>> back live once again to andrews air force base where the president and first lady, michelle obama, are arriving for their departure to arizona, tucson, arizona, no this evening's memorial service. also in attendance will be arizona governor jan brewer, attorney general, eric holder, and homeland security secretary janet napolitano upon others. we'll have live coverage of the memorial service starting at

8:00 p.m. eastern here on c-span. the president expected to land about 5:30 this evening.

>> air force one expected to arrive after 5:00 this evening in tucson for the memorial service. the president's aides say that he'll deliver a speech that will focus on national healing and pulling together as a country. might include a plea for restoration of civility and political discourse. that service again begins at 8:00 and we'll have live coverage here on c-span. we are back now in the capitol visitor's center where members are gathering for a private congressional prayer service. we are showing you the scene as members are filing in. some signing the condolences and well-wishers book.

>> pictures of the capitol visitor's center as members continue to gather for the private congressional prayer service, also stopping to sign the condolences and well-wishers book. the latest on congresswoman gabrielle giffords according to doctors this afternoon she is less sedated and more responsive

five days after being shot. the arizona trauma chief says the recovery from a gunshot wound is going as anticipated and she's become more responsive as she comes off the heavy medication.

>> congressman john runyan of new jersey right now signing the well-wishers book in the capitol visstors center. one of two places for an opportunity to sign the book. this is the scene again in the cannon house office building where members of the general public can sign along with capitol staff. we have seen a number of house members signing the book, too. again the house in recess until 2:00 p.m. eastern attending a private memorial service. again, members expected to return at 2:00 p.m. eastern. we will have live coverage at that time. they'll continue with the pending business in the house which is a resolution honoring those hurt and injured in those shootings in tucson. we'll show you remarks now from members as they came to the floor earlier today starting with a reading of the resolution and a quick note, we will show you as much of this as we can until members return at 2:00.

mr. boehner: i ask for the resolution and ask for its immediate consideration in the house. the speaker pro tempore: house resolution 32. whereas on january 8, 2011, an armed gunman opened fire at a congress on your corner event hosted by representative gabrielle giffords of tucson, arizona, killing six and wounding at least 14 others. whereas christina taylor green, dorothy morris, john rohl, and gabriel zimmerman lost their lives in this attack. whereas christina taylor green, a 9-year-old daughter of john and roxanne green, was born on september 11, 2001, and was a third grader with an avid interest in government who was recently leblingted to the student council in mesa verde elementary school. whereas dorothy morris attended the january 8 event with george,

her husband of over 50 years, with whom she had two daughters and who was also critically injured as he tried to shield her from the shooting. whereas john rohl, a pennsylvania native who was 63 years old, began his professional career as a bailiff in 1972, was appointed to the federal bench in 1991 and became a chief judge for the district of arizona in 2006 and was a devoted husband to his wife, marie, father to his three sons and grandfather to his five grandchildren. whereas phyllis, a proud mother of three, grandmother of seven, a great-grandmother from new jersey, was spending the wenter in arizona and was a 79-year-old church volunteer and a new york gian fan. whereas dorwan, a volunteer at the mountain avenue church of rist, is credited with shielding his wife, a long-time friend whom he married while

they were in their 60's who was also injured in the shooting. whereas gabriel matthew zimmerman who was 30 years old and engaged to be married served as director of community outreach to representative gabrielle giffords and was a social worker before serving with representative giffords. whereas representative gabrielle giffords was the target of this attack and remains in critical condition at the arizona hospital. whereas 13 others were also wounded in the shootin including ron barber and pamela simon, both stafferers to representative giffords and whereas several individuals, including patricia mosh, amply -- army colonel bill badger, retired, who w also wounded in the shooting, roger schullingburg, and daniel hernandez jr. helped apprehend the gunman and assist the injured, thereby risking their lives for the safety of others and shall be commended for their bravery.

now therefore be it resolved that the house of representatives, onecondemns in the strongest possible terms the horrific attack which occurred at the congress on your corner event hosted by representative gabrielle giffords in tucson, arizona, on january 8, 2011. two, offers its heartfelt condolences to the families, friends and loved ones of those who were killed in the attack. three, expresses its hope for the rapid and complete recovery of those wounded in the shooting. four, honors the memory of christina taylor green, dorothy morris, john rohl, phyllis, dorwan and gabriel zimmerman. five, applauds the bravery and quick thinking exhibited by those individuals who prevented the gunman from potentially taking more lives and helped to save those who have been wounded. six, recognizing the service of the first responders who raced to the scene and the health care professionals who attended to the victims once they reached

the hospital. whose service and skill saved lives. seven, reaffirms the bedrock principle of american democracy and representative government which is memorialized in the first amendment of the constitution and which representative gabrielle giffords herself read in the hall of the house of representatives on january 6, 2011, of the right of the people peaceably to assemble and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. eight, stands firm in its belief in the democracy of which all can participate in which intimidation and threats of violence cannot silence the voices of any american. nine, honors the service and leadership of representative gabrielle giffords, a distinguished member of this house, as she courageously fights to recover and, ten, when adjourning today, shall do so out of the respect to the victims of this attack.

the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the order of the house today, the resolution shall be debatable for six hours, divided equally and controlled by the majority leader and the minority leader or their designees. the gentleman from virginia, mr. cantor, and the gentleman from arizona, mr. pastor, each will control three hours. the chair recognizes the gentleman from virginia. mr. cantor: thank you, madam speaker. madam speaker, i yield one minute to the speaker of the house, the gentleman from ohio. the speaker pro tempe: the gentleman from ohio, the speaker of the houseis recognized for one minute. the speaker: madam speaker, my colleagues today, we are called here to mourn. an unspeakable act of violence has taken six innocent lives and left several more, including our colleague, gabrielle giffords, battling for theirs. these are difficult hours for our country. among the fallen is gave zimmerman, a member of congresswoman giffords' staff, a public servantf the highest

caliber, one of our own. and even in our shock, we are composed and determined to fulfill our calling to represent our constituents. this is the great cause for which gave gave his life. we swore an oath to uphold the constitution and at the time of the atta, he was engaged in the most simple and direct of democratic rituals. listening to the people. listening to his neighbors. the brutality that shattered saturday morning's calm was devastating but brief. bravery and quick thinking prevented a larger massacre. turning innocent bystanders into heroes. the service and skill of first responders and medical professionals saved liv.

law enforcement officials are now working to ensure swift justice. look to tucson right now and you'll be reminded that america's most plentiful source of wealth and strength is her people. we're thankful, so thankful, that gabby is still with us and we're thankful that two of her staffers who were also wounded, ron barber and pam simmons, are with us as well. in her steady, gabby's staff has pressed on, opening for business monday morning, right on schedule. and the men and women who faithfully served the people of arizona's eighth district have signaled that no act, no matr how heinous, will stop us fro doing our duty and being among the people we serve. and to all the dedicated profsionals that we rely on to

make this institution work, to each of you, thank you for what you do. and to gabby's staff and their families, please know that our hearts and prayers go out to each of you. this body has yet to fully register the magnitude of this tragedy. we feel a litany of unwanted emotions that no resolution could possibly capture. we know that we gather here without distinction of party, the needs of this institution have always risen above partisanship. and what this institution needs right now is strength. wholly and uplifting strength. the strength to grieve with the families of the fallen, to pray for the wounded and to chart a way forward no matter how painful and difficult it may be. today is not a ceremony, but

tragedy that stirs us to renew our commitment to faithfully fulfill our oath of office. and let us not let this inhuman act frighten us into doing otherwise. the free exchange of ideas is the life blood of our democracy as prescribed by the first amendment, the beacon of free expression that congresswoman giffords recited in this well just days ago. these rights have not been handed down by dictate, they've been preserved and protected through generations of hard sacrifice and commitment. and we will continue that unfinished work. we will do it for christina taylor green, dorothy morris, phyllis shank, dorwan, ordinary citizens who died participating in their democracy, and we will do it for judge john and we'll do it for gave zimmerman.

and we will do it, god willing, with gabrielle giffords. our hearts are broken but our spirit is not. this is a time for the house to lock arms in prayer for the fallen and the wounded and resolve to carry on a dialogue of democracy. . we may not have all the final answers but we already have the answer that matters most. that we are americans and we'll make it through this difficult period. we will have the last word. god bless this house. god bless this congress. and god bless america. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona. >> madam speaker, i yield one minute to the minority leader, ms. pelosi. the speaker pro tempore: the the

gentlewoman from california, the minority leader, is recognized for one minute. ms. pelosi: thank you very much, madam speaker. i thank the gentleman for yielding. extend my condolences to him, mr. pastor, the senior member of the arizona delegation, and all of the members of the arizona delegation. madam speaker, i'm pleased and saddened greatly saddened to join the speaker of the house, mr. boehner, in coming together in sadness today to share our prayers and indeed our hopes for those who have lost so much because of the tragedy in arizona involving our colleague, congresswoman gabby giffords. hestaff and innocent bystanders. words are inadequate at a time like this, but nonetless i hope it is a comfort to those who are -- lost loved ones, or injured on saturday that so many

people mourn the losses but also pray for the survivors and care for them at this very difficult time. i think the resolution is -- its description of what happened and the context with which it happened is an excellent resolution and i hope people will read it, pray over it, and be grateful that we had this opportunity to comment on it. today we will say many prayers for our country and for the victims of this horrific evening. we think of our colleague, congresswoman gabby giffords, fighting to recover and the 14 others who were injured, remember the six who were killed. there names are mentioned and they are described in e

resolution. the speaker has mentioned their names, but i think acknowledging them bears repetition. how do you explain the death of the 9-year-old christina taylor green, recently been elected to the student council in her school, mesa vare day elementary school? -- verde elementary school? the unbearable grief of john and rocks an -- roxanne green. dorothy morris married for more than 50 years to her high sool sweetheart and mother of two. federal judge john roll who had just com from mass. which he attended every day. phyllis schneck, mother of three, grandmother of seven, and great grandmother. and i know the new yorkers are glad to hear she's a giants fan.

snowbird in arizona carrying that dedication wes. dorwan stoddard, died shielding his wife, mary, shielding his wife, mary. and has been mentioned in the resolution and we have mourned, congresswoman gabby giffords director of community outreach gabrielle matthew zimmerman. one ever his -- gabriel matthew zimmerman. one of his co-workers said gave for the living. some who protected others, wong member, phyllis, who grabbed the fuel magazine of ammunition of the killer as he attempted to reload. just think how many more we could have lost. roger sulzgeber and joseph zimudeo, and daniel hernandez jr., 20 years old an intern who

had just been on t job for four days when he heard gunshots, he ran toward them, ran toward them, and attendedo congresswoman giffords, helping to staunch her bleeding with his own hands. pray f the recovery of other members of congresswoman giffords sff, ron barber, pam simon, and the entire giffords staff for carrying on. those heroes at the scene were joined by first responders from county and municipalities, arriving just three minutes after the first 9-1-1 call and performed excellently and in doing so saved lives. we also pay tribute to the skilled professionals at arizona's university medical center whose role is ongoing. healing the victims of this tragedy.

tonight the university community. to ackwledge together saturday's tragedy. promptly this is called together we thrive, tucson and america. together we thrive, tucson and america, will be an opportunity to grieve and it will be a demonstration of our strength. strength in community. a strength in community that was demonstrated last saturday, a strength in community there that is ongoing. tucson demonstrated its strength on saturday when the city was full of heroes, ordinary citizens, victims, first responders coming together in the spirit of community. madam speaker, our colleague, congresswoman giffords, was the primary target of cowardly act, and as she recovers, we honor

her as a brilliant and courageous member of congress. she brought to congress an invigoration, thinking of new generation of national leaders. a businesswoman, state legislator, she came to congress full of ideas, and we will long continue to be blessed by them, look forward to when she is present with us on the floor. she has spoken out courageously and led boldly when the times demanded it. it's especially tragic that those who lost their lives and those who were wounded had come together as the resolution presents to participate in an activity that reflects the best of our democratic tradition. a representative of the people, gabby giffords, her staff hearing directly from the men and women she represents.

