Political cartoons exploit Arizona tragedy in effort to score crude political points

What President Obama should say (#obamashouldsay)
President Obama is scheduled to speak in Arizona Wednesday evening. The Speech will come four days after a gunman, identified by police as Jared Lee Loughner, killed six people and wounded 14 during a shooting rampage in front of a Tucson Supermarket. Among the dead: a nine-year old girl who aspired to enter politics and a Federal Judge. Among the wounded: Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), the apparent target. Analysts and commentators around the web are giving the president advice regarding wh...

Jon Stewart of The Daily Show Doesnt Blame Toxic Political Discourse For Arizona Jared Loughner Shooting Massacre
The Democrats might want to learn some thing from The Daily Shows, Jon Stewart. As reported at Mediaite , Jon Stewart appears to be the voice of reason as Democrats try and play party politics with the terrible events of the Tucson, AZ shooting massacre at the hands of crazed gunman Jared Loughner. Instead of doing his usual satirical dialogue, Stewart addressed his audience and discussed the henious actions of a gunman who killed six, wounded many and left US Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in criti...

King, Bloomberg Team Up to Call for New Gun Control Law
Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Rep. Pete King, one of the few pro-gun control Republicans in the House of Representatives, today introduced new Legislation that would make it illegal to bring a gun within 1,000 feet of a government official. Bloomberg, a staunch Gun Control advocate, and Rep. King appeared together at a Press Conference in New York City just days after a gunman killed six people and wounded Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords during a political event in Tuscon. More than a dozen people...

Arizona Shootings: The Culture of Guns
New York Times columnist David Brooks chided the media for making the "extremely murky" link between political Rhetoric and actual violence. Jon Stewart says "you don't know what a troubled mind will get caught on." And conservative radio talk hosts have characterized Jared Lee Loughner as an isolated case, while their liberal critics are seizing on the tragedy for political gain. In all of the passionate takes on what led to the tragedy, up to now relatively little atten...

Kings Gun Ban Plan Wont Make You Safer
The Daily Caller is reporting that Rep. Peter King (R-NY) “will introduce Legislation to ban the carrying of any firearm within 1,000 feet of what he described as ‘high-profile government officials.’” Of course, such Legislation will do absolutely nothing to stop criminals and deranged psychotics, such as Murder suspect Jared Loughner, from getting and carrying guns to commit murder. Criminals and deranged psychotics, after all, by definition break the law. And they ob...

King to introduce gun-restriction legislation in response to Tucson shooting
Rep. Peter King, a Republican from New York, will introduce Legislation that will make it a federal crime to carry a firearm within 1,000 feet of federal officeholders and judges in response to the shooting in Tucson that killed Judge John Roll and gravely injured Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.  King, who chairs the Homeland Security committee in the House, will get support from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a longtime advocate for Gun Control (via The Daily Caller): Rep. Peter King, a Rep...

Blood Libel
The drumbeat of blaming Conservatives for causing the Tucson shooting seems that it will never cease.   No evidence has yet been presented that Jared Lee Loughner had ever heard of Sarah Palin or Rush Limbaugh, let alone was provoked by their words. Yet the rush to conclusions proceeds completely uninhibited by any evidentiary requirement.  It seems sufficient for some to presume that Conservatives = guns/violence, therefore, Conservatives are to blame for any violent attack using a firearm. ...

Sen. Manchin Wouldn't Run Gun Ad Again
Back in October, we highlighted then-Gov. Joe Manchin's NRA-sponsored campaign ad, in which he took his gun and shot a hole through piece of paper labeled "Cap and Trade Bill." The Charleston Gazette reports that, asked if he would put out a similar ad in light of the tragedy in Tucson, Manchin replied, "I can't say that we would, I really can't." The shot was a metaphor, Manchin said Monday, symbolizing his opposition to cap-and-trade and his determination to work hard to make the changes in Wa...

