Post by lmtengs on Jan 8, 2011 17:57:01 GMT -8
Gabrielle Giffords, an American congresswoman, was shot today in a gun rampage in Arizona:
www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-12143774
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-congresswoman-shot-in-gun-rampage-2179839.html
www.calgaryherald.com/news/congresswoman+shot+rampage+that+leaves+dead/4081152/story.html?cid=megadrop_story
And an update, from the G&M:
www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/americas/second-male-sought-in-connection-with-tucson-shooting-sheriff/article1862797/
The Vancouver Sun's take on the events:
www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-12143774
www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-congresswoman-shot-in-gun-rampage-2179839.html
www.calgaryherald.com/news/congresswoman+shot+rampage+that+leaves+dead/4081152/story.html?cid=megadrop_story
And an update, from the G&M:
www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/americas/second-male-sought-in-connection-with-tucson-shooting-sheriff/article1862797/
The Vancouver Sun's take on the events:
Gabrielle Giffords fights for life after being shot in rampage that leaves six dead
WASHINGTON — Gabrielle Giffords, a Democratic congresswoman from Arizona, was gravely wounded during a shooting rampage Saturday that left six others dead during a public meeting in Tucson.
Giffords was shot in the head by an assailant who opened fire with a handgun on a crowd gathered at a local Safeway supermarket for the lawmaker’s “Congress on Your Corner” town hall meeting.
As many as 18 people were shot in the rampage, according to local law-enforcement officials. John Roll, a U.S. federal judge, and a nine-year-old child were among the dead.
Giffords, 40, was airlifted to a trauma unit at the University Medical Center in Tucson, where she underwent surgery and remained in critical condition late Saturday.
“At the current time I am very optimistic about her recovery,” Dr. Peter Rhee, a hospital surgeon, told a news conference.
A single bullet fired at close range went “through and through” Giffords’ brain. The doctor was hopeful Giffords would survive, he said, because the lawmaker was “following commands.”
Police have arrested a 22-year-old man, Jared Loughner, in connection with the shooting. There was no immediate information from police about a possible motive for the shooting.
In a YouTube video attributed to a Jared Loughner, a writer says in a script that he “can’t trust the current government” because it is “implying mind control and brainwash on the people by controlling grammar.”
The video script adds: “No, I won’t pay debt with a currency that’s not backed by gold and silver! No, I won’t trust in God.”
Of the 10 shooting victims taken to hospital, five were in critical condition.
U.S. President Barack Obama called the shooting an "unspeakable tragedy" and said he had dispatched FBI director Robert Mueller to Arizona to work with local authorities on the criminal investigation.
"We do not yet have all the answers. What we do know is that such a senseless and terrible act of violence has no place in a free society,” Obama said.
“Those who have been injured, we are rooting for them. I know Gabby is as tough as they come and I am hopeful she is going to pull through.”
Republican John Boehner, the new Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, released a statement saying he was “horrified” by news of the attack on Giffords.
“Acts and threats of violence against public officials have no place in our society,” Boehner said.
“This is a sad day for our country.”
The attack on Giffords came just days after she was sworn into office for her third term representing Arizona’s 8th District in the U.S. House of Representatives.
A member of the Democrats’ centrist “Blue Dog” caucus, Giffords was first elected in 2006. She was re-elected in 2008 and again in the November midterm elections. She described herself in a recent interview as a “former Republican.”
On Thursday, Giffords was among the members of Congress who participated in a reading of the U.S. Constitution on the floor of the House. She read from the First Amendment, which guarantees free speech and the right of Americans to “peaceably” assemble.
Giffords’ re-election in November came after a tumultuous two years in which she fought difficult political battles over illegal immigration and health-care legislation.
In particular, Giffords had been targeted for defeat by Republicans because of her vote last March in favour of Obama’s $940-billion health-care reform bill.
Her Arizona office was vandalized, its front door smashed, after passage of the health-care bill. The incident prompted Republican and Democratic congressional leaders to express concerns about the tone of the rhetoric around the legislation.
At the time, Giffords’ spokesman said it appeared someone either shot at the door or smashed it with another object. “We think a pellet gun was fired at the door. We’re not sure,” C.J. Karamargin told a local television station.
Giffords was also one of 20 members of Congress who was included in a controversial online posting by former Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin following the health-care vote.
On her political action committee website, Palin posted a crosshairs target over Giffords’ congressional district and listed her as a lawmaker to defeat in the midterm elections.
On Saturday, Palin offered her condolences to Giffords’ family in a message posted on her Facebook site.
“My sincere condolences are offered to the family of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and the other victims of today’s tragic shooting in Arizona.
“On behalf of Todd and my family, we all pray for the victims and their families, and for peace and justice.”
In the wake of Giffords’ shooting — and with scant information on the motives for the violence — Palin’s “crosshairs” posting became a source of heated debate between liberals and conservatives on social media sites such as Twitter.
In the summer of 2009, one of Giffords’ staff members reported that a gun had been left at another town hall meeting hosted by the congresswoman.
Giffords had been in the midst of one of her regular “Congress on Your Corner” meetings on Saturday morning when the gunman ran up and began shooting, according to Tucson media.
“I heard about 15 to 20 gunshots in the parking lot,” Jason Pekau, who came on the scene just moments after the shooting, told CNN.
“I saw them take her away on the stretcher. She was moving . . . I saw a lot of people leaving on stretchers.”
