Assassination Attempt on Arizona Democrat

During the healthcare debate last year, security for President Obama had to be beefed up and I wrote then that how tragic it would be if our President was assassinated because he wanted to bring affordable healthcare to the nation. During that time, many Democratic congresspeople had their offices vandalized and were subjected to threats. There was a rash of arrests of people who had threatened both Democrats and Republicans. Commentators worried about whether the heated rhetoric, particularly coming from the Right would lead to real violence.

Unfortunately today,Three-term congresswomen Gabrielle Giffords was shot in the head at point-blank range at one of her "Congress at Your Corner" gatherings. Initial reports claim anywhere from 12-15 people had been shoot and fatalities were listed as 6. Declared dead earlier in the day,hospital officials later clarified that Congresswoman Giffords underwent surgery and it looked like she would make it.

Obscured in the flood of news was the death of federal Judge Roll. Judge Roll had spent several months last year under the protective custody of the U.S. Marshalls because continuous deaths threats had been made against him by people angered because he allowed immigrants to sue an Arizonan rancher. He had only recently been allowed to resume his normal life.

Eyewitnesses have reported that teabaggers have been following Congresswomen Giffords around at her small gatherings for some time. One constituent reported that at one of them he was alarmed when a man about 65 showed up carrying a gun and then while bendingover, it fell out of holster. The man was concerned that some of the small children around would be shot by accident. In today's shooting, there was one 10-year old boy gravely wounded.

The 40-year old congresswoman had been fairly courageous when she has received death threats before. The night when she cast her vote for the healthcare reform the door to her Arizona office was either smashed or shot out. She quipped that "Afterall I'm the congresswoman from the home of the O.K. Corral and Tombstone,the town that wouldn't die."

Giffords had commented on Sarah Palin putting her in the "cross-hairs" at TakeBackThe20.com, which targeted twenty Democrats in swing districts. Today, Sarah Palin was removing all such references on her website. She immediately sent out a letter saying that She and her family condemned the act and were praying for the Congresswoman's recovery. Her facebook page was flooded by thousands of commenters blaming her for the attack.

Even Judson Phillips, the head of the Tea Party, sent out a press statement condemning the assassination attempt but with the ungracious note that liberals will blame the Tea party anyway. The congresswoman had previously been on national television reporting that she constantly received e-mail and phone threats.

Well, indeed, as Gabrielle's father Spencer went to the hospital, he was asked whether his daughter had any enemies. "The whole Teaparty" was his response.

During the last campaign, Gabrielle was in a very hotly contested race with a former Marine. Her opponent held a rally where you could pay to shoot a fully-loaded M16 at Gabrielle on a target.

One Iraqi veteran posted on the internet the conversation he overheard at the local Arizona Costco when he heard his congresswoman had been assassinated. He quoted one customer as saying "Well,that's to be expected when you're so liberal." Another woman said, "Oh, now we can appoint a Republican." The man asked,"What country am I fighting for?"

The Free Republic had a few posters who said, "This is what she asked for. She voted to kill her family by voting for Obamacare. She's a Nazi." It so happens she's the first Jewish member of Congress from Arizona. Goldwater doesn't count.

Gabrielle Giffords is the only member of Congress who is marrried to a serving military officer, a navy pilot who is now an astronaut Mark Kelly. Her husband is scheduled to be the commander of the last Shuttle Flight. It was planned that he would be in Space at the same time as his identical twin, which would have produced another Space first.

Both Republican and Democratic leaders in both the Senate and House condemned the attack. President Obama earlier in the day issued a statement saying that his unspeakable tragedy has no place in America and said he was praying for all the victims. Her Arizona colleague Mark Heinz , a Democratic congressman, openly wept on the local television station. No word has been heard at this hour from John McCain.

Whether it is one single gunman or a few, what they don't quite realize is that this is a federal issue. A federal officer--a Congressperson was deliberately shot at--and a federal judge was killed. Also, at least one of her congressional staffers was killed, maybe more. They can expect a relentless search and investigation. As of mid-afternoon eastern time, a white male in his mid-20s, clean shaven with short hair, had been apprehended. However, the FBI had announced they were searching for more accomplices.

An eyewitness said that the man stepped up behind Congresswoman Giffords at this event and fire at her head from a foot away. He then shot off 25 rounds.

As a politician, she seemed to represent an energetic younger generation, which was not ideological and was focused on serving her constituency. Fox News wanted to emphasize that she disapproved of the President and other liberal Democrats, having voted against Nancy Pelosi for her leadership position. Well, not so fast, she voted for civil rights hero John Lewis as a symbolic measure, she voted for healthcare, to aise the minimum wage,voted to take subsidies from the oil companies for solar, and pushed to get greater funding for border security. She is generally thought to be a Blue Dog Democrat but I don't see her bucking the party so much when she voted for all Obama's major initiatives.

Unlike the various Glenn Beck assassins who shot cops and attempted to kill persons in liberal think-tanks,this is a real Big Deal.Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords may seem left-wing to today's conservatives in Arizona but not to anyone else. She actively serves on the Armed Forces Committee. Arizona should expect to feel the heat of alot of federales swarming around.

Hopefully,Congresswoman Giffords recovers in a way she remains a capable human being.

This is what happens when you cry for "Second Amendment Solutions" to political differences.