erican democracy is founded on our commitment to a contest of ideas not violence. political disagreement and dissent must never violate our nation's values as expressed in the constitution, of free expression, speech, and peaceful assembly. gabby spoke to that right here from the floor last week. in this hour of anguish, we seek renewed commitment to hope, to civility, to peace among the american people. in our -- many of our churches we sing on sunday and other days of the week, let there be peace on earth and let it begin i guess with us, but with me. with each of us, within each of us. speaking as one house today, coming together, peace with us, we offer our thoughts and support, our prayers to the

health of our colleague, gabby, congresswoman gabrielle giffords, and all of the injured. we share the stories, the heroes of the tramdy, and mourn those who perished. let their actions and their memories be a blessing to our country. we n't know why god saw this to be necessary, but let this be something that we cherish as an opportunity as we mourn the heartbreaking horror of it all. this resolution is fitting tribute, great resolution, please read it again and again, carry those names in your heart. remember each of these people because of, again, a tragic accident took lives, wounded people, in the free expression of ideas. may this resolution remind us

of the urgent need to uphold our democratic values, to treat one another with courtesy and with respect, and to act as congresswoman giffords has always done and always do, in a manner that reflects the best of american leadership. as our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of all who were affected, i want to call special attention to commander, captain mark kelly, gabby's husband, who has been a source of strength to all of us in this difficult time. we pray for him. we thank him for he -- for his and gabby's service to our country. god truly blessed america with their leadership, with their service. and with their love for each other. thank you, madam speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. the gentleman from virginia. mr. cantor: madam speaker, i

yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. cantor: this week most members of the house will gather briefly here in washington, but our hearts and spirits will be in arizona. the unspeakable tragedy in tucson last saturday came as a complete shock, casting a pall over the entire nation. with this resolution we join 300 million americans and millions of others around the world in showing our solidarity with congresswoman giffords and the rest of the victims. gabby serves arizona's eighth district with distinction and thoughtful leadership and we are all praying for her speedy recovery. saturday's cowardly crime was more than just an attack on dozens of innocent americans at a grocery store. it was an attack of the very essence of democracy and representative government. an assault on the open exchange

of ideas between legislators and the people to whom they are accountable. this resolution honors the memory of christina taylor green, dorothy morris, judge john roll, phyllis schneck, dorwan stoddard, and gabrielle zimmerman. the -- gabriel zimmerman. it represents a broad american blic, young and old, men, women, and child, friends, brothers, sisters, and children . they will be missed. but not forgotten. this inexplicable crime reminds us there is evil in the world. yet as we look for light in a thicket of darkness, our nation has drawn inspiration from the bravery and quick thinking displayed by the heroes on the scene. were it not for theirefforts, there likely would have been

many more victims. the outpouring of support, prayer, and solidarity also reminds us that america is a country of compassion, community, and empathy. we will stand with the victims and their families and pray and mourn with them as they cope with this horrific tragedy. madam speaker, i also want to offer my thoughts of comfort t gabby giffords' staff and want them to know that our hearts hang heavy and our thoughts and prayers are with them. as they try and persevere through this very difficult time. madam speaker, i'd also like to add my thanks to the brave law enforcement that has helped our nation over the last several days and every day. the law enforcement under the directorship of director mueller, the f.b.i., the local

law enforcement in arizona, and from our perspective most especially the capitol bliss and -- capitol police and the office of the sergeant at arms and sergeant at arms themselves that they are doing each and every minute as we try to cope with this tragedy. madam speaker, this resolution affirms the point all of us want to make, our hearts are heavy, we mourn with the victims, and i urge my colleagues to support it. madam speaker, i yield my remaining time to the gentleman from arizona, mr. flake, and ask unanimous consent that he be permitted to control that time. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the gentleman from arizona. million pastor: i yield four -- mr. pastor: i yield four minutes to the gentleman from maryland, mr. hoyer. the speakepro tempore: the gentleman from maryland is recognized for four minutes. mr. hoyer: i thank the gentleman from arizona for

yielding. madam speaker, this week we pause the work of the house to mourn the loss of lives of six of our fellow citizens. one of those born on that day of tragedy and rnage when thousands were slain and equally -- in an equally indiscriminate, heinous act of hate. citizens shot dead on saturday in tucson in pursuit of the right to peaceably assemble. . the amendment which gabrielle giffords read on this floor. we come as well to honor those who risked their lives to save others. to pray for the lives of the wounded. and to pray for our colleague and friend, congresswoman gabrielle giffords. today this tellble of representative democracy -- tell am of representative democracy is -- temple of representative

democracy is a sadder place. but representative giffords' intelligence and toughness, her public spirit and her charm will, god willing, and with the extraordinary med edcal care she is receiving -- medical care she is receiving, soon return to this body. and again be a practitioner and a model for the principles of civil debate and thoughtful deliberation on which this temple is founded. congresswoman giffords was attacked doing the work that is the heart of democracy as has been so eloquently observed by our speaker, mr. boehner. listening to her neighbors, listening to those who sent her here to shington to reflect their views. each one of us have done that work, each one of us has come back bearing their fears and

their hopes, their convictions d their visions for the future. me of course are everyday hopes, some are matters of life and death. but in each case we bring these hopes here and speak to our neighbors as best we can. that is what congresswoman giffords was doing. we do not know, of course, the specific motive whh led the perpetrator of this crime to act. nor can we draw conclusions as to specific causes. but it seems to me it is a time for us to reflect on the heightened anger being projected on our public debate. and the daily denigration of those with whom we disagree and it is appropriate therefore that the wrenching, shocking, senseless violence of that day compel us to reflect on our own represent -- responsibility to

tell per our words -- temper our words and rcht those with whom we disagree. let the failure to do so give incitement to thangriest and most unstable among us. let us speak for our neighbors in a spirit of unity. not a false and shallow unity, not a unity that wishes away our dierences our discords, but a unity founded on our reverence for our democracy's most precious, most franl ilgift, its power -- fragile gift, its power to resolve without violence our questions. in much darker time than ours, from the edge of a great war, president lincoln addressed these words to the men and women whom even in the war's depths he

refused to see as anything other than his fellow americans, he said this, we are not enemies but friends. we must not be enemies, though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. there are in every society and in every culture and every nation those who reflect that cede -- creed, but if we love our country, if we honor our oath to country, constitution and to our nation of laws, we must live by those words. there is perhaps nothing we can do that will prevent the mindless violence committed by the few. but we can and must appeal to the best instincts of the many, to the families of the fallen we extend our sympathy.

to the survivors we extend our prayers for a full and speedy recovery. and to our colleague, to ou announcing the feelings of the house of representatives. the speaker pro tempore: when the meeting -- when the house recessed today, four hours and 32 minutes remaining. who seeks recognition? the gentleman from california.

mr. lungren: at this time, i'd like to yield such time as she may consume to the gentlelady from north carolina, mrs. myrick. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. mrs. myrick: i'm here today in support of this resolution. not only because it recognizes what happened in that tragic situation that just shocked and saddened all of us on saturday, i think most people in america were really just in a state of shock and not actually knowing what to do at that time when we saw what was happening. not just to our friend, gabby giffords, who was a friend of everybody here, is a friend of everyone here, but also to all the other families that were touched by this. it goes so deep in the tucson community when you look at the sick people who gave their live

-- the six people who gave their lives and the people still in the hospital fighting for their lives and the heroes of that casme we keep hearing -- of that day. we keep hearing story after story of heroes who emerge, just ordinary americans who do what we do in a situation like that, we don't think of ourselves but come forward to help the other person. there were so many people who did that, gabby's staff members who were so heroic at this time. just the shock that all of them, i know are still going through. but i know that they are really heartened by the fact that most people in america are just reaching out to them and people are saying what can i do, how can i help, where can i be of service to the situation? and that's what we do in america, we come together. we pull together. you know, we say, ok, we need to be americans and americans first. i think that's what we're seeing out of this.

i just hope that we, throughout this country, continue to maintain that feeling of good will toward one another, of wanting to help one another, of wanting to reach out to one another and wanting to work together, no matter where we are in the country because that's what makes this great. our prayers and our support are with gabby and the others, they will continue to be the reports, the reports continue to appear to be good, which is so gratifying so heartening to all of us, and we all look forward to the day when she's back here standing on this floor with the rest of us. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from florida. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. >> thank you, madam speaker,

thank you, mr. pass tomorrow i rise to honor my friend and colleague, gabe rell giffords and her staff and other victims of the -- gabrielle giffords and her staff and the other victims of the stradge di. the time ms. girds has given to her community in the house so far has proven to be a time of change and challenge. through it all, representative girds has been a model public servant. ms. castor: when we were sworn in four years ago, gabby and i were sworn in as a class with very high ideals. we adopted ethics reform, we bolstered vet wrearnings sought modern solutions for energy challenge, we helped more students atend college and she particularly promoted scientific innovation. she sought a seat on the armed services committee at a time when our country was struggling with the war in iraq. she sought that seat because she wanted to ensure that the military personnel and the bases in her district had a

champion, and did they ever. congresswoman giffords rose quickly to become a leader on solar energy and immigration reform. . gabby worked to strike a balance with policies that actually worked. whether it was president bush or president obama, congresswoman giffords spoke up boldly for additional resources on the u.s. border. i know it sounds like a lot of fairy tale but this beautiful smart congresswoman married a astronaut, but a science and love of their country brought them together, and she was a champion for nasa and space exploration before she married captain mark kelly, but she has become one of the greatest advocates for the mission of nasa. in 2007 our economy began to contrt -- contract and lost jobs and representative giffords stood up to fight for them help in the tucson area and our great country. gabby does not give up. as one of the more youthful members of congress,

congresswoman giffords has served at a time when the first president of our generation was elected. mr. pastor: i yield another 15 seconds. ms. castor: it is a time of hope and promise but in the middle of a time of great economic challenge for arizona, for florida, and for all of america. but gabby giffords has an optimistic eye towards the future. she believes working together we can solve many of the challenges before us. and in her honor we must recommit to doing so. from the stories of the victims and heroes in tucson it's obvious that that is a community composed of remarkable individuals, and it may explain why the tucson area has spent such a remarkable public servant to represent them. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from is recognized. >> i yield two minutes to the gentleman from louisiana, dr. fleming. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from louisiana is recognized for two minutes.

mr. fleming: i thank my friend from california. madam speaker, i rise today in support of house resolution 32. last week an act of cowardly violence our friend and colleague, gabby giffords, was gunned down at a public event intended to give her constituents a forum to express their opinions. while our nation honors, mourns, and remembers those hurt and killed in this senseless tragedy, it is imperative that we strengthen our resolve as public servants to not let these acts deter us from the important work we do and from whom we are. america was founded on the idea that the people have direct access to their elected representatives. and as long as i serve, i plan to continue that tradition. as speaker boehner so eloquently put it, no act, no matter how heinous, must be allowed to stop us from our

duties. our thoughts and prayers are with congresswoman giffords. her family, and all those who suffered from last week's events. finally, god bless gabby giffords, god bless the victims of this tragedy, god bless this institution, and god bless the united states of america. thank you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: madam speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from minnesota. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from minnesota is recognized for two minutes. mr. ellison: thank you. let me thank the gentleman for the time. on half 69 people of the fifth congressional district of minnesota let me offer my heartfelt condolences to those brave americans who lost their lives in the tragedy of tucson. let me offer wishes of a very speedy recovery for those people who were wounded, including our own friend and colleague, gabby giffords, and also let me offer

congratulations to those heroic people who jumped up to help their fellow americans at a time of tragedy and need. it would be very human for anyone to be a little bit shy about coming to a public event after hearing about a tragedy like this, but i think that in the spirit of gabrielle giffords that we should reaffirm and rededicate ourselves to public access, public engagement. i don't think it would be honoring her great work that she and we expect for her to carry on if we didn't get right back out there and engage in the spirited conversation about the destiny and shape of our democracy. so i think it's important to make a very bold statement that we will affirm our dedication to having a robust, open, access and free democracy by not letting forces of fear and hatred, desperation and

madness, deter us from this very important and noble enterprise. god bless america. and we wait forward and look forward to a speedy recovery from our colleague gabrielle giffords, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: madam speaker, at this time i yield to the gentleman from texas, mr. neugebauer, two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized for two minutes. mr. neugebauer: thank you, madam speaker. i wish i didn't have to rise today in support of this resolution because it was a sad day for america last saturday. but let me say this on behalf of the people of the 19th congressional district who i represent, we send our heartfelt condolences to the families and the friends and the loved ones of those who were killed in this senseless attack. we also offer our prayers for gabby and the others that are making recovery from this act as well. as i read through this resolution and as many of you

like i have been watching tv, saturday was a bad day. it was a horrible day for america. i was in the grocery store shopping and got the notice that my friend, gabby, our colleague gabby, had been shot. and others. it was terrible. as we have gotten an opportunity to watch over the last few days what we learned is that out of this horrific act we saw some of the things that make america great. we saw people tackle the attacker. we saw people offer assistance to gabby and to others that were -- we saw a man shield his wife from the attacker. we saw these first responders do remarkable work in getting these people to the hospital in what would be record time. we saw so many of the good things about america at a time when we saw one of the bad things. and i was thinking as i was

walking over here, thinking about wednesday, i guess a week ago today, coming down on the elevator with mark and gabby and her parents, had a wonderful visit. i have had the opportunity to serve on the science committee with gabby and went down for a launch with her. she has a little interest in space in case you didn't know it. and how sometimes we take for granted our friends and our acquaintances and life itself and just a moment life can change. so today we offer this resolution to recognize some good things about our country, to wish our good friend, gabby, and mark a complete recovery and to come back here. we offer our prayers and thoughts for our country. god bless america. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: madam speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from maryland. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from maryland is recognized for two minutes.

