Arizona tragedy gives Congress a moment to pause

Arizona tragedy gives Congress a moment to pause
WASHINGTON—The shooting rampage in Arizona seems to have created a reset moment for confrontational politics, as lawmakers reflect on the repercussions of the overheated Rhetoric traded on the airwaves and on the Campaign Trail. Members of Congress from both parties called Sunday for civility over belligerence as the House temporarily shelved the contentious debate over repealing the Health Care law and lawmakers paused to contemplate the tragedy. Critically wounded Rep. Gabrielle Gifford...

Tea Party Express Fundraises Off Giffords Shooting: 'Tea Party Won't Be Silenced'
In an apparent effort to distance themselves from the Mass Shootings in Arizona over the weekend, the Tea Party Express sent out an email to supporters proclaiming that they "won't be silenced" -- and asking for contributions. Earlier today, TPE leader Sal Russo went on Fox News and lamented how "revolting and disgusting the left is for trying to associate the tea party with violence like this." This latest email emphasizes how "horrified" the TPE was to hear about the shootings, which includ...

Obama urges U.S. to pull together after Arizona shooting rampage
Steve Holland, Reuters · Monday, Jan. 10, 2011 WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama mourned Victims of an Arizona gunman on Monday and steered clear of a debate on whether harsh U.S. political Rhetoric inspired the attack on a U.S. congresswoman. Meanwhile in Arizona, Jared Lee Loughner, the suspect in Saturday's shooting made his first court appearance. As many members of his own Democratic Party decried the often rabid level of political discourse in the country, Mr. Obama said he is...

Fox News CEO Roger Ailes: Ive Told All Our Guys, Shut Up, Tone It Down
Fox News CEO Roger Ailes says he put the word out at Fox to “tone it down” and make arguments “intellectually” with less heated Rhetoric. “You don’t have to do it with bombast. I hope the other side does that.” But Ailes draws the line at any suggestion the passion of Fox News hosts had anything to do with the Shooting Spree in Arizona that left six dead and Rep. Gabrielle Giffords critically wounded: “That is just bullsh-,” he told Ru...

L.I. Rep. To Introduce Gun Legislation In House
Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (FILE-Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - Long Island Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, one of the strongest gun-control advocates on Capitol Hill, said she has been offered federal protection in the aftermath of Saturday’s shooting that left Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords fighting for her life. McCarthy said the FBI and Capitol Police asked her if she wanted body guards in light of shootings. The congresswoman said her first instinct was to reject it, ...

The Left's McCarthyism
Get alerts when there is a new article that might interest you. It would be merciful if, when tragedies such as Tucson's occur, there were a Moratorium on sociology. But respites from half-baked explanations, often serving political opportunism, are impossible because of a timeless human craving and a characteristic of many modern minds. The craving is for banishing randomness and the inexplicable from human experience. Time was, the gods were useful. What is thunder? The gods are angry. Polythe...

Barbara Walters: Unfair To Blame Sarah Palin As Some Are Doing
Not surprisingly the topic of conversation on today episode of The View was the tragic events of this weekend in Arizona that saw six innocent civilians killed and Rep. Gabrielle Giffords put into critical condition. Almost immediately after the news broke of this event, many on the left pointed to an image put fort by Sarah Palin’s PAC that included Controversial cross-hair imagery on a number of Congressional Districts in play (including Giffords’.) Today Barbara Walters defended P...

Shooter's Motive Sparks Debate on Political Rhetoric
As more information is released about the man suspected to be behind the deadly shooting rampage that injured Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, many are blaming growing political anger for his actions. Online posts by suspect Jared Loughner, and accounts by former friends and classmates portray the young man as consumed with Conspiracy theories and obsessed with government control. Some liberals said the right's angry Rhetoric is partly to blame fore Loughner's behavior. But Family Research Cou...

