be surprised that they don't get shot at more often?
It really is a debatable feature of the democratic process that so called leaders order young soldiers to stop Afghan bullets with their chests, but shriek in panic as soon as one of their own class makes the acquaintance of a projectile.
Politicians remind me of schoolyard bullies: They are happy to boss everybody around. As soon as an intended victim hits back, the bully takes only nanoseconds to expose himself as a crybaby and promptly goes snitching to the headmaster.
You want to be leaders? You want to wield power? Well then. Remember Theodore Roosevelt who once gave a whole speech with a bullet in his chest.
There was a man.
Those who govern us nowadays are just bullies ... and crybabies.