mr. van hollen: i thank the gentleman. many of us have just come from a congressional prayer service from the victims for the terrible tragedy in arizona where we sang "heal us now." we all know in this body that gabby giffords someone of our brightest lights, smart, fair, courageous, and considerate of people of all points of view. she's a very effective legislator and caring and thoughtful friend and the people of arizona could not have a better representative in this united states congress. on saturday, she was doing the job she loved so dearly and take so seriously. meeting with their constituents, listening to their concerns when the senseless act of violence occurred. we come together to grieve for those who were killed, including gabby's talented and energetic outreach director, gabe zimmerman, to pray for the quick recovery of those injured, and to honor those who

in a moment of chaos and violence took heroic actions that saved the lives of many, including gabby. gabby giffords is a person who is always thinking of others. her constituents, her staff, her colleagues. i spoke with her frequently during the very tough campaign she went through, and she was always just asking, how are her colleagues doing? today in that same way gabby giffords would want us to be thinking and praying for the others. for her fallen and injured constituents, for herzegovinaoic staff. -- for her her joic staff. gabe zimmerman died doing what he loved. serving the people of arizona. his many good works are a testament to the selfless works of service performed by congressional staff every day for the people of our districts and our nation. gabby giffords has always conducted herself in a manner that brings honor on this people's house. she passionately advocates for the positions and issues she cares so deeply about, but

always in a way that is respectful of opposing views. she is a fierce competitor but always considerate of others. that is why she was such a good role model for christina -- if i could have 30 additional seconds. mr. pastor: 30 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. van hollen: i thank my colleague. that is why she was such a good role model for christina taylor green, the 9-year-old girl born on that terrible day, september 11, 2001, and gunned down on another awful day for our nation. christina taylor green, gabe zimmerman, and four others are tragically no longer with us. as we mourn their loss, we also pray for the full recovery of those who are injured. gabby giffords a light -- giffords' light continues to shine and she'll continue to inspire young and old throughout arizona and our nation. god bless gabby giffords and all the victims of this

horrible tragedy. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: madam speaker, at this time i would yield two minutes to the gentlelady from missouri, mrs. emerson. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from missouri is recognized. mrs. emerson: thank you, madam speaker. you know, we all get to know a person through the words of others and for our colleague, gabrielle giffords, and everyone affected by the violence in tucson, the outpouring of prayer and emotion really tells the story of how we are all touched by these sad events. i think all of us draw strength from one another hearing stories, the personal stories of relationships that they have had with gabby and it really does help us. i thought it would be important for us to also hear just a couple of stories, just a couple of sentiments from some of gabby's friends and

supporters back home because they know gabby perhaps in a little different way than we do. carol frazier writes, many prayers and much love to you and all the victims of the stupid tragedy. gabby, you are what we need in congress. i was so impressed with meeting you that you looked me in the eye. and you truly listened to what i was saying. a high school friend, erica noble writes, your entire u.h.s. family is pulling for you. we just love you so much and are so proud to be your constituents. scott smith writes, i hadn't even heard of you until this tragic event, gabby. you are in my thoughts and i very much hope you pull through this, especially because you were doing your job, talking to your constituents when this happened. and i think like all of us here

in the house of representatives, kathy parody expresses her sentiments best, love you, gabby. stay strong, we are here for you. god bless gabby giffords. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: madam speaker, i yield two minutes for the gentleman from texas. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. -- >> thank you, madam speaker. a convenience store owner was murdered by a robber. the brother of the slain owner observed that both his brother and murderer both got up that same morning and made conscious choices. his brother chose to go to work and support his family. to do a right and good thing. mr. gonzalez: the murderer made a choice to rob and kill, an

evil and destructive thing. on january 8, 2011, in tucson many people got up that morning and made a choice to do the right and good thing. only one person got up that morning and decided to do an evil and destructive thing. we cannot and will not allow the cruelty of one person to overshadow the goodness that each of his victims represents. we in this chamber are not helpless. we offer our prayers for those who died. and for a speedy recovery for those who have survived. and to gabby, i know we all join in saying, hurry back. this house needs you. we love you. . but we can do more. we can create an environment that is ferre tile for

constructive discourse and despite the heartache and the tragedy of last saturday, we find solace and inspiration that in our nation, the united states of america, the goodness of the many will always triumph over the evil of the few. thank you, madam speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: madam speaker, at this time it's my pleasure to yield to mr. mack. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida is recognized for two minutes. mr. mack: thank you, madam speaker. i rise today with sadness in my heart and a bit of anger for what happened in tucson. i cannot help but to think that on that morning a colleague of ours, doing what she enjoyed to

do, doing what is expected from a member of congress, meeting with her constituents, talking about the important issues of the day, she went to work, she went to the grocery store that morning to listen to her constituents and for someone to show up and pull the trigger is something that i don't think any of us will ever forget. i pray for gabby. my thoughts and prayers go to all of the family members who have been affected by this tragedy. we hope and we cannot wait for that day when gabby comes back to this floor, when she walks through that door, she joins us

again, she casts a vote, most importantly, though, i cannot wait to see that smile on her face. no matter who you are, whenever you met gabby, she always greeted you with a smile, with kind innocence her heart, with determination and strength. gabby, we're praying for you, we pull for you, our hearts and prayers are with you, you are missed and we look forward to seeing you back on the floor of the house. thank you and god bless you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: madam speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from indiana. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from indiana is recognized for two minutes. >> on behalf of all of the people of northern indiana, we want to express our prayers and thoughts for the victims and the families of those killed and injured in arizona. and to the staff of

congresswoman gabby giffords, we want to thank you for your service to our country and for your sacrifice to our country. and to my friend gabby giffords who i came into congress with in 2006, we love you and mark, we miss you and mark terribly, we are praying for your recovery and we know you're getting stronger every day and we can't wait to see you back here in the house again in the very, very near future. mr. donnelly: may god bless you and may god bless our beloved country. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: madam speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from texas, mr. olson. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized for two minutes. mr. olson: i thank my colleague from california. madam speaker, i rise today in

support of the resolution before the house and to pay tribute to my colleague and dear friend, gabby giffords. i've been privileged to call her a friend as the chairwoman of the space and aeronautics subcommittee while i was the ranking member. we found that we share a deep passion for space and nasa and we worked closely on these issues together. in sitting in hearings that gabby was running, with your eyes closed you'd be hard pressed to know who was a republican and who was a democrat. and as a freshman member of congress, it was heartened to know that while the controversial issues of the day may divide us, there's also room for collaboration and unity on both sides of the aisle. that was because of gabby. i have no better bipartisan

friends in the congress than gabby giffords. madam speaker, she is warm and kind but the gabby i know is also tough. she will pull through this with her husband mark by her side. i wouldn't bet against her. other members of the house need our support too. i'd like to say a prayer for gabe zimmerman and his family, gabby's staffer who lost his life. as well as ron barber and pam simon, her other staffers who were victims in this horrible, horrible tragedy. we must also remember the others who lost their lives or were seriously injured. our hearts and prayers as our nation begins the healing

process. madam speaker, i'm going to close my remarks by talking to my friend as if she was here. because in my ways she is. -- in many ways she is. gabby, i know you feel things, hear things, i ask for 30 seconds. mr. lungren: i yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for 30 seconds. mr. olson: i thank the chair and my colleague from california. gabby, i know you feel things, you hear things when asked, you squeeze a hand, you hold two fingers up and you hold a thumbs up. i know you feel the love and prayers of a congress, a nation and a world that only wants you to have a full and speedy recovery. my friend, right back at you.

i'll see you when you get back in this chamber. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: madam speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from massachusetts. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from massachusetts is recognized for two minutes. ms. tsongas: thank you. i rise to express my deep sympathy for the tragedy in tucson, arizona. i mourn for the grievous harm that came to those who attended congresswoman giffords' congress on your corner, for our colleague gabby, a courageous and conscientious lawmaker whose recovery and good health we all yearn for today. for a 9-year-old child bursting with innocent enthuse yass much and great promise -- enthusiasm and great promise. for a juriest. for a kind and accomplished staffer, for a loving husband who instinctively shielded his wife from the rain of bullets

and for a husband also lovingly protective who was unable to stave them off. and finally a widowed retiree still giving to her community, also abruptly and violently losing their lives. and for those who are thankfully recovering, all engaged in the inviting promise of democracy, coming to talk with their congresswoman, gathering in the parking lot of a local supermarket on a saturday morning. this horrific incident has raised many serious questions about appropriately identifying and caring for those who suffer from mental illness. about the accessibility of violent weapons, about the tone and language of our politics today and about the solemn obligation of elected office in a democratic society, of those serving, of their staff and of constituents eager to participate and be heard. but today we honor with our words those who tragically lost

their lives and those harmed by the senseless act of violence. we pray for gabby and all those still recovering and we remember their families and loved ones now struggling with the immensity of their losses. in the days ahead, however, we must honor and remember them with their actions -- with our actions. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: at this time i would yield two minutes to the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. meehan. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized for two minutes. mr. meehan: i want to thank my friend for yielding and, madam speaker, i rise to join my colleagues and in fact fellow citizens from across this nation in thought and prayer following the tragic assault on gabby giffords and 19 others in tucson. i pray that in these critical hours gabby giffords will heal and begin the path to a fuller recovery. just yesterday i was privileged to join a large number of my freshmen colleagues as we went

on a visit to the walter reid army hospital where we were humbled and inspired by the remarkable strength of severely injured military heroes who are fighting to recover from their wounds. i pray that gabby giffords will be provided with the similar resolve. i pray for those who lost their lives and the families of their loved ones who now struggle with grief and i think particularly, having been a former prosecutor of judge john roll, whose loss is being deeply felt by our colleagues and their service in public service from the judiciary. while this tragedy was not related to his duties per se, it's a remind that are our judges too often face threats that imping on the independence that they must be accorded for our system of government and freedom and just as importantly justice to prosper. lastly i want to say deep condolences to the family of

christina taylor green whose grandfather, dallas green, is a member of the philadelphia community and who interest this tragic incident brought it home in a very personal way to the people of my region. let us allow this horrible tragedy to inspire all americans to become better instruments of peace. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: madam speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from california, ms. richardson. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from california is recognized for two minutes. ms. richardson: madam speaker, i concur in expressing the sense of the house of representatives with respect to the tragic shooting in tucson, arizona, on january 8, 2011. like all americans, on saturday morning i was not only saddened but i was sick to my stomach when i watched the horrible attack against my colleague, my officemate for two years, congresswoman giffords, known as gabby to me and her staff, her constituents and all americans.

we know now on january 7 that congresswoman giffords reached out and sought new ways to reduce the highly partisan divisive tone that all too often dominates our public discourse. so today i'm going to do exactly that. not in words of criticism but thoughts of observation and a desire to help. for lawmakers, whether federal, state or local, this tragic incident must make us re-evaluate our spending priorities and accept the fact that our continued failure to adequately fundamental illness is a mistake. for agencies, whether they be educational, military or private venders and businesses, we must be diligent in connecting the dots and making use of good technology to have realtime information. for parents, whether your child, who will always be your child, regardless of their age, should not be allowed under our own roof to turn their rooms, garages and backyards into private areas that we're even

afraid to tread. for protectors and preservers of the law, it's not ok to tell me that nothing's wrong with receiving an email that says i'm concerned and looking for a good, old-fashioned lynching. for those who debate in protest, it's not ok to spit, to say racial slurs, to say reload or to arm in reference to debate. and it's also not ok for a group to reference others as neanderthals or people who would wish for someone to die quickly. for our courts, even in 1919 and 1931 in the cases, our forefathers had the wisdom to know that the most stringent protection of the freedom of speech -- would the gentleman yield an additional minute as our colleagues have? mr. pastor: i'll yield an additional minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. ms. richardson: in near vs. minnesota they had the wisdom to know that the most stringent protection of free speech would not protect a man in falsely

shouting a fire in a theater and causing panic. so who would tell me that it would be appropriate that on august 17, 2009, that it would be appropriate for a man to carry a a.r. rifle and a pistol only feet from our president? and now for those of us who are here today, we turn to the resolution on the floor, on page 4, section 7 and 8, the resolution says that we would have the right of people to peaceably assemble and that all would participate without being silenced or free of intimidation. i'm sad to say that, yes, even in this own chamber, on these grounds, i don't think we've always fulfilled those words of peaceable assembly, free of intimidation. we too must not react but it's time to act. not just in legislation but toad what congresswoman giffords asked -- to do what congresswoman giffords asked us to do, to reduce the divisive tone in this country. maybe if we start as leaders

others will follow. i express condolence and pray for those on their recovery and i also commit to work on this issue and to work with my colleagues. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman's time has expired. the gentleman from california. . mr. lungren: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from new york. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york is recognized for two minutes. mr. gibson: i thank the gentleman for yielding. i rise on behalf of the people of upstate new york to express our sympathies to those affected by this horrific tragedy. we pray for those who lost their lives and recovery of those wounded in the attack. i first met gabrielle giffords many years ago at cornell university where we were graduate students together in the mid 1990's. i did not know her well, but we shared mutual friends who always spoke of her in the kindest of terms. last night i heard from one of gabby's good friend, collin

forth, he shared the following. quote, gabrielle is a strongly principaled person who at cornell continually worked towards improvement, finding a way to reach a positive agreement. i found myself continually impressed with her ability to see workable solutions to issues, even when we did not agree on the issues. gabby is fun, passionate, intelligent, highly competent, and focused. she is a person who turns words into actions. something that should be valued now more than ever. close quote. gabby, cornell prays for you and the citizens of upstate new york are reaching out to all those families affected by this senseless act of violence and praying that they may find peace, comfort, and healing. thank you for this opportunity, madam speaker. i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from california. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from california is recognized for two minutes.

