Gabby Giffords calls on Congress to 'find the courage' to address gun violence
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A concertgoer captured the moment a gunman opened fire on an outdoor music festival on the Las Vegas Strip, killing scores of people and wounding hundreds of others. Country music star Jason Aldean was performing when the gunfire began.
AP
WASHINGTON — Former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who was shot at a 2011 constituent meeting in Tucson, had short but direct statement for her former colleagues Monday in response to Sunday night’s mass shooting in Las Vegas.
“The nation’s counting on you,” she said slowly and haltingly at a news conference, before turning and pointing her fist at the U.S. Capitol building behind her.
At least 58 people were killed and 515 more were wounded at an outdoor concert when a gunman opened fire from a hotel room above in the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.
Earlier, the Arizona Democrat issued a statement calling on members of Congress once again to have the “courage” to address gun violence.
The Arizona Democrat said in a statement, “I know this feeling of heartbreak and horror too well,” adding that that she prays for the victims, their families and friends — as well as her former colleagues.
“I am praying they find the courage it will take to make progress on the challenging issue of gun violence,” she said. “I know they got into politics for the same reason I did — to make a difference, to get things done. Now is the time to take positive action to keep America safer. Do not wait. The nation is counting on you.â€
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Democrats joined the call for new congressional action on guns, led by Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., whose statement saying “It’s time for Congress to get off its ass and do something” generated a firestorm on social media.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the Senate Judiciary Committee’s top-ranking Democrat, told USA TODAYÂ she expects to join some of her colleagues next week to discuss next steps.
“This incident is so terrible and so many people’s lives are lost, and for anybody to have this stack of weaponry, automatic, really, weapons of war that can fire 400 yards and kill people, some of us are going to next week hopefully get together and talk a little bit about this,” she said. “But right now, I think we’re all in shock.”Â
The 2011 shooting at Giffords’ “Congress on your Corner†event killed six of her constituents and wounded 12 others. It was the first assassination attempt on a member of Congress meeting with constituents.
Following the shooting, Giffords and her husband, retired astronaut Mark Kelly, who are both gun owners, co-founded the gun-control group Americans for Responsible Solutions.
Her full statement:
“I know this feeling of heartbreak and horror too well. The massacre in Las Vegas is a grave tragedy for our nation. This must stop — we must stop this.
“I am praying for the victims of this shooting, their families and friends. And I am so grateful for the heroism and professionalism of the first responders who acted so courageously to bring this horror to an end. I send the injured all my strength: you have a long road ahead. Be strong. You can do it. My heart is with the city of Las Vegas and all who were touched by this tragedy.
“But I am praying for my former colleagues, our elected leaders, too. I am praying they find the courage it will take to make progress on the challenging issue of gun violence. I know they got into politics for the same reason I did — to make a difference, to get things done. Now is the time to take positive action to keep America safer. Do not wait. The nation is counting on you.â€
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