Boehner says he'll take cue from sergeant at arms on lawmaker security
Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) said Tuesday he takes his cues on member security from U.S. Capitol Police and sergeant at arms. "In general when it comes to the security of members, I'll rely on the sergeant at arms and the Capitol Hill Police and their recommendations to us," Boehner said. Asked if he would hold votes on gun-control measures, in response to the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), Boehner deflected. Following the four-minute pro forma House session, Boehner stopped t...

The AZ Shooter Has All The Ingredients Of A Tea Party Member
Jared Loughner may not have attended a Tea Party rally or registered with any Tea Party groups, but he shares several similarities with the Tea Party movement. The first obviously is his anger against the government. His violent act reflected the anger against government for Health Care, and Immigration symbolized by Sarah Palin’s placement of Rep. Gifford in the crosshairs of gun. While Loughner’s rants may seem like those of a madmen, so do most rants from Tea Party members. Severa...

We're Arizona shooting victims too, says Tea Party co-founder
Source: The Guardian A nine-year-old girl lies in the morgue. A member of Congress faces a lifetime of struggle to recover from a bullet in the brain. A city is bracing itself for a string of funerals as it tries to fathom the carnage. But Trent Humphries says there is another innocent Victim left by Jared Lee Loughner's killing of six people and wounding of 14 others in his Assassination attempt against Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. It is his Tea Party movement and, more particularly, his f...

Media Pivots to Blame Gun Laws
Yesterday evening I was on AC360 to discuss the Arizona Tragedy with David Gergen and Roland Martin. While I personally like Gergen, his knowledge of Arizona’s Gun Laws and invalid premises on conceal carry were a disservice to our discussion. He presupposes that Jared Lee Loughner was a CCW permit holder, and thus, right to carry failed, which, to all knowledge Loughner did not possess a permit, a violation of AZ law. You must login to comment. The Fox Nation is for those opposed to intol...

Christina Green: A Face of Hope
Video posted on YouTube of Neda Agha-Soltan, shot and killed during election Protests in Tehran on Saturday, June 20, 2009. (Credit: YouTube) Neda Agha-Soltan died of a gunshot wound to the chest on June 20, 2009, in the streets of Tehran during the Iranian election protests. Her violent death was graphically depicted in video and pictures, and she become a worldwide icon, representing the struggle of Iranian Dissidents to bring about changes in the country as the Incumbent President Mahmoud...

Craig Crawford: Little Big Stories
When Small People do things that create big stories we only confirm what they want. In their pitiful minds we make them a Big Deal. Their profile goes global. Their psychotic innermost thoughts become part of the national conversation. They become infamous. Which is all they want. It's unavoidable, but sad. And only encourages others. Instead of blaming partisan Rhetoric why not examine how the Arizona killer got a gun? There's no evidence that political hot Speech turned Jared Lee Loughner in...

Is Jared Lee Loughner linked to Tea Party, conservatives, or libertarians? (Gabrielle Giffords shooting)
Q. Is Jared Lee Loughner linked to the Tea Party, conservative, or Libertarian movements? A. At this time, there's no indication that Loughner was a member of any organized political movement. He was a registered independent who hadn't voted in 2010 (link). The DHS claim that he was linked to the white racial separatist group AmRen is false. Given what we know now, the chances of him being welcomed as a member of any group outside the far fringe is remote [1]. Given his history, the chances th...

Mitt Romneys poll numbers in Iowa low
In the wake of the shooting in Arizona this weekend that critically injured Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and that killed and injured more than 20 people, many pundits and politicians are pointing fingers. Others are hoping the incident will serve to ratchet down rancor. Yet emerging details make it clear the More… The remaining members of the Iowa Supreme Court have proven they are immoral and “open enemies of God” by choosing Mark Cady as Chief Justice, and thus, all deserve to be ...

MSNBC's Contessa Brewer: 'People' Are Blaming 'Vitriolic Right-Wing Talkers' for Shooting
MSNBC's Contessa Brewer on Tuesday spread the blame for Saturday's spree shooting, singling out "vitriolic right-wing talkers and the Tea Party." Several groups seemed to be on Brewer's list, with the notable exception of Jared Loughner. He was only mentioned as a failure of the Mental Health system. Closing the 12pm hour of News Live, Brewer summarized, "We've been following the fallout from the Tucson shooting and there is a lot of blame to go around. People are ...