mrs. davis: i come here today shaken by an act of horrific proportions yet heartened by pountiful act of the human spirit. we are comforted in these times the pain and shock can be lightened if only temporarily by knowing that the good overwhelmed the bad. i think that is how gabby would want us to reflect today. we grieve for the losses and the pain felt in the community of tucson for ordinary people who we learned are quite extraordinary. we know the tireless efforts of our own staff who come to work every day with one goal in mind, to help people. that's why we mourn the loss of gabe zimmerman. but most of all i come here today to say in the most public way i can my love, and hebrew prayer for the sick, which celebrates the spirit of

healing to those recovering from their wounds and particularly to my dear friend and colleague, congresswoman gabrielle giffords. people beyond gabby's district are learning about the political acueman of this talented and engaging leader. as public servants, we do our jobs by listening to the american people, by looking constituents in the eye, assuring them that we want to help. letting them know we understand with a nod, happened shake, and most often a hug as gabby frequently was known to do. to have that important connection so shaken by the attempted assassination of our colleagues and friend is devastating. but gabby of all people was an example of what it means to be connected to your district. i know she wouldn't stand for this kind of violence but she also wouldn't stand for allowing it to stop us from our

service. whenever she talked about her constituents, she prefaced it with i really understand where they are coming from and we need to solve this problem. her constituents are fortunate to have such a representative with such energy and skill who scarce about them so deeply. may i have a minute? mr. pastor: 30 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. mrs. davis: who cares about them deeply their concerns and fears and hopes. and who knows how to work with people from all political persuasions. my heart goes out to everyone affected by this massacre and the shock from it reverberates throughout my community and our country. so i am listening to my constituents and hope that this tragedy will engage us anew in serious and civil discourse on how we can lead a better world for our children -- leave a better world for our children and grandchildren. that is what gabby strives to do daily. it is what she would want us to be doing right now.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: madam speaker, at this time i'd like to yield to the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. shuster, three minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized for three minutes. mr. shuster: thank you, madam speaker. i rise today with a heavy heart to join my colleagues in support of this resolution and to honor the innocent americans whose lives were so senselessly and tragically altered by the events in tucson last week. gabrielle giffords was embodying the very essence of what it means to be an elected representative in our great republic by meeting and listening to her constituents last saturday. dave zimmerman, ron barber, and pamela simon were doing their jobs like thousands of other dedicated congressional staffers who support us and the work we do here every day in washington and especially back in our districts. the americans who lost their lives on saturday and the innocent victims who were wounded were performing their civic duty to take an active role in their government own among them were 9-year-old

christina taylor green and pittsburgh native judge john roll. let us not forget the heroism of those who subdued the attacker preventing further loss of life. they put their own lives on the line to protect their neighbors. they represent the best of america and shine in our darkest hour. we will not allow this tragedy to weaken our resolve or undermine the psych red responsibility that we as -- the sacred responsibility that we as eelected servants have. gabby was a friend of mine. we first became friends when i looked at her bioand realized her family and her were operators and owners of a tire business just as my family was. so not only could gabby and i talk policy but talk tire and there are few women that can talk tire like gabby. also i served on the armed services committee with her, got to know her well, but got to know her very well we

traveled on two trips, one to afghanistan and one to iraq. it was the week before her wedding to mark that we traveled and she talked about looking forward to her marriage and to future trips. just last week we discussed going to afghanistan again. i look forward to gabby's speedy recovery for her return here to the house and for that trip that we will take to afghanistan to go greet or men and women in harm's way. may god bless gabby. may god continue to bless the united states of america. thank you very much. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: madam speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from oregon. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon is recognized for two minutes. mr. blumenauer: i appreciate the opportunity to come together to express our sorrow and support for our friend and colleague, gabby giffords, and the 19 other victims. i cherish the time i spent with gabby in tucson to promote the livability of her community.

i saw the respect congresswoman giffords commanded from the entire civic leadership. i witnessed the emotional connection between gabby and her political supporters. they knew she was somebody special. and you could see she treated each of them the same way. then there is the bond between gabby and her team. it makes it so jarring the loss of gabe zimmerman, the wounding of ron barber and pam simon of her office. her outstanding staff is representative of the amazing men and women over 10,000 in all here on capitol hill and back home who make the government process possible. they are like family. not just for gabby. we must do all we can to protect the safety of staff and the employees who serve our country every day. finally, this is about our relationship with gabby and our responsibility to heal and repair. the path forward is illustrated by gabby herself. the best example i know of someone who uses her intelligence, charm, passion, and commitment to bring people together.

they can sort out of difficult issues that way and move forward with the same good humor, skill, and results as gabby. as she recovers i hope we can honor her service and sacrifice by doing all that we can to restore that spark, that civility, and commitment to civilize discord. madam speaker, that's a tall order. can we beat the odds? our dear friend gabby will show us how as she is beating the odds right now. i'm confident her recovery will be a triumph of her spirit, will, and intellect, and be a further inspiration to us all. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: madam speaker, at this time i'd like to yield two minutes to the gentleman from new york, mr. reed. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york is recognized for two minutes. mr. reed: thank you, madam speaker. madam speaker, i rise today without a script but to send my thoughts and prayers and all of the thousands of people from my district out to the

congressman's family, to the congressman herself, and to all the families that were affected by such a tragic day in our nation's history. we shall never forget what happened last saturday. but as i walked into work today , and i saw the sun breaking as it was coming up and shining on the dome of the capitol, there was a glorious site, because what it reminded me is that even in our darkest days, this nation always will rise again. as we stand here rightfully and pay our respects to our dear colleague, and the families that suffered so much, and are suffering as we speak, let us not forget that this nation will rise and we will persevere. thank you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back.

the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from new york. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from new york is recognized for two minutes. mrs. mccarthy: thank you. the great state of new york certainly sends their wishes and their prayers to the great state of arizona. new york state went through a horror the same as arizona is going through now. it's so parallel, it's scary. six killed, 20 injured. my husband dying, murdered, my son, shot. but this is really a message of hope. because my son did survive. many of the victims survived. but i think the wonderful thing that needs to be out there are

the prayers that came through from all parts of this country. gabby's staff is suffering terribly. those that have died, your families are suffering terribly. and those that have been wounded have to go through the pain to heal. i say to all of you, time will heal you. you'll never forget, but time will make you smile again. gabby would be so proud of this chamber today. one of the things that gabby is known for on how bipartisan she is. and she has brought this chamber together. it's just a shame that a

tragedy has to bring us all together. gabby's going to be fine. and she will be back here. and she'll be over there, hugging people, talking to people, but this what we as a nation have to learn, we can disagree, but we need to work together. that is what gabby wants. and that's what she'll push when she gets back here. so with that the prayers of this nation go to all. god bless our country. god bless the victims. with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: madam speaker, at this time i'd like to yield three minutes to the gentl from ohio, miss smith. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from ohio is recognized for three minutes. mrs. schmidt: thank you, madam speaker. i rise today to recognize and honor our colleague, gabby

giffords, and to mourn the loss of those that died in tucson on saturday and to also pray for those who have been affected by this great tragedy and to applaud the courage of those who risked their lives so that others might live and to thank the first responders and the health care professionals whose quick action and work saved their lives. you know, madam speaker, nobody ever thought saturday would happen, especially gabby. she was just out there doing her job. and when you think of the 20 families and the community and the nation and how we have been affected by this act of violence, you think of the little girl that went there to meet her congresswoman who never came home. you think about the person that took her, that wonderful neighbor, who now will always think about what if i hadn't have done this. what if i hadn't have said would you like to come? madam speaker, there are so

many people affected by this tragedy. . and no one can ever understand the mind of a person that would do this random ability of violence. but we -- act of violence. but we as a nation can come together. we can recognize the courage of those that helped stop him. we can recognize the courage of those that are fighting for their lives, especially our gabby. we can pray especially that this nation will never again see that kind of tragedy and most importantly, madam speaker, we as a nation, and i know people have said to me, well, what can we do? we as a nation can pray. get down on our knees every morning and every night, pray for gabby, pray for her family, pray for those folks that are suffering in the hospital, pray for those moms and those dads and those brothers and those sisters and those aunts and those uncles and those grandparents that will never touch the family members again. pray for gabby's staff.

mourn the loss of her staffer. mourn the loss of all six who perished. but most importantly to pray that the folks that have been affected can have the courage to go on. you know we had a prayer service and there was a beautiful song written and at the end of the song he says, we pray for healing of people, we pray for healing of the land and peace for every race and nation, every child, every woman, every man. i don't think any words can sum up what we need to do here now today. so let us pray for gabby, that she comes back and she fights for what she believes in and i welcome her spirited debate and her smile and her pollyanna point of view but let us hope that all of those who have been touched by this tragedy can heal and heal in a short one. thank you, god bless this country. and god bless all in it. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: madam speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from georgia. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from georgia is recognized for two minutes. >> i thank the gentleman for yielding. miami, my wife and i were shocked and saddened to learn of the awful events in tucson, arizona, last saturday. first and foremost our prayers are with gabby giffords, her family, her staff, and the other victims of this senseless tragedy. since she was first elected in 2006 gabby giffords has been one of the brightest lights in this congress. i've gotten to know her personally in the blue dog coalition and she's my friend. mr. bishop: i've been especially impressed by her intelligence, her warm personality and her singular ability to bridge differences and bring people together. these qualities and the fact that she was attacked while

serving her constituents makes the situation all the more heartbreaking. in the book of isiah, it is written, come let us reason together. let us then take this opportunity to pause and reflect on the lives of the victims, the heroism of the first responders and the bedrock principle of american democracy, reaffirmed in the resolution before us today, the right to assemble peacefully and to petition the government for the redress of grievances. we must not let violence or the threat of violence deter us from representing our constituents and doing the nation's business. god bless gabby giffords, the other injured, the families of those who were killed, the people of arizona and the united

states of america. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: madam speaker, at this time it's my privilege to yield two minutes to the gentleman from new jersey, mr. frelinghuysen. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey is recognized for two minutes. mr. frelinghuysen: madam speaker, saturday was indeed a grim day for our nation. it was a day our beloved colleague, gabrielle giffords, was attacked while doing her job, listening to her constituents. it was gabby herself who aptly said just last year that the term representative is more than a job description. than a job title. as we all work to represent our constituents in our states and nation, the speaker is correct when he said that an attack on one who serves is an attack on all who serve. last weekend gabby's efforts to serve her constituents brought her staff, herself and her constituents into a line of fire from a deranged man who shot 21 defenseless, innocent civilians.

six people died and many were wounded. phyllis schneck was a 79-year-old native of new jersey who lived during the summer on -- in the green pond section in my congressional district. she was one of those. mrs. schneck and her late husband lived in many years and were active members of the oak ridge church. she was a member of the monthville women's club. she was a mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. hers as were the others were lives well lived. mr. speaker, our minds reel from saturday's violence. our hearts ache for those slain and injured and their families and friends. however as is so often the case when an act of random cruelty bewilders and depressions -- depresses us, exceptional displays of generosity owe, courage and heroism can -- generosity, courage and heroism can act as a counterweight. these acts remind us of the extraordinary selflessness that people are capable.

let's remember and salute those acts today. mark and gabby, we are thinking of you, we are behind you, all the time. we love you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: madam speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from ohio. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from ohio is recognized for two minutes. ms. kaptur: thank you very much, madam speaker. i rise in support of the resolution and join my clear deeg -- dear colleagues and on behalf of the people of northern ohio, join citizens across our nation in pouring out compassion and healing to the families and citizens of arizona who have been so harmed and wounded at liberty's door step, the u.s. house of representatives. let our prayers and comfort flow to the victims, to the healers, to those who must carry forward with full memory and understanding of what has transpired and why. let us strive to do and to be so

much better as a people. our collective feeling of brotherly and strl love and the unity that flows from it holds the power to heal. we all feel that desire. our constituents feel that desire. congresswoman gabby giffords, our beloved colleague, is fighting to show us the way forward. we pray for her and her family, we pray for all victims and their families, we pray for all those who are taking this difficult journey with them. what a remarkable young woman gabby is. she represents the highest aspirations of america, she is kind, talented, highly motivated, and so in love with her husband, mark. and we know gabby is a fighter and so very enjoyable to be with. we embrace her, her family, her staff with the same affection as would she. and if gabby were able at this moment, we know she would be emcombracing the victims of the

fallen and -- embracing the victims of the fallen and their loved ones. this is a time for america to take stock of itself. no one should have to endure what these citizens have had to endure and no one should have had to endure the meanspirited and insightful political campaign gabby did. in the sweep of history, this attack was an attack on liberty. it desecrates our worth as a people. we must all search our souls. how could such a heinous act transpire? if the evidence shows that unaddressed mental illness coupled with guns and disturbing internet postings were contributing factors -- may i ask for an additional 0 seconds? mr. pastor: 30 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for 30 seconds. ms. kaptur: if the evidence shows that unaddressed mental illness coupled with guns and disturbing internet postings were contributing factors, as when two capitol police officers were gunned down just a decade ago outside this chamber, then congress must finally, finally

engage that which to date it has been unwilling to fully embrace and understand. when human tragedy falls at your knees, do you look away or do you stoop to pick up the pieces and ask why? why? may god bless america, may the campaigns of 2012 be conducted this a man that are brings credit to our nation's highest aspirations, mindful of the suffering that has occurred and may god give america and her leaders and her people grealt wisdom in the days ahead. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman's time has expired. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: madam speaker, at this time i would like to yield two minutes to the gentlelady from illinois, mrs. biggert. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from illinois is recognized for two minutes. mrs. biggert: madam speaker, i rise today with a heavy heart to express my condolences to the families and loved ones of congresswoman gabrielle giffords, her staffer gabe

zimmerman and all the victims of last saturday's shooting. i call my colleagues here today, i have struggling to make sense out -- i have struggled to make sense out of this horrible tragedy after first hearing the news that our colleague and friend had been viciously attacked. as i watched the news and learned about the innocent lives that had been cut short it became painfully clear to me that nothing will ever be able to explain such an atrocity. politics is the art of genteel disagreement and actions like those we witnessed last saturday have no place, no excuse, no explanation nor rationalization in our democratic system. what i do know is that gabby is fighting hard for her life, fighting with the same tenacity that fueled her passion for public service and i take comfort in the knowledge that my friend is winning that battle. like gabby we must never stop fighting for our great democracy

and the time-honor traddigses that keep it strong -- traditions that keep it strong. neither we nor our constituents, all 300-plus million of them, will not be intimidated by the violent actions of the few. as americans we will come together and mourn for those who lost their lives that day and we will honor the survivors and heroes of this tragedy that stood strong together in the face of madness. madam speaker, i join all my colleagues here today to express my support for this resolution and i know i speak for all my constituents in the 13th district of illinois when i say that we share the loss of our friends from arizona and our thoughts and prayers are with their families at this difficult time. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: madam speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from missouri, mr. clay. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri is recognized for two minutes.

mr. clay: thank you, madam speaker. i thank the gentleman from arizona for yielding and i rise in support of this bipartisan resolution and to offer my thoughts and prayers for the swift healing and complete recovery of my friend and colleague, congresswoman gabby giffords. the dedicated members of her staff who were also wounded and all of the other innocent victims of this unconscionable act of violence. i also want to express my sincere sympathies to the families of u.s. district court judge john roll, gabe zimmerman, a valued member of our congressional family, dorwin stoddard, dorothy morris, phyllis schneck and most especially christina green, a remarkable 9-year-old child who had just won her first election to the student council and wanted to speak to her congresswoman about a career in

public service. madam speaker, as speaker boehner so aptly noted just moments after this tragedy occurred, an attack on one who serves is an attack on all who serve. and i would venture to say that all of us who have the high honor of serving in this body, the people's house, have searched our souls to try to understand the nature of this attack on the very core of our democracy. like most of us, congresswoman giffords knows that there is simply no substitute for spending time with your constituents. the plain truth is that you cannot effectively represent your community in congress unless you make time to interact with the people who hired you for this job. and as for me, i will continue to do that. because i truly believe that even in the face of this kind of

mindless violence, constituents have a right to question their members of congress directly. and we who have been entrusted with the honor of public service must never allow fear or threats to undermine that fundamental principle and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: so we may be able to equalize the remaining time i'd like to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. altmire. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized for two minutes. mr. altmire: on behalf of the fourth congressional district of pennsylvania, i rise to pay tribute and offer our deepest condolences to the victims of the tragedy in tucson. as a member of the class of 2006, i grew to know gabby quite well, and we look forward

to the day, hopefully quite soon, when she will join us back here in this chamber. i know her well enough to know that her action today would be to honor the 19 constituents who were affected by this tragedy, especially the six who lost their lives. it is in that spirit we honor 63-year-old district judge john roll, an active catholic parishioner, christina green, 9 years old, who already told her parent she was looking forward to a career in public service and attending college at penn state. gabe zimmerman, newly engaged, master of social work, dead cailted his life to public service. 79-year-old phyllis schneck, new jersey native, church volunteer, loved cooking and spending time with her family.