Brewer sets aside fiery rhetoric
PHOENIX — Today Gov. Jan Brewer set aside her signature fiery Rhetoric that marked the 2010 campaign season, instead striking a somber tone during her Speech that commemorated the Victims of a shooting rampage in Tucson and marked the start of the new legislative session. “I had intended to deliver a State of the State address to you today — remarks that outline an exciting and solid plan for Job Creation, education, and Tax Reform … But, not now. Not today,” Bre...

Arizona gov. focuses on Saturday shooting in State of State
In a somber opening address of the new session of the Arizona legislature  Gov. Jan Brewer (R-Ariz.) said that the Saturday shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) was an assault on American Democracy. "Saturday's events were not just an attack on those individuals we loved and lost but an assault on our constitutional republic, on our democracy," Brewer said "Arizona is in pain. Yes, our grief is profound. We are yet in the first hours of our sorrows but we have not been brought down....

Fox News Prez Roger Ailes: I Told 'Our Guys' To 'Tone It Down'
Fox News President Roger Ailes -- who is no stranger to making incendiary comments -- recently told globalgrind.com's Russel Simmons that both the right and the left are wrong in their response to the Mass Shooting in Arizona. "This is just bullshit.  This goes on ... both sides are wrong, but they both do it," Ailes said on the media's using maps that target Congressional Districts in their coverage. Ailes cited the map former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) used that put targets over Democratic...

Obama: US grieving, shocked over Ariz. rampage
WASHINGTON—President Barack Obama said Monday the nation is still in shock over the shooting rampage in Arizona that left a Democratic congresswoman fighting for her life, but he commended the courage of the people on the scene who rushed to help, saying their actions reflect the "best of America." The president told reporters that Democratic Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and others injured on Saturday are still fighting to recover. He said he anticipated some type of national memorial that wou...

Tea Party Activist/VA Sen. Candidate Jamie Radtke on Arizona Tragedy: its really about needing to get our arms around mental hea
ABC News' Amy Walter reports: In the wake of Saturday’s tragic shootings in Tucson, Arizona there’s been an increased focus on the role that political Rhetoric and imagery may have played in encouraging such behavior. Virginia Republican Senate Candidate Jamie Radtke tells ABC’s Top Line , however,  that “instead of it being about the political part, it’s really about needing to get our arms around our Health Care, the Mental Health policy here.” Radtke, the

5 Strangest Explanations for Jared Loughner's Attack (The Atlantic Wire)
WASHINGTON, DC – There's no shortage of media speculation as to why Jared Loughner chose to attack Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. Commentators have suggested possible roles for overheated political Rhetoric, mental illness, and even Sarah Palin's Controversial "crosshairs" map. But some explanations have been less conventional. Here are the five most unusual arguments so far about what led Loughner to his awful act. 'Did Pot Trigger Giffords Shooting?' That's the headline on a much-mocked rece...

Judy Clarke, Who Defended the 'Unabomber,' Will Represent Jared Lee Loughner
Judy Clarke, the attorney who represented "Unabomber" Theodore Kaczynski, will defend Jared Lee Loughner, the young man authorities say tried to fatally shoot Democratic Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. Loughner, 22, the College Dropout who went on a shooting rampage Saturday morning in Tuscon, Ariz., has been charged with five federal counts, including the attempted Assassination of a member of Congress. Additional charges are expected. The suspect has an experienced defender of high-profile criminals ...

Was the Tucson shooting a product of the Tea Party?
Georgians join the people of Arizona in condemning the senseless act of violence and mourning the Victims of the recent Tucson shooting.  Georgians also wonder what Jared Lee Loughner’s motive was.  Was he trying to make a political point or was he simply deranged? In the days since the shooting in Tucson, leftists have rushed to denounce the Murders as the result of radical right-wing Rhetoric.  Specifically, left-wing Bloggers on Politico.com cited a “Veteran Democra...

Michael B. Keegan: Denouncing Violent Rhetoric, the Sheriff Gets It Right
The massacre in Tucson on Saturday rightfully shook all of us -- regardless of our political leanings -- to the core. When faced with an Assassination attempt and a mass Murder, political affiliations don't and shouldn't matter. In the aftermath of the Shooting Spree that left six dead, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords critically injured, and 13 others wounded, Republicans and Democrats alike have stated clearly and repeatedly that violence has no place in our Democracy. Unfortunately, not all have bee...

