Mourning turns to cheers

Tucson says farewell to youngest shooting victim
By Brad Poole and Tim Gaynor TUCSON, Arizona | Thu Jan 13, 2011 8:38pm EST TUCSON, Arizona (Reuters) - Hundreds of people gathered to say farewell on Thursday to a bright 9-year-old who loved to dance and play Baseball, but was gunned down when she went to learn about politics from her congresswoman. Christina Green was the youngest Victim of a Shooting Spree last Saturday that claimed six lives and left Rep. Gabrielle Giffords battling for her life. Her Funeral was the first to be held. Hund...

Obama in Arizona
A little girl was buried Thursday in Tucson, Ariz. Christina Taylor Green was 9. She was an A Student, a member of her student council, born on Sept. 11, 2001, and, as a result, interested in American politics. "She saw public service as something exciting and hopeful," President Barack Obama said at a memorial service Wednesday night. "She saw all this through the eyes of a child, undimmed by the cynicism or vitriol that we adults all too often just take for granted." The ...

Thousands gather for the funeral of girl born on 9/11
They laid Christina Green to rest in front of a crowd of thousands, and beneath an American Flag that was recovered from the ruins of the World Trade Centre shortly after 11 September 2001, the day she was born. A coffin holding the body of the nine-year-old girl, the youngest of the six Victims of Saturday's shooting and the first to have a Funeral, was met by her family outside a Catholic Church in Tucson early yesterday afternoon. Also present at the service was Mark Kelley, the US astrona...

Media meme o the day: Obamas speech was much more presidential than Palins
This is a useful way to wrap up (hopefully) the coverage of Our National Conversation On Rhetoric as it’s a stark example of how easily the Propaganda about Palin’s culpability in the shootings was accepted as a political fact of life. There are two ways a reporter could address yesterday’s oratorical bookends by her and Obama. One: “Hey, isn’t it insane that Palin had to give this Speech? People don’t normally have to point out that they’re not respon...

A 9-year-old's death hits home for Obama
WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama is not known for showing a surplus of emotion in public, but toward the end of his Speech at the University of Arizona on Wednesday night, he paused for 50 seconds and appeared to gather himself. The audience was on its feet. Obama had just laid down a stark and powerful gauntlet, challenging the country to live up to the expectations of 9-year-old Christina Taylor Green, whose death Saturday was an emotional punch to the gut for so many people across the co...

Obama urges nation to honor youngest Ariz. victim
(01-13) 03:50 PST Tucson, Ariz. (AP) -- President Obama exhorted Americans to refrain from partisan bickering and urged the country to embrace the idealistic vision of Democracy held by 9-year-old Christina Taylor Green, the youngest Arizona Shooting Victim and an aspiring politician who is set to be buried Thursday in the first of half-a-dozen Funerals. Speaking to an arena audience of about 14,000 and even more in a nearby football stadium and at homes across the country, Obama drew on theme...

Text of Obama's Tucson memorial service speech
To the families of those we've lost; to all who called them friends; to the Students of this university, the public servants who are gathered here, the people of Tucson and the people of Arizona: I have come here tonight as an American who, like all Americans, kneels to pray with you today and will stand by you tomorrow. There is nothing I can say that will fill the sudden hole torn in your hearts. But know this: The hopes of a nation are here tonight. We mourn with you for the fallen. We join y...

Obama's remarks at Tucson memorial
TUCSON, Jan. 13 (UPI) -- The following are U.S. President Barack Obama's remarks at the memorial rally for Victims of Saturday's Tucson shooting: THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you very much. Please, please be seated. (Applause.) To the families of those we've lost; to all who called them friends; to the Students of this university, the public servants who are gathered here, the people of Tucson and the people of Arizona: I have come here tonight as an American who, like all Americ...