76-year-old dorwin stoddard, devout christian, survivor of 17 heart stents, died saving the life of his wife, a grade school friend, and 76-year-old dorothy morris. we pay tribute to them all and we thank them for their service to this country and we will not let this attack deter us from carrying on the business of the american people and engaging in civil discourse in our representative democracy. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: i yield one minute to the gentleman from washington. the distinguished gentleman from washington. the speaker pro tempore: the dwisheds gentleman from

washington is recognized for one minute. >> madam speaker what does the lord require? do justice, love her mercy and walk halmably -- humbly with god. these words from the prophet mica are as true -- micah are as true today as they were when they were first spoken. they give us an example as we try to come to terms with the tragedy in arizona. we can have justice and humility in our hearts. when micah said these words, they were guidance, today they are a plea. i know we can heed these words. madam speaker, i ask that we keep all victims and families of them in our prayers and especially that we keep gabby in our hearts. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from california, mr. coughlin. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. coffman: i rise today in support of house resolution 32. i had the opportunity to work with representative giffords over the last two years on the house armed services committee and i've always admired the gentlelady from arizona for her dedication to heents and to our nation. this resolution before us today condemns in the strongest possible terms the horrific attack which occurred last saturday in tucson, arizona. this resolution offers the heart felt condolences to the families, friends, and loved ones of those who were killed in that attack. it expresses the hoeppner rapid and complete recovery of those wounded in the shooting. it applauds the bravery and quick thinking exhibited by

those who prevented the gunman from potentially take manager lives. it recognizes the services of the first responders who raced to the scene and the health care professionals who tended to the victims. and this resolution stands firm in its belief in a democracy in which all can participate nand which intimidation and threat of violence cannot silence the voices of any american. this resolution honors the service and leadership of representative giffords a distinguished member of this house. as she courageously fights to recover. madam speaker, when adjourning today, let us do so out of respect for the victims of this attack. thank you, madam speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back.

the gentleman from california continues to reserve. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: i yield two minutes to the distinguished gentlelady from ohio. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. ms. sutton: we know ms. giffords as a member of the class of 2006, she's an outstanding public servant whose sole and constant commitment to help make her district and our nation as great as it can be. the shooting that left gabby fighting to recover and claimed the lives of her outreach director gabe zimmerman and five other innocent victims was horrific and stunning. our thoughts and prayers go out to gabby, her husband mark, and their family and all the victims -- families of the victims. in the last few days, the nation has learned much about gabby and her commitment to service and kindness. we also learned of others affected on that day.

we learned of christina green, a child full of grace, born on 9/11, taken away far too soon but who will be remembered always, not only by her family but by a grieving nation that glimpsed her spirit. america has learned of gabe zimmerman who used his life to maybe a difference in his community and country. and of judge roll, committed to justice and the rule of law. of dorothy morris, beloved wife of george morris, who was also critically wounded as he tried to shield her from the bullet. and of phyllis schneck, beloved grandmother of three -- mother of three and grandmother of seven. and dorwin stoddard, who gave his life to protect his wife. we remember the heroes who came to the aid of fellow citizens. these ordinary yet great

americans reflecting the best of our nation and its citizenry. we join together today to condemn this viability rampage. let us also join together to express our appreciation for those who offer themselves up in service like gabby and gabe and judge roll and all who were there participating in our representative republic. let us reach out one to another in common purpose. it's been said, god has not called us to see through each other but to see each other through. let it be so. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from virginia, mr. goodlatte. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. goodlatte: i am shocked and saddened by the senseless act of violence that occurred saturday against representative girds and her constituents.

just days before this attack, representative giffords joined me and many others to join the constitution on the floor. it was my hon no to yield to her to read the first amendment and on saturday, those who gathered with her at her congress on the corner event were prktiesing their first amendment rights. our thoughts and prayers are with gabby, her family, her staff and others affected by saturday's tragic events in tucson. while this tragedy serves as an unfortunate reminder of evil actions, it must also remind thousands of good in people as we hear the stories of the people of to -- of the heroes of that day, people who gave their lives and saved other lives. we cannot allow this act of violence that occurred against

congresswoman giffords to deter us from our jobs or deter the american people from exercising their precious freedom. i read again the words ms. girds read on the floor on thursday. amendment 1, congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof or abridging the freedom of speech or the press or the right of the people to peaceably assemble and to petition the government for redress of grievances. i don't know if ms. giffords spoke on the floor after that, those may have been the last words she uttered on the floor of the house, i join my colleagues in praying that we will see her again on this floor, exercising her precious freedom and god bless her and all the victims of this tragedy. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from utah. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two

minutes. >> thank you, madam speaker. on saturday morning in tucson, it started out in a very good way. it started out with a number of people who wanted to engage in one of the great american traditions. a tradition of our government which is, we have a discussion of ideas. that's what america is about a competition of ideas. we have we had congresswoman giffords an her staff and members of the community gather. that's a positive start to that day. of course that positive start was destroyed by the tragic acts that have been recounted by so many on the floor. mr. matheson: we all stepped back in shock and horror and sadness at what took place in tucson. it's an attack on the individuals that clearly affects all their lives, it's also an attack on sort of what this country is about. it's important that as we hope and pray for the recovery of the victims and we hope and pray for understanding for the

families of the victims and we money the loss of those who perished that day, it's important that we also recognize that they were great americans who were there to exercise their right of assembly and had a great american jurisdiction that represents what the american government is all about, we can sit down have discussions, we can disagree with each other. that's the strength of this country, that's the idea behind america, we have that opportunity to look for the best ideas, from wherever they come. when it comes to public service, it would be good for all of us to recognize the ideals of our colleague, gabby giffords a good friend a good colleague, someone who had the right motivations when the first got to congress and continues to represent those motivations. someone who is smart, articulate, looking to solve problems, someone who knew how to be passionate for her constituents. i think everybody in this well probably knows a story where gabby talked to them about her constituents in tucson on an

issue that mattered to her. that's what impresses me about representative giffords, it's a model i think we can all remember and continue to follow as we do our best for our constituents. so, madam speaker, i close by saying i wish all the best to the families and victims, our thoughts and prayers are with them. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from south carolina, mr. duncan. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. duncan: let me preface my remarks by saying that i barely know gabby. as a freshman member of the house, i was sworn in last week with a lot of colleagues that i hope to get to know over the coming days. but i rise today in concert with my friends and colleagues on both sides of the aisle to express the sadness and grief that all in our country feel over the loss of life in tucson this past weekend.

the citizens of south carolina mourn with our nation and we lift up in prayer the families and friends of the victims in arizona. much of the coverage and attention has been centered around our wounded colleague gabby. my family and i join in praying for her healing and for the others who have been wounded. i also wanted to celebrate the lives of the six who were lost, 9-year-old christina green, an inspiration to us all. judge john roll, congressional staffer gabriel zimmerman. pastor dorwin stoddard. dorothy morris and phyllis schneck. while we mourn their loss, we also remember what they meant to their families, to their friends and to their communities. i join with all my fellow americans in honoring their lives and in praying that god's comfort would rest upon their families. may god bless them as he may continue to bless america.

i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: i yield two minutes to the distinguished gentleman from michigan. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. dingell: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. dingell: i thank my dear friend for yielding me this time and i rise along with my colleagues for -- with sincere condolences to those who lost loved ones last saturday. the victims aamongst them were a young student, a number of congressional staff members, one of our dear friends and colleagues who has served with distinction and remarkable ability and grace, and an outstanding federal judge. i've witnessed horrific events,

like other members, i find the current state of affairs is somewhat new to me. one of my colleagues as we were going to the memorial service that he had as a judge sent large members of people off to jail but never concerned about his own personal safety and that of his family. our founding fatthers wanted our system of government to be a vigorous one, full of enthusiastic and vibrant debate but they didn't want to see the kind of debate and discussion that we are seeing both in this place and other places of public assembly. let me read some statements that i have seen to be pretty awful. people are looking towards the 2nd amendment amendments and saying my goodness, what can we

do to turn our country around. the first thing we need to do is take out blank. next one, i want people in blank armed and dangerous on this issue because we need to fight back. i want to kill blank with a shovel. every night i get down on my knees and pray blank wilburs into flames. our nation was founded on violence. i don't think we should ever remove anything from the table as it relates to our liberties and freedoms. don't retreat, reload. i would observe if you had seen you saw the district of gabrielle giffords had a crosshairs put on it. as a lifetime rifleman and

shooter, i know what it signifies. if ballots don't work, bullets will. so here we have a den gracious of the great debate and the system of government of ours where threats are made. members of this body have a duty to speak out as do members of the media who have been saying these kinds of things and leading us to create a threat not just to the well-being of our members but also the lives and well-being of the lives of this country. mr. lungren: i yield myself such time as i may consume. last week, gabby giffords did speak the words of the first amendment on the floor and they talked about the right of citizens in the united states to

come and plead their case to their members of congress and to seek the redress of their grievances. and i think they -- our founding fathers anticipated that we would be involved in robust and vigorous debate. but they also hoped that we would utilize some sense of civility as we did so. i would like to read an email that i received from a constituent that would bring a smile to the lips of gabby giffords and responds in some way to what the gentleman from michigan has just said. dear representative lungren, i write to share with you my feelings of hearing the news of the terrible shooting. i find i'm overwhelmed by emotion. in the past and i suspect in the future, i have disagreed with you on many of the political things that you have said and done. i have voted against you. i have even felt expressed frustration and anger about you. i wish now to state that if

unlikely circumstances arose and i were in a position to protect you from physical attack, i would do whatever i possibly could to preserve your safety and your person at whatever risk to myself. our democracy and freedom cannot survive if elected officials feel threatend and find themselves having to consider their physical safety as they make the decisions and feel the responsibilities of office. please continue to do your job as a member of congress as best you can. i will continue to disagree with you when and as needed. i am just one man, but all of us citizens can only do what we can do. i, for one, will never threaten, encourage or resort to any violence whatsoever while debating, disputing or arguing politics. for whatever tiny weight i count in this great seat of america, i want you to feel safe from any

harm. make your decisions and vote your votes in congress. please try and not be such an idiot republican about it and know that you are safe in the 3rd district for all of your life if i can have any say in the matter. thanks for all the work that you do. most sincerely. that's a message that i know gabby would want us to embrace and one that would not only give her resolve, but hopefully attract her sense of humor as well. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: i will yield two minutes to the gentlelady from ohio. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. ms. fudge: i thank the gentleman for yielding. madam speaker, it is with a heavy heart i stand today to support this resolution and to

encourage congresswoman gabby giffords, her family and all victims of the arizona shooting. i am in prayer for their well-being, their healing and their peace. gabby and i served together on the science and technology committee and lived in the same d.c. apartment building. i learned of her passion for people and her commitment to service. in her honor, i call for a return to compassion and an abandonment of hate-ladened rhetoric. dr. king said returning violence for violence, multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. darkness cannot drive out hate. only love can do that. if i could speak directly to the american people, i would ask them to combat this great darkness with love, not with fear. i would ask them to combat this

great darkness with a tide of hope and faith and perseverance and to understand our unity. i thank you, madam speaker and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the gentlman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: madam speaker, i yield two minutes to the the gentleman from missouri. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. >> i rise today to recognize and lift up my friend from arizona, congresswoman gabby giffords, dedicated public servants on her staff and the citizens engaged in democracy meeting with their representatives at a "congress on your corner" public event. in the aftermath of this horrific attack, we learned about the lives and actions of

the victims and heroes that reflect the best of america. gabby not only spoke out regarding the importance of government by the people, but she lived it every day. last week, i sat here on this floor of the house in line with gabby as we read the u.s. constitution. the section she read from this very podium was the first amendment, that protects the right of the people to peacebly assemble and petition the government for redress of grievances. because of her great example of an engaged public servant truly being a representative stays close to the people. this resolution before us today is necessary and appropriate, but by itself, will not belong remembered, but will be remembered is our resolve. our unified national resolve to stand against extreme and divisive rhetoric and against building barriers between