In Wake of Tucson Tragedy, What's Sarah Palin's Next Move?
Sarah Palin and her campaign website targeting Congressional Democrats. (Credit: CBS/AP) In the wake of Saturday's tragic shooting in Tucson, Arizona - in which six were killed and Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) and 13 others were injured - Sarah Palin has maintained a relatively low profile. After expressing her "sincere condolences" to the shooting's Victims and their families via Facebook on Saturday, Palin has made only one other statement to the press: an e-mail to Glenn Beck, which ...

Infidel Bloggers Alliance
The Hill: Poll: Rhetoric, Arizona shooting unrelated By Jordan Fabian - 01/11/11 08:13 AM ET Almost 60 percent of the public believes that heated political rhetoric has nothing to do with an Arizona Shooting Spree that gravely wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D) and killed a Federal Judge. Fifty-seven percent of respondents in a new CBS News poll said rhetoric is unrelated to the shooting, while 32 percent said they believe the two are connected. Many pundits and lawmakers have keyed in on ...

Will Bachmann Replace Palin in the 2012 Presidential Field?
Sarah Palin's going through a pretty tough stretch as a national conservative icon. Her daughter didn't win Dancing with the Stars. Her second book did not rocket to the top of best-seller lists. Her TV reality show isn't getting renewed for a second year. Polls show her becoming even more unpopular among the national electorate, and showing some weakness among Republicans. And now she's drawing heat, and not responding very well, in the wake of the Tucson shootings, thanks to her PAC's adopti...

VIDEO: Rahm Emanuel Clarifies 2008 Comment "You Never Want A Serious Crisis To Go To Waste"
It is a comment former Congressman and White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel might wish he'd never made, in light of the fact that its being repeated in newspaper articles and editorials about Saturday's tragic shooting in Tucson, Arizona. The quote is being used to explain how some lawmakers and political pundits on both sides of the aisle may be trying to exploit the incident and place blame on their opponents. Emanuel said the infamous comment was never intended to be about an incident such...

Tighter Gun-Control Laws: A Long Shot
Yahoo! Buzz The Tucson shootings have renewed an effort among Northeast lawmakers to strengthen federal gun-control laws, but a partisan climate and an influential gun lobby mean that talk may be as far as it gets. On Tuesday, Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D., N.Y.), whose husband was killed by a lone gunman in a 1993 Shooting Spree, said she would introduce Legislation to reinstate a ban on high-capacity magazines like the one used by the Tucson shooter. Rep. Peter King (R., N.Y.) said that he would o...

Another Tucson inspired gun control bill on the way
In the wake of last weekend's shootings, Gun Control advocates are calling for stricter gun enforcement. GOP Rep Peter King of New York plans to introduce Legislation that would ban people from bringing a gun within 1,000 feet of a government official, a move that would make him, along with Rep Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY), the second lawmaker to introduce a Tucson-inspired Gun Control bill. Records show that Loughner bought his first gun less than a year after he was rejected by The Army and arreste...

Mayor Mike Bloomberg Asks What Could Have Prevented Arizona Shooting, Talks Gun Control
New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg called lawmakers on the Mayors Against Illegal Guns coalition together for a City Hall meeting to discuss the Arizona shooting that left six dead and Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords recovering from a bullet to the head. Among the issues discussed was Gun Control, a topic which inspired an impassioned Speech from the Mayor on what, exactly, we should be taking away from the weekend’s events: The more we learn the more it becomes clear that this case is fu...

Tucson shooting victim shielded wife from hail of bullets
TUCSON, Arizona (Reuters) - An elderly man who died using his body to shield his wife from a withering hail of bullets when a gunman sprayed a crowd in Tucson on Saturday, was remembered for his heroics on Tuesday. Dorwan Stoddard, a 76-year-old retired Construction Worker, died saving his wife, Mavanelle, by covering her on the ground as the gunmen shot Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and 19 others at a street corner congressional outreach event. "We are just blessed that he is walking with the Lord n...