President Challenges Nation
In a moving tribute to the Victims of last Saturday's violence, President Barack Obama challenged Americans to live up to the "expectations of our Children". Using 9-year old Christina Taylor Green's untimely death as an inspiration, Obama bemoaned, "I want to live up to her expectations." The president's 34-minute Speech was delivered to a crowd of nearly 14,000 people at the University of Arizona's McKale Memorial Center. They had gathered for a memorial service dedicated to those who lost the...

Text of Obama's Tucson memorial service speech
Text of President Barack Obama's remarks at the memorial service for the Victims of the shooting in Tucson, Ariz., as released by the White House: To the families of those we've lost; to all who called them friends; to the Students of this university, the public servants who are gathered here, the people of Tucson and the people of Arizona: I have come here tonight as an American who, like all Americans, kneels to pray with you today and will stand by you tomorrow. There is nothing I can say th...

Obama: 'We Mourn With You ... We Join You In Your Grief'
President Obama delivered an emotional address at a memorial service tonight to honor the 19 people shot, including Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ), in Tucson last Saturday. "There is nothing I can say that will fill the sudden hole torn in your hearts. But know this: the hopes of a nation are here tonight. We mourn with you for the fallen. We join you in your grief. And we add our faith to yours that Representative Gabrielle Giffords and the other living Victims of this tragedy pull through," ...

Major milestone: U.S. Rep. Giffords moves arms, legs
TUCSON, Ariz. -- U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords is opening both eyes, moving both legs and arms and is responding to friends and family. Her doctors call it a "major milestone" in her recovery. "We're hoping that she crosses through many more," said her neurosurgeon, Dr. Michael Lemole. Her remarkable recovery five days after being shot through the head has provided a much-needed dose of jubilation after a tragic week that left the nation in mourning. Giffords and 18 others were shot Saturday ...

The President's remarks at the Memorial Service for Victims of the Arizona Shooting
THE White House Office of the Press Secretary ___________________________________________________ January 12, 2011 Remarks of President Barack Obama At a Memorial Service for the Victims of the Shooting in Tucson, Arizona University of Arizona, McKale Memorial Center Tucson, Arizona January 12, 2011 THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you very much. Please, please be seated. (Applause.) To the families of those we've lost; to all who called them friends; to the Students of th...

President Obama speaks in Tucson
Here is the video and full text of President Obama’s Speech Wednesday night in Tucson, Ariz. to memorialize the Victims of Saturday’s shootings: THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you very much. Please, please be seated. (Applause.) To the families of those we’ve lost; to all who called them friends; to the Students of this university, the public servants who are gathered here, the people of Tucson and the people of Arizona: I have come here tonight as an American who,...

“What is Best in America”
The President spoke, yesterday, at a memorial for the Victims of the Arizona shooting. Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you very much. Please, please be seated. (Applause.) To the families of those we’ve lost; to all who called them friends; to the Students of this university, the public servants who are gathered here, the people of Tucson and the people of Arizona: I have come here tonight as an American who, like all Americans, kneels to pray with you today and will stand by you tomorrow. (A...

NASA names backup for wounded Giffords' husband
TUCSON, Arizona (Reuters) - NASA on Thursday named a backup commander for the last scheduled Space Shuttle mission as a possible substitute for Mark Kelly, the Astronaut-husband of the Arizona congresswoman wounded in a shooting rampage last weekend. Rick Sturckow will train as backup commander for the Space Shuttle Endeavor, which is due to make its final launch on April 19 from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, though Kelly remains designated mission command for the time being, NASA sai...

Former Classmate Of Rep. Giffords Shares Personal Memories
Since last weekend’s deadly shooting in Arizona that claimed six lives, and left 14 wounded - including a vibrant, young Congresswoman - people have been trying to understand how something so heinous, so senseless could happen. It appeared that Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was specifically targeted by the gunman, prompting some to surmise the attack was politically motivated. That touched off a national debate about the tenor of Rhetoric in this country and whether it has ...