citizens and representatives that would weaken our democracy and diminish our way of life. an attack on one citizen while engaging in democracy is an attack on all citizens and the very foundation of our democracy. let us resolve in honor of all the victims in tucson that every representative and every citizen continue to meet on corners across america to work through our differences, find common ground and make progress working together. to gabby and every person impacted by this tragedy, we resolve today to always be in your corner. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: at this time, i would like to yield two minutes to the the gentleman from ohio, mr. latha. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for -- mr. latta. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. latta: thank the gentleman for yielding. i rise on this sad day to join

my colleagues in recognizing the lives of those affected by the horrible tragedy in tucson, arizona this past weekend. as we reflect on this tragic event, the one thing that must be remembered our colleague, congresswoman giffords was simply doing her job, a job she loves to do. meeting with her swipts and providing them with assistance is the basic duty of any member of congress. the best and only way for members of congress to carry out our oath is to be with, listen to and see what our constituents are experiencing. the name plate on the front of our offices reads representative. and congressman giffords was doing just as we do day in and day out, representing our citizens at home and here in washington. the loss of life and injury suffered by the victims will always be remembered by this

body, whether it was federal judge roll, or gabriel zimmerman or christina green, all will hold special thoughts. we cannot let this act of heinous violence to deter us and we will move forward together as a stronger, united house. madam speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from pennsylvania. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from pennsylvania is recognized for two minutes. ms. schwartz: last saturday in tucson and across the country, so many americans, including myself, were horrified and saddened at the shooting at the congressional outreach event. the senselessness, violence, magnitude of death and injury

was stunning and alarming. it's a personal tragedy, a national tragedy and heartbreaking and wrenching, because we all share in the provided of our representative democracy. members reaching out to their constituents and constituents having the opportunity formally and informally to talk to their representative in congress is at the core of our responsibilities and a value we all hold as americans. even as we mourn, as americans we cannot allow this to diminish or deter our civic interactions. i ask for my colleagues to join together in honoring those who were killed. my thoughts and deepest sympathies are with them and their loved ones and to gabby. gabby is our colleague and our friend. i share in honoring her commitment to public service and her principled leadership on behalf of her swipts and has a deep passion for who we are as

americans and working to find that common ground to meet our nation's challenges. her inner strength and good spirit are all serving her well as she struggles to recover from her wounds. reports from her doctors are positive. my thoughts and prayers are with gabby and all those injured for a swift and full recovery and i extend those thoughts and prayers to her husband mark and to all the families and friends of the victims, gabby's staff and all those affected by the senseless shooting. i love this country deeply and the values we all share. it is my hope that our nation will come together to honor those who perished and affirm our commitment to move forward in a way that allows us to voice our differences and debate the solutions to our challenges while respecting our shared love and dedication to our great nation. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i yield two minutes

to the the gentleman from arkansas, mr. griffin. mr. griffin: i thank the gentleman for yielding me time. i rise today in memory of the victims and in support of my colleague from arizona, her staff, the loved ones of the victims and those who bravely responded to the attack. my freshman colleagues and i have only been here for a few short days but in representative giffords, we tee the temper meant and dedication needed to be good representatives of the people. she embodies these qualities and is an example for everyone here in the people's house. let's not forget the personal side, those lost include two dedicated public servapts, a devoted great-grandmother and a husband whose action was protecting his wife and nine-year-old interested in public service. they will all be missed.

in the wake of this tragedy, we find sole ace and power in prayer. my prayers are for the families of the victims and speedy recovery for the representative giffords. i pray for the medical workers that their work heals those who have been injured, i i pray for the leaders and their staff and i pray for our country, asking god for his blessings in our time of grief. this attack hits each of us in a personal way, but we must resolve to move forward in representing the men and women who sent us here. i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from new jersey. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman is recognized for two minutes. >> madam speaker, i rise to express my sincere condolences to the families affected by this tragedy and the family of congresswoman girds. mr. payne: to the people of the eighth congressional district of arizona, we know what you're going through, the life of a 9-year-old who wanted to be a student council representative and was elected to that, christina taylor green, federal judge john roll, father and grandfather, phyllis schneck, a former new jersey yite, who still loved the new york giants who play in new jersey. gabriel zimmerman, in charge of outreach, and two 76-year-olds,

including dorwin stoddard who shielded his wife. i join my colleagues in condemning the act of violence which was a product of hatred that threatens oh the democksoif this nation in which we can all participate in with intimidation and threats of violence, cannot silence the voices of any american, cookwoman giffords, he staff members and constituents, where exercise -- who were exercising this very privilege on saturday, january 8, as well as the right to afford all of us under the first amendment of the constitution. it's ironic that gun violence has brought down leaders throughout history, president lincoln, president john f. kennedy in 1960 during -- in

1963, during that time, his brother, robert kennedy 15rk years later, mahatma gandhi who brought india into independence, and to itzhak rabin who if he had lived, i think there would be peace in the middle east and of course dr. martin luther king. may i have 30 seconds? mr. pastor: i yield an additional 30 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. payne: as we think about the tragedy of those who lost their lives, i implore each and every one of us to overflow in support and love. we know that only love drives out hatred and only good drives out evil. i yield back the balance of my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from texas, mr. brady. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. brady: we gather here today to honor the victims and heroes that took place in arizona this past weekend. gabby giffords is one of the best this house has to offer. gabby embodies the type of public servant in of -- many of us try to be, smart, kind and dedicated, fulfilling they are duty, representing her constituents. that's why she was holding a public meeting on the first weekend of the new session. i pray for her recovery and that of her staff and i look forward to working with her once more in this body. i think in the darkest miamis of history we also see the brightest stars, the men who wrestled the gunman to the floor, the woman who kicked the magazine away, the intern who

had enough first aid training to put pressure on gabby's head wound and the first responders who responded to that team, the medical teams that got most of the victim into the operating rooms in under 38 minutes. gabby's staff so clearly represent re-flects her leadership. gabe zimmerman lost his life fulfilling his duty, two others are wounded. with epray for their recovery and for gabe's family and friends. the efforts of her intern dan hernandez may have saved gabby's life and we'll always be grateful for his quick action. we also pray for the other victims of the violence, christina taylor, dorwin stoddard, judge roll, we pray for swift and fair justice for them as well. as we stand here today, democrats and republicans we are steadfast in our determination to keep representing our constituents. we'll not let the events in tucson change the way we

represent the people. we'll look to saturday's heroes as a remainder of the real strength that is america. we no that adversity, however tragic, makes us stronger and brings us closer together. we look forward to the day we welcome her back to the chamber and god bless america and all her citizens hurting in the wake of this tradgedism the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: i yield two minutes . the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. >> in the last two days, i've run into people from anymy district, the third district of maryland, who expressed their shock and sadness at the events that occurred in arizona. i want to express our deep condolences to the families of all those victimized by this tradgedism

mr. sarbanes: a word about gabby giffords, our colleague. she and i came in together in the same class, we dwan in january of 2007, -- we began in january of 2007, she is everything that a representative in this body should be. she's thoughtful, hardworking, compassionate and to a fault, she is attentive to the concerns of her constituents. that's why she was there at that supermarket last saturday. we pray for her speedy recovery, we pray for the recovery of all those who survived this terrible event and we mourn the loss of those who perished and we send our thoughts and prayers to their families. with that, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from washington, the former distinguished sheriff of king county, mr. reichert. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. reichert: madam speaker, there are few words that have touched me over the past few days that i'd like to share. first, thankfulness. thoughtfulness. prayerfulness. patience. wisdom, and hope. and first we should remember those who have lost loved ones, keep them in your thoughts and prayers. they'll not need them just today but in the weeks and months and years to come a pain that will never, will never leave their hearts. second, thankfulness. we sure thank god for gabby's remarkable recovery and pray that her recovery continues in a speedy way and in a way that

causes her to recover to the point where she can return to this house and work with us again. and i think of patience and wisdom and i'm addressing to the speaker but asking the members of this body to think about patience and wisdom in a moment because first of all, let's respect the investigation that's being conducted by the law enforcement officers across this country, federal, local and state agencies. let's respect their continued efforts in weeding through the information they're gathering. let's be patient when we think about legislation and laws that we might be passing that could inhibit that investigation or maybe even inhibit some of the freedoms that we today enjoy. patience in allowing them to gather the needed information where we can base good decisions on building good laws that protect the citizens of this great nation. lastly, hope. hope.

which is a thing we all hold near and dear to our hearts, hope that this country continues to maintain its freedom. hope in the american people. hope that we can all stand together after this tragedy. if there is a silver lining in this tragedy, it is the hope and the strength and the trust that the people of this country can build together to keep this country free. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from new york. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york is recognized for two minutes. >> i that night to thank owl my colleagues on both sides of the aisle who have spoken today.

gabrielle giffords is a good friend of mine. i met her before she ran for congress, i had a friend who said, there's this lady who wants to run for congress and needs some advice, can you stalk to her? i did and we've been friends ever since. mr. engel: gabby is as nice and sweet and kind oa person as you'll ever meet. she's considerate, thoughtful, caring, smart, hardworking, it's hard to believe that anyone would want to harm her. she was doing what she always did, going out and serving her constituents, helping her constituents, going out to shopping centers. you know, i have another connection with gabby, my son, jonathan, attended the university of arizona, just graduated this year, and she and i spoke very many times about tucson. i've been to tucson many, many times in these past five years. i've even shopped in this

safeway, tradgecri, -- tragically, where the gunman shot all these people including gabby. you know, gabby said something to me this past august as we recessed. i've served as the chair of the western hemisphere subcommittee of house foreign affairs we committee and she served on my subcommittee, and we talked about having a field hearing in tucson. i said to her, let's try to do it in september or october this year. she said to me, no, you know, the language has gotten very hostile and people's attitudes toward washington have been very hostile and i don't want to do anything that would show that i'm the washington person. that's how bad the atmosphere is. i couldn't help but thinking of that when i heard about the shooting on saturday. may i have an additional 30 seconds? >> i yield an additional 30 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman is recognized for 30 seconds. mr. engel: in this country, we do our political discourse with ballot, not bullets. though the assassin tried to murder a u.s. congresswoman, he was trying to stick a stake or murder american democracy. all of us on both sides of the aisle are not going to let him. we're going to continue to do what we've done before, going out in the street, meeting people, taking care and helping our constituents. we're going to continue to atent town hall meetings and do the kinds of things gabby would want us to do i look forward to gabby returning here. i look forward to working with her again. gabby giffords is the best america has to offer and we honor her and all the other victims of the shooting. mr. lungren: at this time, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from louisiana, mr. scalise. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. scalise: madam speaker, it is with a heavy heart today that i join my colleagues in

paying respect to the victims of the senseless tragedy that took place last weekend in arizona. i extend my prayers to the families of those who lost their lives, to the wounded and recovering and to our dear colleague, gabby giffords. she's an energetic member of congress who works and enjoys and treats all those she meets with kindness. i was with her just last week when we were reading the constitution on the floor of the house. she so eloquently read the first amendment. she read of the right of the people to peaceably assemble. all those gathered in tucson were engaging in a peaceful activity that's fundamental to our form of government, spending time with the gentlelady who so proudly advocates on their behalf here in the united states house of representatives.

john roll, an honorable judge, christina taylor green, a nine-year-old girl who wanted to learn about government and dorwin stoddard who gave his life protecting his wife. they are in our thoughts and prayers. our founding fathers included the right to peacebly assemble. the violence of laft saturday is a reminder that we must not waiver in our steadfast support of the first amendment. as our colleague gabby and all of those affected continue to heal from saturday's events, let us remember the victims and loved ones in our thoughts, prayers and action as those of us have known and as people all throughout the nation are witnessing, gabby giffords is a fighter. let's keep in our prayers the hope that she once again joins

us back on the floor this, the people's house. mr. pastor: i yield two minutes to the the gentleman from kentucky. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from kentucky is recognized for two minutes. mr. yarmuth: gabby giffords is one of the hardest election -- elected officials anywhere. she is what virtually every america would say they want in a member of congress, smart, open, friendly, intellectually honest and very brave. she cares passionately about her constituents and as she was demonstrating on saturday what they think. speaker boehner was correct, when he said an attack on a member of congress is an attack on all, but it is more. it was an attack on american democracy. gabby was doing what her job title implied, listening to her constituents at an event set up like hundreds before conducting

the business affecttive for representation. dozens of citizens were asking questions and expressing themselves. the attack on gabrielle giffords was an attack on them as well. tragedies some times creates discussions that we cannot have under normal circumstances. our hope is that such a discussion can strengthen our democracy and help our nation emerge stronger. responsibility for this weekend's shooting in tucson rests solely on the shoulders of the madman who pulled the trigger, but it is our responsibility as citizens to seriously consider the impact that the accessibility of high-capacity weapons and in creased vitriol have on unstable individuals. for all of the pain caused by this tragedy, it can be a turning point.

leaders from across the political spectrum are discussing the vital need to turn down the rhetorical volume and dial back extremism for the sake of our nation. we are praying for gabby's family and let each of us resolve to do what we can to protect our democracy from those who would deny and subvert it. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i yield two minutes to the the gentleman from new york, mr. grim. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. grimm: i thank the gentleman from california. madam speaker, i thank you for the opportunity to come to the house floor to honor the victims of the tragic shooting in arizona. the six individuals killed in the -- and the 14 wounded, including congresswoman gabrielle giffords were victims

of a heinous and despicable act of violence. i want to extend my deepest sympathies to the victims, families and friends and to the staff of congresswoman giffords. we will continue to keep them in our thoughts and prayers. as we come together as a congress and a country to mourn and reflect, i urge my colleagues not to lose sight of what we have been called here to do and what we are here to accomplish. congresswoman giffords was doing the exact thing i hope we will will continue to do, going out into her community and taking the time to meet with, talk to and most of all to listen to her constituents. this is what keeps us connected to the heartbeat of our district. this is what allows us to serve our constituents and our country. this is what democracy is all about. this is what we have been

elected to do. additionally, i implore my colleagues to resist the temptation to enact legislation or call for extreme measures that could adversely impact the institution of the house of representatives. giveing due respect to the capitol police and f.b.i., we should allow them to do their jobs to investigate and afford them the time to offer us recommendations for our safety and that of our staff and constituents. i hope that moving forward, we will not let this incident create distance between ourselves and those we have been sent here to represent. we cannot let this senseless, this completely senseless act of violence keep us from serving our district as effectively as possible. as we move forward, let's remember that while we should remain -- i ask for 30 seconds. mr. lungren: i yield to the gentleman 30 seconds.