Arizona tragedy gives Congress a moment to pause
WASHINGTON—The shooting rampage in Arizona seems to have created a reset moment for confrontational politics, as lawmakers reflect on the repercussions of the overheated Rhetoric traded on the airwaves and on the Campaign Trail. Members of Congress from both parties called Sunday for civility over belligerence as the House temporarily shelved the contentious debate over repealing the Health Care law and lawmakers paused to contemplate the tragedy. Critically wounded Rep. Gabrielle Gifford...

Arizona Tragedy Gives Congress a Moment to Pause
WASHINGTON — The shooting rampage in Arizona seems to have created a reset moment for confrontational politics, as lawmakers reflect on the repercussions of the overheated Rhetoric traded on the airwaves and on the Campaign Trail. Members of Congress from both parties called Sunday for civility over belligerence as the House temporarily shelved the contentious debate over repealing the Health Care law and lawmakers paused to contemplate the tragedy. Critically wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giff...

Arizona tragedy gives Congress a moment to pause
WASHINGTON — The shooting rampage in Arizona seems to have created a reset moment for confrontational politics, as lawmakers reflect on the repercussions of the overheated Rhetoric traded on the airwaves and on the Campaign Trail. Members of Congress from both parties called Sunday for civility over belligerence as the House temporarily shelved the contentious debate over repealing the Health Care law and lawmakers paused to contemplate the tragedy. Critically wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giff...

Arizona tragedy gives Congress a moment to pause
(01-09) 18:12 PST WASHINGTON, CA (AP) -- The shooting rampage in Arizona seems to have created a reset moment for confrontational politics, as lawmakers reflect on the repercussions of the overheated Rhetoric traded on the airwaves and on the Campaign Trail. Members of Congress from both parties called Sunday for civility over belligerence as the House temporarily shelved the contentious debate over repealing the Health Care law and lawmakers paused to contemplate the tragedy. Critically wound...

Democrats Scramble To Exploit the AZ Shooting With Anti-Gun And Anti-Speech Legislation
The nation is still reeling after the horrific Mass Shooting in Arizona this weekend, which left Rep. Gabrielle Giffords fighting for her life, multiple bystanders injured, and six dead, including a nine-year-old girl and a Federal Judge. People were clamoring for answers, and the left wasted no time blaming the tragedy on Sarah Palin and the Tea Party. Once the shooter was identified, it quickly became clear that Jared Lee Loughner was an anti-government, anti-religion nut with no discernible t...

Political opportunism never lets a crisis go to waste
I continue to be incredulous of the blatant political opportunism this shooting of Rep. Giffords has unleashed on the left. OK, not really. But in a way, it is the Paul Wellstone memorial all over again on a national level. First, all of this angst over political Rhetoric is so overwrought and overblown as to be laughable.  There has never been a time in the history of this land that the language hasn’t been rough or partisan.  Never.  Pretending this is the worst it has ever be...

Jim Wallis: An Attack on the Soul of the Nation
The shooting of Gabrielle Giffords, the young congresswoman from Arizona, must speak to the soul of this nation. The shooter raised his gun to her head, and then he kept shooting until 13 others were wounded and six people killed, including a District Court judge and a nine-year-old girl who was president of her Student council. Gabby, as everyone calls her, is one of the most beloved political leaders in the Congress and back in her home state of Arizona. Everyone likes her on both sides of t...

Congress Stands in Solidarity for Rep. Giffords
Members of Congress are still in shock over the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., this weekend. For some, the emotions were hard to restrain. "You know, by every indication that -- I'm sorry," said a shaken Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, D-Fla. "By every indication, the fighter that, that Gabby Giffords is, is showing full strength." Is political vitriol creating an unhealthy environment for the nation's lawmakers? Peter S. Sprigg, a senior fellow for policy studies at the Family R...