Michelle Obama's Advice to Parents in Wake of Tucson Shooting
First Lady Michelle Obama is offering advice to parents who are struggling to help their Children understand the horrific Tucson massacre that killed six and wounded 14, including Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) Mrs. Obama accompanied President Obama to the Tucson memorial service for the Victims Wednesday at the University of Arizona, sitting next to Mark Kelly, the NASA Astronaut who is Giffords' husband. Her main advice: use the tragedy to teach kids about faith, compassion, hope and commun...

Quote Of The Day - Trent Humphries
"It’s political gamesmanship. The real case is that she [Giffords] had no security whatsoever at this event. So if she lived under a constant fear of being targeted, if she lived under this constant fear of this Rhetoric and hatred that was seething, why would she attend an event in full view of the public with no security whatsoever?" - Tucson Tea Party founder Trent Humphries, blaming Rep. Gabrielle Giffords for her own shooting. Labels: Arizona, assholery, Gabrielle Giffords, Tea Party, T...

Tucson says farewell to youngest shooting victim
By Brad Poole and Tim Gaynor TUCSON, Arizona | Thu Jan 13, 2011 8:38pm EST TUCSON, Arizona (Reuters) - Hundreds of people gathered to say farewell on Thursday to a bright 9-year-old who loved to dance and play Baseball, but was gunned down when she went to learn about politics from her congresswoman. Christina Green was the youngest Victim of a Shooting Spree last Saturday that claimed six lives and left Rep. Gabrielle Giffords battling for her life. Her Funeral was the first to be held. Hund...

A Memorial in Arizona
One of the best things about the memorial service, at the University of Arizona, for the Victims of the Tucson shooting, was an aspect that also threw some people: the cheering. There was a lot of it. But it was hard, most of the time, to tell just who it was for: Daniel Hernandez, the intern who helped keep Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords alive, got the greatest applause when he deflected the praise to other people. During Obama’s Speech, it may have been when he said that today, for the...

He spoke like a President: Obama addresses a grieving Nation
On January 12, 2011 at a memorial service that was held at the University of Arizona’s McKale memorial center, President Barack Obama addressed a crowd of over 15,000 that came to pay tribute to 19 Americans whose lives were tragically altered by an apparent mad man.  Of the 19 that were shot that fateful Saturday morning, 6 were killed. The senseless violence that occurred in front of a Safeway Supermarket in Tucson, Arizona at the hands of a deranged gunman has since sparked a bitte...

Obama Urges Nation to Honor Youngest Arizona Victim
Thursday, January 13, 2011 By Gillian Flaccus and Julie Pace, Associated Press President Barack Obama speaks at a memorial service for the Victims of the Tucson shootings at McKale Center on the University of Arizona campus Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2011, in Tucson, Ariz. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Tucson, Ariz. (AP) - President Obama exhorted Americans to refrain from partisan bickering and urged the country embrace the idealistic vision of Democracy held by 9-year-old Christina Taylor Green...

Obama urges nation to honor youngest Ariz. victim (AP)
TUCSON, Ariz. – President Obama exhorted Americans to refrain from partisan bickering and urged the country embrace the idealistic vision of Democracy held by 9-year-old Christina Taylor Green, the youngest Arizona Shooting Victim and an aspiring politician who is set to be buried Thursday in the first of half-a-dozen Funerals. Speaking to an arena audience of about 14,000 and even more in a nearby football stadium and at homes across the country, Obama drew on themes of unity, patriotis...

Obama calls for unity, humility at Tucson memorial (The Christian Science Monitor)
Washington – Speaking at a memorial service at the University of Arizona in Tucson, President Obama honored the Victims of last weekend’s shooting rampage in that city, sharing thoughts about those who had died and lauding the heroic behavior displayed during and after the attack. Mr. Obama also spoke of the ideal of representative Democracy; Saturday’s shooting had taken place at a meet-and-greet for constituents - called “Congress on your Corner’’