. mr. grimm: while we remain of the danger around us, we cannot live in fear or isolate ourselves in a bubble. i mourn with my colleagues and the nation and continue to pray for those lost and pray for congresswoman giffords and the others injured in the attack. and that they will have a full and speedy recovery. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from arizona. mr. pastor: i yield two minutes to the distinguished the gentleman from michigan. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan is recognized for two minutes. >> it is with a heavy heart that i take to the floor of the house today to pay tribute to the fallen but also to honor the heroes, to express grieve in the wake of tragedy, but also to express my heartfelt gattude that showed bravery in the face of evil. i come to the floor of the house today to let every american now

to ex emapply file. the gabby i know is smart and hard working and gabby that southern arizona knows is personalable and accessible and gabby we all know is dedicated and humble. gabby takes her job representing arizona seriously and works hard to effect change on the issues that matter most to her constituents. we both served on the committee on science and technology in the last congress and i was privileged to collaborate with gabby on her signature issue, solar energy development. she worked hard to create not only clean energy for america, but also new jobs for americans. we are both residents of border states, different borders and i was proud to co-sponsor her legislation to give businesses the tools necessary to enforce

immigration standards. i admired her strong commitment to our national defense and tireless dedication to the men and women who serve their country in uniform. it is her smile and friendly nature that makes her a beloved figure. here in the halls of congress as well as in her home district and we all pray for her speedy recovery and mourn the loss those senselessly murdered partaking in democracy. victims like christina taylor, just elected to her student council. she attended the event because she cared about her community and the neighbor thought she would envoy it. while this tragedy has extinguished lives of promise, it has revealed heroes. we stand shoulder and shoulder and pray for the speedy recovery of our friend and the other wounded victims.

mr. pastor: i yield 30 seconds. mr. peters: good bless the victims and their families and those who are grieving and god bless america. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i yield two minutes to the distinguished the gentleman from texas, dr. burgess. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. burgess: i thank the gentleman for yielding. i stand today in support of the resolution. i stand today in support of the victims of the devastating events of last saturday and i stand today in honor of one of our own congresswoman giffords. she was the youngest woman elected to the arizona state senate and continues to serve her constituents with enthusiasm and distinction in this spirit, she participated in her "congress on your corner" event in tucson, arizona. this event characterizes her

approach to her constituents. she recognizes the importance of remaining open to the people. retail representation, absolutely necessary in order to fully grasp the extent of the needs and views of those she served. congresswoman giffords is a public servant, understanding she works for the people, first, last and always. congresswoman giffords was doing the work of the american people when her life was threatend and after she recovers, i have no doubt she will return with that same energy and determination. i look forward to working with her again. i had the opportunity to partner with her on the congressional motor cycle caucus and i saw that enthusiasm firsthand. one of our primary freedoms was the right to life. after years fighting on behalf of others, she must now fight for her own life and let us remember the doctors, nurses, first responders who played a

pivotal role in preventing greater loss of life last saturday. i will keep her and those injured and families in my prayers and i offer deepest condolences to the the families of christina green, judge roll, phyllis sneck, dorothy more is and dorwin stoddard. mr. pastor: i yield two minutes to the the gentleman from new york. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. >> i thank my good friend from arizona. mr. israel: the violence in tucson and shooting of gabby giffords is not a time for partisanship or politics, but a time for reflection and i have three brief reflections to share. i knew gabby pretty well. we weren't best friends but good friends. i was with her and her husband

mark on the day that mark proposed to her. mark kept asking if gabby could leave early and i kept saying no and i said no, there is no choice. and the reason she had to leave the events early was brause mark took her to the merchant marine academy and proposed to her. most of my constituents know her. few know that this important day in her life occurred on long island. second reflection, i believe that gabby would have been uncomfortable with the attention she is getting today and over the past several days. i believe she would want americans more focused on the nine-year-old girl who was killed, the federal judge that was killed, the congressional ever staffer who lost his life and the others killed and wounded. and my final reflection is this, i believe we should reject the notion that gabby's colleagues in congress need to hide from our constituents, that we should

reduce our exposure. this is not the time for us to hide but reassert our connection with our constituents. and this isn't the time for us to hide our opinions. this is a time for us to reassert our opinions, but do it without villifying one another. there is a way to have opinions without necessarily demeaning one another. we have the right to our opinions, but not be called any more or less of an american with a differing opinion. opinions and the expression of those opinions are the essence of democracy. they are american. and it is fitting that gabby giffords on this floor at that podium last week read the first amendment in the constitution, which talks about our right to have opinions. we should continue to express those opinions, but do it in a way that would make our children proud of us. do it in a way that is respectful and tolerant. that is exactly what gabby

giffords did while she was here and what she will do when she returns. i thank the gentleman. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: at this time, i yield two minutes to the the gentleman from california, mr. roorbalker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized -- mr. rohrabacher. mr. rohrabacher: i rise in support of the resolution. the tragedy we discuss today is of enormous consequence to the families of those killed and wounded and our hearts go out to them, especially tore the giffords, and all those killed or wounded in this senseless violence that took place in arizona. . this is not just of great consequence to them but to great consequence of all of us. there are events like this that happen that will help us shape

what we will do in the future. one thing we must not let this do is to reduce the act -- the actual contact between the american people and their elected representatives. we will not let the acts of a demented individual reduce the right of the american people to have a direct contact with their member of the house of representatives and we will not let this senseless act of violence diminish or in some way stampede us into in some way diminishing the freedom and reducing the freedom of the american people themselves. and finally, let me just say, there is a positive lesson to be learned from this tragic event. that is, we must make sure that we treat each other better here in congress and those of us who are active in the political arena need to understand we need to be kinder to each other, even as we disagree with

each other fervently on policy. there's no reason for us to have insinuations about negative values of the person on the other side of the argument. we need to make sure that we exemplify for the american people that people can disagree on fundamental issues, even have basic differences in value systems and what their goal is for our government but still respect the other person's opinion and treat the other person with kindness and dignity. that's one lesson we need to learn and to make sure the american people see us as an example of that. ronald reagan used to say, be really tough when it comes to policy, but dana, be really nice to people. that's how ronald reagan ended the cold war. he was tough on communism but very kind ott people who worked in the soviet union which -- soviet union who led to that disintegration. we need to be kinder to each

other and be respectful of the fact that people on the other side of major issues are as moral as we are but that doesn't mean we shouldn't use tough language about the issues. let's be kinder to each other and let's send that as a get well message to gabby because there's no one else that exemplified that better than her, we know that. congresswoman giffords was on the other side -- i'd ask for an additional one minute if possible. mr. lungren: i yield the gentleman an additional minute. mr. rohrabacher: congresswoman giffords and i were on separate sides of a major issue, i've been on the science committee for 22 years and she was for a totally different approach to the american space program that i have been on. and we had some serious debate on that issue. i will tell you, she was not only was she kind and tar tick lat, but she was brilliant,

which i didn't necessarily want her to show that brilliance in her arguments against my arguments but i remember here on this floor after a major debate that we had, i walked over to her when the gavel was done and people were leaving and i said, you know, you did a great job for your position today. i really respect you more than some of the people on my side of the issue because you were articulate you took your responsibility seriously, you presented your arguments and i just want you to know how much i admire that in you. keep it up and i know you'll be speaker someday, and i don't say that often to my colleagues on the other side of the aisle but that's the type of spirit she had. and i would hope that we send that message to gabby and to the rest of the american people today. thank you very much and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from arizona.

mr. pastor: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. >> on behalf of congresswoman gabby giffords, the families of the victims, the people recovering in tucson and my fellow arizonans, i want to express a sense of gratitude to all the members here who have spoken and will speak for your prayers, for your condolences, and your affection that you've given all of us. mr. pastor: so we thank you very much from the bottom of your hearts. we hope that some of the expressions you have given of shoying respect, more respect for each other, more love for each other and disagreeing, debating, but not being disagreeable will help us do the business of this house. and at this time, madam speaker, i ask unanimous consent that i be allowed to

yield the remainder of my time to the distinguished gentleman from iowa. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman will control the time. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: at this time, i'd like to yield two minutes to the gentleman from ohio. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio, mr. tiberi, is recognized for three minutes. mr. tiberi: i rise to honor the victims of saturday's shootings in uetue son and pray with all of us for them and their families. the senseless tragedy has struck at the very foundation of the united states of america , attacking a representative to congress a congressional staffer, innocent bystanders in front of a grocery store, but there were heros who showed up that day, the intern, daniel hernandez, who came to gabriel

giffords' aid. -- to gabrielle giffords' aid. the witnesses who immediately tried to help those who were injured. the civilians who bravely stopped the shooter from injuring and inflicting more harm on others. the emergency room personnel, the emergency personnel overall , whose decisive action saved other lives. these are the true examples of the spirit of what america is all about. it's important to remember that this wasn't outrageous act by a deranged individual and despite all the talk of tone and rhetoric it's important to remember that we all in this house floor can disagree without being disagreeable. the fact is that we as public officials, madam speaker, in being accessible to the public, is an important part of our

jobs and we cannot let this tragedy stop us from doing our important work. we are members of the people's house and the minute we start separating ourselves from the people is the minute that we weaken our republic. the events of tucson, the events in tucson remind us how fragile our lives are. we pray again for the victims and their families and we remember what really matters and that civility should rule the day. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from iowa. >> i yield two minutes to the gentlewoman from maine at this time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. pingree: thank you, madam speaker, thank you to my colleague from iowa for yielding the time. it's hard after a long day like this, when all of us are feeling sad and discouraged

about the challenges being faced by gabby and her family and others to actually think of anything that hasn't been said but i want to reiterate what so many of my colleagues have said, so many of us consider ourselves friends of gabby, who are so proud of the work that she's done, who know what a hard fighter gabby is, and hope that she continues to pull through every day. i sit near gabby on the armed services committee and i've never seen gabby walk into a hearing room without a pile of letters she plans to sign a few things she's going to read, be prepared to ask good questions and keep her eye on the conversation and debate the whole time she's in there. if you turn to her and ask her a question, she's always got a smile or a little joke or ready to make a plan for an outing or field trip or something we can all do today. she's a wonderful colleague, well respected by both sides of the aisle, well regarded by all colleagues whether they agree

or disagree and highly well regarded back in her home community where she had another hard-fought election but came through. our thoughts and prayers are with her. gabby son the armed services committee because she's a fighter a fighter for the people she represents and i believe she's fighting in her hoe tole room -- her hospital room, i wish it was a hotel room -- but in her hospital room today alongside her husband. our thoughts and prayers are with the others who died alongside where gabby was laying, who came to that event and were injured, innocent victims a young woman, a staff member who was dedicated, you know many of us realize when we take this job on that we take a risk but we often forget the risk of those who serve with us, those young people who come up and stand beside us, the risk that they are also taking just to be with us everywhere we go. i also want to mention someone else who i was asked to mention who wasn't appearing in the resolution that we talked about

earlier today, dr. steven ray, a former emergency room physician was just a few feet away from gabby when the shooting began. in the terrifying moment that was shooting, he was able to use his trained first responder skills to tryage what i can only imagine was a terrifying scene and we owe him a debt of gratitude. i just again want to thank dr. ray for his heroism, for being there with gabby in the first possible moments, we owe him his great tute and everyone else who worked hard to make sure that people were saved as quickly as possible at that scene and i echo the comments of my colleague, dana rohrabacher, to think about how we speak and how we conduct our business. s that solemn week, we'll have many solemn weeks ahead of us and we have a lot of work to do. i yield back and i thank you for the time. the speaker: the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: -- the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i yield three minutes to the gentlelady from california, a presiding officer of this body, mrs. bono mack. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized for three minutes. mrs. bono mack: i rise today to offer a prayer for our nation. president abraham lincoln in the height of the civil war and during a very low point in american civility once told a hushed crowd my dream is of a place and of a time where america will once again be seen as the last, best hope of earth. my friends, all -- my friend, all of our friend, arizona representative gabrielle giffords, has had that dream all her life. she represents a beacon of hope, perhaps our last best hope tosh restore civility to the important public debates of our day. this is not a time to be finger pointing. rather this is a time in memory of all those who died or who were injured in this dark day

in our history to start talking again like friends and neighbors. right now, we should be praying for gabby and all the other victims of this horrible ordeal. we should be searching our soul as a nation, asking one important question, the question abraham lincoln confronted every single day of his presidency, how have we allowed hateful rhetoric to paralyze our national debate? yes, we all have different points of view but we should discuss them and debate them without resorting to name calling or questioning each other's motives. gabby has always stood for civility. she is the most delightful and the kindest member of congress and i think we've all said that. her never-ending smile and unfailing willingness to work in our nation's best interest have earned her the respect of people everywhere. i, like all of my colleagues, cannot wait for the day when gabby walks back onto this floor and joins us.