Giffords has been considered a rising star in the Democratic party. At the age of 30, she became the youngest woman in history to be elected to the Arizona Senate. She became the state’s first Jewish congresswoman following her election to Congress in 2006.
She is married to astronaut Mark Kelly, a space shuttle mission veteran.
© Copyright (c) Postmedia News
Read more: www.canada.com/news/Gabrielle+Giffords+fights+life+after+being+shot+rampage+that+leaves+dead/4080788/story.html#ixzz1AV0KVTkD
WASHINGTON — Gabrielle Giffords, a Democratic congresswoman from Arizona, was gravely wounded during a shooting rampage Saturday that left six others dead during a public meeting in Tucson.
Giffords was shot in the head by an assailant who opened fire with a handgun on a crowd gathered at a local Safeway supermarket for the lawmaker’s “Congress on Your Corner” town hall meeting.
As many as 18 people were shot in the rampage, according to local law-enforcement officials. John Roll, a U.S. federal judge, and a nine-year-old child were among the dead.
Giffords, 40, was airlifted to a trauma unit at the University Medical Center in Tucson, where she underwent surgery and remained in critical condition late Saturday.
“At the current time I am very optimistic about her recovery,” Dr. Peter Rhee, a hospital surgeon, told a news conference.
A single bullet fired at close range went “through and through” Giffords’ brain. The doctor was hopeful Giffords would survive, he said, because the lawmaker was “following commands.”
Police have arrested a 22-year-old man, Jared Loughner, in connection with the shooting. There was no immediate information from police about a possible motive for the shooting.
In a YouTube video attributed to a Jared Loughner, a writer says in a script that he “can’t trust the current government” because it is “implying mind control and brainwash on the people by controlling grammar.”
The video script adds: “No, I won’t pay debt with a currency that’s not backed by gold and silver! No, I won’t trust in God.”
Of the 10 shooting victims taken to hospital, five were in critical condition.
U.S. President Barack Obama called the shooting an "unspeakable tragedy" and said he had dispatched FBI director Robert Mueller to Arizona to work with local authorities on the criminal investigation.
"We do not yet have all the answers. What we do know is that such a senseless and terrible act of violence has no place in a free society,” Obama said.
“Those who have been injured, we are rooting for them. I know Gabby is as tough as they come and I am hopeful she is going to pull through.”
Republican John Boehner, the new Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, released a statement saying he was “horrified” by news of the attack on Giffords.
“Acts and threats of violence against public officials have no place in our society,” Boehner said.
“This is a sad day for our country.”
The attack on Giffords came just days after she was sworn into office for her third term representing Arizona’s 8th District in the U.S. House of Representatives.
A member of the Democrats’ centrist “Blue Dog” caucus, Giffords was first elected in 2006. She was re-elected in 2008 and again in the November midterm elections. She described herself in a recent interview as a “former Republican.”
On Thursday, Giffords was among the members of Congress who participated in a reading of the U.S. Constitution on the floor of the House. She read from the First Amendment, which guarantees free speech and the right of Americans to “peaceably” assemble.
Giffords’ re-election in November came after a tumultuous two years in which she fought difficult political battles over illegal immigration and health-care legislation.
In particular, Giffords had been targeted for defeat by Republicans because of her vote last March in favour of Obama’s $940-billion health-care reform bill.
Her Arizona office was vandalized, its front door smashed, after passage of the health-care bill. The incident prompted Republican and Democratic congressional leaders to express concerns about the tone of the rhetoric around the legislation.
At the time, Giffords’ spokesman said it appeared someone either shot at the door or smashed it with another object. “We think a pellet gun was fired at the door. We’re not sure,” C.J. Karamargin told a local television station.
Giffords was also one of 20 members of Congress who was included in a controversial online posting by former Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin following the health-care vote.
On her political action committee website, Palin posted a crosshairs target over Giffords’ congressional district and listed her as a lawmaker to defeat in the midterm elections.
On Saturday, Palin offered her condolences to Giffords’ family in a message posted on her Facebook site.
“My sincere condolences are offered to the family of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and the other victims of today’s tragic shooting in Arizona.
“On behalf of Todd and my family, we all pray for the victims and their families, and for peace and justice.”
In the wake of Giffords’ shooting — and with scant information on the motives for the violence — Palin’s “crosshairs” posting became a source of heated debate between liberals and conservatives on social media sites such as Twitter.
In the summer of 2009, one of Giffords’ staff members reported that a gun had been left at another town hall meeting hosted by the congresswoman.
Giffords had been in the midst of one of her regular “Congress on Your Corner” meetings on Saturday morning when the gunman ran up and began shooting, according to Tucson media.
“I heard about 15 to 20 gunshots in the parking lot,” Jason Pekau, who came on the scene just moments after the shooting, told CNN.
“I saw them take her away on the stretcher. She was moving . . . I saw a lot of people leaving on stretchers.”
Giffords has been considered a rising star in the Democratic party. At the age of 30, she became the youngest woman in history to be elected to the Arizona Senate. She became the state’s first Jewish congresswoman following her election to Congress in 2006.
She is married to astronaut Mark Kelly, a space shuttle mission veteran.
© Copyright (c) Postmedia News
Read more: www.canada.com/news/Gabrielle+Giffords+fights+life+after+being+shot+rampage+that+leaves+dead/4080788/story.html#ixzz1AV0KVTkD