she is a strong woman with a very unbreakable spirit and a passion for life, her family, her friends, and our great nation. let us all pray to give gabby the strength to carry her through the difficult days ahead. i believe with all my heart that gabby was put on earth by god to make a difference and she has. i know because she's made a difference in my life. so the next time that a debate heats up and threatens to get ugly, let's remember our responsibilities as leaders. let's remember what abraham lincoln said, let's take a deep breath and agree to disagree agreeably. let's do that for gabby. i yield back the blabsoif -- balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from iowa. >> at this time, i recognize for two minutes the gentleman from iowa, mr. loebsack. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. loebsack: i thank my colleague and friend from iowa who recognized me. i join my colleague, my

constituents and all americans in mourning for those who lost their lives in this weekend's heinous event and am praying for those, including our dear friend and colleague, congresswoman giffords, who are fighting to recover. i've had the honor to serve with gabby like many in this body on the armed services committee since we were both elected in 2006 and i've always been struck by her intelligence and by her commitment to her constituents. when she and her constituents were attacked on saturday, she was carrying out the most central of our responsibilities as elected representatives as was already mentioned, and that is making ourselves available this who are i have attack occurred in the middle of a gathering is a reminder to us all that we must remain committed to upholding the principles on which our great nation was founded. as we come together to offer our prayers to all those involved, i

hope we will carry forward the sentiment that so many have expressed in the few days independent r including on the floor of the house of representatives, that debate is the heart of our democracy but that debate must be rooted in civil discourse and mutual respect. we can and we should debate with vigor the pressing challenges facing our nation, but we must do so in a way that moves our country forward and that is constructive. in part, that will require us to recommit ourselves, recommit ourselves to civil discourse and honest debate as well as to remaining accessible to our constituents and listening to all view points. we are a nation, i believe, that rejects violence and on a day when we saw the very worst of humanity, we saw the very best, individuals who were willing to lay down their lives to save

others. let those folks serve as our inspiration and let us continue to keep all those affected in our thoughts and prayers and continue to move forward in america and in a constructive, positive and mutually respectful manner. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i'm privileged to yield two minutes to the the gentleman from california, mr. mcclintock. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized for two minutes. mr. mcclintock: i haven't gotten to know her very well yet and i thank god by his very grace that i haven't lost the chance to do so. what i do know is that they gathered last saturday to do something uniquely american. she was reaching out and listening out to her employers, the american people, and come to offer her guidance and advice and counsel. in this respect, the attack on

gabrielle giffords and her constituents struck at the very heart of our process of representative democracy, very point where the american people communicate their views to elected representatives. that is the entire process of self-government. this was not only an attack on those who serve, it was an attack on every citizen who steps forward to offer honest advice and counsel and yes even criticism to those who have selected to serve them and the nation. it is the nature and strength of democracy to participate. but in moments like this, we see the very best of american people come forward. we put aside our differences and disagreements and stand together as one nation, the american nation, one race, the american race, one people, the american people. men and women of goodwill cease to be republicans and democrats.

we suspend our agendas and we stand together as americans. by doing so, we pay supreme honor to our fellow citizens who were filled in the exercise of their rights and responsibility as a free people. we salute the heroes who without a moment's hesitation rose to resist and stop this did he praved attack and we -- deprafed attack and that government by the people, of the people and for the people shall not per issue from the earth. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from iowa. mr. braley: i yield two minutes to the the gentleman from texas, mr. reyes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. reyes: i thank my colleague for yielding. today i rise on behalf of the people of the 16th district of texas to express our community's profound sadness in the wake of

saturday's senseless act of violence that claimed the lives of six americans and has left our esteemed colleague gabrielle giffords fighting for her life and has affected 13 others. last week on thursday, we had a meeting of the border caucus and gabby came to that meeting and we discussed the agenda for the 112th congress. she is a tireless champion on border issues. she is an incredible member dedicated to representing the people of her district and i, for one, had the pleasure working with her on border issues, intelligence issues on many occasions. over the last few days, my office has received an outpouring of support for gabby, for her family and for her staff as well as everyone else who was

affected by this tragedy. madam speaker, when i was in my congressional district this past sunday, i was approached by a gentleman who i recognized who said something to me that i thought was very touching, he said congressman, i often disagree with you on many issues, but i want you to know i'm praying for your friend from arizona and for you. i hope she keeps up the fight and pulls through. i express my appreciation on behalf of all of us and shook his hand. madam speaker, in the aftermath of this tragedy, one of the best ways that i know of to honor the victims is to come together as americans as so many members have said and to speak with one voice against the violence and hate that claim the lives of both republicans and democrats, americans all, both young and old. our thoughts and our prayers today and since saturday have been with gabby, her family as

well as all those victims and their families affected by this terrible tragedy. it's up to us now to move forward in the same spirit that they have shown as as they persevered through this terrible time. with that, it rests on us to be better as mark's brother said from space, peaceful planet. it looks peaceful, sadly, it is not, but we can do better. we must do better. thank you, madam speaker, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i yield two minutes to the the gentleman from pennsylvania for two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. thompson: we have in our

thoughts and prayers the victims. our nation stands with congresswoman giffords in her recovery, her family and staff and all those impacted by this tragic event, including the family of gabe zimmerman and judge roll. we also stand with christina taylor green, who lost her life that day. christina hoped to go to penn state one day and pursue a career of helping others. penn state is one of the top public universities in the country. i share those same aspirations and no doubt she would have achieved her dreams and been successful in the career path of her choosing and offer deepest condolences. the tragedy reminds us how fragile life is. i commend and thank all the federal, state and local officials for their efforts over the last week.

these every day heroes are unsung despite the dangerous situations. americans are thankful for those who showed courage to stand up in the face of danger. daniel hernandez, the hero assisted congresswoman giffords by performing tr inch age, a retired army national guard hero and they serve as real life examples of what it takes to be a hero. as we mourn the losses, we are grateful. our prayers are with congresswoman giffords and her staff and those lost injured and all of us are searching we must maintain our support for those seeking recovery and pray for the well-being of all those involved. thank you, madam speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from iowa. mr. braley: i yield two minutes to the the gentleman from

california, mr. becerra. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. becerra: thank the gentleman for yielding tofment our friend and colleague gabby giffords, to the victims and heroes in tucson and to all of their loved ones, our thoughts and prayers are with you. you have won our hearts with your courage and example in these difficult times. gabby, knowing your epic of hard work, ten asity and determination and knowing you as a fighter for what you believe in, i simply say to you, keep at it, don't stop, fight, fight, fight. and we look forward to seeing you here and welcoming you here in your house, the people's house. times like these make it clear to see how important second chances are. not everyone in tucson will have that second chance.

how lucky we are that we can pick up the baton for them and finish the job of seeking justice and making our democracy a more perfect union. america, this is our second chance. this is our opportunity to shine. let us make our work whether here as dual sworn representatives of the people or as the media or responsible citizens of america, let us make our work count. it's our turn to show courage and example as we move forward doing our part to build a better america. we owe that to gabby and the good people of arizona. let's honor them by hitting that second chance out of the park. madam speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i yield two minutes to the the gentleman from michigan, mr. huseninga.

mr. huizenga: i thank my colleague for yielding and i rise in support of this resolution and i like all of my colleagues were shocked and sobered by these events. i was touched as a new member seeing the location and situation and circumstances. this is something we have all done as members. as a former district director for a former member of this body, my heart goes out to the family of gabe zimmerman, of ron barber and paula simon to the staff who have ever served members in this house, both in washington and out in that district. we say thank you for your service. we want to say that our hearts, thoughts and prayers are those with families that have been touched and be rest assured that your safety is on top of mine for us all.

as a father, i mourn this loss of a nine-year-old daughter. i have a nine-year-old daughter who is with us and all of us cannot help but look at this and just be heart broken. as an american, this is an assault on humanity. this isn't the first time this happened, but a sad day nonetheless. but we are asking god to heal our land. we will rise to this challenge. i will continue to do my job as a elected member of this body. i know my staff will do its jobs and colleagues' staff will do their job and we as a body will continue to do the people's work as we move forward through this tragedy. we will rise to this challenge and we pray that healing and grace and peace be brought to all the victims. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the

gentleman from iowa. mr. braley: i yield two minutes to the distinguished the gentlewoman from connecticut, ms. delauro. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. ms. delauro: madam speaker, this weekend we honor a truly historic american who through unwielding struggle brought our nation closer to justice. violence solves no social problems, that man, dr. king, himself a victim of violence wrote. it only creates new and more complicated ones. the shootings in arizona remind us of the truth of these words. they show that the world is still a dangerous place for those who stand up for civic duty. i do not have to tell this body that gabby giffords has been an exemplary member of this house. as a small business woman, she worked hard to see the economic concerns are heard in washington. as one of the growing number of

women members here, she has been a powerful voice on immigration reform, energy independence, reducing drug trafficking and cartel violence along the border and continued importance of exploring the stars and third generation, she has brought an arizonan's love of the sun and benefit of solar power. she is an exemplary person. she is fun to be with and dear friend of mine, friend to my family. and my step brother his her pollster and wherever you stand in this chamber, she was a friend to you. she never had anything but a smile for everyone, left or right, and for this, best of her ability, she was shot in the line of duty. this very moment, she fights for life in arizona, a life that has been denied six others in this tragedy, including a long time

officer of the court, a staffer, just like the young men and women that we rely on every day and a little nine-year-old girl. troubled individual who perpetrated this eff i will is now in custody -- evil is now in custody. but for those of us here in this room, we have to do more to drain our politics of the venom which such hatred breathes. i pray for gabby's recovery and the others i do not know and mourn those who were lost. . mr. lungren: it is my pleasure to yield two minutes to the gentleman from georgia, dr. gingrey. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gingrey: first and foremost, i'd like to extend my prayers and wishes, as well as those of my constituents in

northwest georgia to my colleague, representative giffords, her family and staff and to all the other victims of the shooting. what took place was an unspeakable tragedy and it has absolutely no place in our society. madam speaker, on saturday morning, ms. giffords was hosting an event, fundamental to our duties as members of congress, meeting with and listen tourg constituents so we can best represent them in washington. it's painfully sad and sobering that in the process of doing her job, gabby was attacked. i had the pleasure of serving with gabrielle on both the house armed services committee and another committee and i've known her to be a thoughtful legislator and i've always appreciated her cheerful disposition. throughout her tenure in congress, she's distinguished herself as one of the members of this body who woked -- worked well with members on

both sides of the aisle. i look forward to the day when she walks back onto this house floor. madam speaker, we must also not forget the other individuals who are victims of saturday's attack. one of the casualties was a 9-year-old, christina taylor green, born on september 11, 2001, and was recently elected to serve on her school's student council. driven by her interest in politics she'd come to gabby's event last saturday to learn more about our federal government. the tragedy of her death reminds us all of the fragile nature of life and what it means to be a public servant. additionally madam speaker, we know the critical role staff members play in helping us carry out our duties. like us, members of our staff are dedicated public servants, that's why it's due truly heart breaking that a member of ms. giffords' district staff lost his life while two other members of her arizona-based staff were injured. in the midst of one of the

darkest hours of our country in recent memory, let's also thank the courage -- those whose courage and bravery deserve recognition. we thank them for their valor. madam speaker, during times of tragedy, we depend on steady leadership to guide us through our grief. i commend the leadership of both parties for remembering that there's much more that unites us than divides us. again i pray for the recovery of our colleague, ms. giffords and the victims of the tucson shooting and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from iowa. >> i yield two minutes to the gentleman from maine, mr. my shaud. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. michaud: all of us on capitol hill were dealt with the shocking news of congresswoman gabby giffords and her staff was shot and that her director of outreach, gabe

zimmerman, was killed this makes me think of my own staff and the great work they do each and every day for me representing the people i was elected to represent. i join our entire country in continuing to pray for the recovery of our friend and colleague, congresswoman gabby giffords. she's a hardworking, highly respected member of this chamber, and she's a true advocate for her home state. in 2008, i had the privilege of joining her in tucson for a discussion on the need to improve mental health care of our service members returning from the wars in iraq and afghanistan. i know she cares passionately about this issue as she does so many other issues important to her constituency. may god bless congresswoman gabby giffords, her family, her friends and all those in arizona who have been affected by this tragedy. i yield back the balance of my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from virginia, mr. rigell. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. rigell: thank you, madam speaker. i thank my colleague from california. i rise in strong support of this resolution today. we gather here to remember the innocent people whose lives were cut tragically short by the horror that unfolded in arizona on saturday. we also gather to honor and pray for our colleague, representative giffords and the others wounded in that attack. it's a real privilege for me to participate in the reading of the constitution with gabby and anxiously look forward to her return to the house floor. i'm joined by so many in virginia's second district in adding my heart felt condolences to all those affected by this tragedy and i commend the citizens, first responders and health care

workers who bravely worked to help save lives. we're blessed to work in a country where the opportunity to freely assemble and speak to our -- and petition our representatives even at a grocery store is upheld. we stand united in condemning this act of violence. my wife carrie joins me and all of this body in praying for those who lost our lives, those who were wounded, and their families. may god bless america and bring peace to america. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from iowa. >> i'm pleased to yield two minutes to the gentleman from nevada, ms. berkley. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. ms. berkley: i thank you, madam speaker. i don't think there are enough words to express my feelings at this time and i'm sure the words that i have will never be adequate to truly share my grief with my colleagues and

with our country, as with all the members of congress, my thoughts and prayers are with those who lost loved ones in the aftermath of this senseless act of violence. my heart is hurting for those who were injured, some catastrophically, some still fighting for their lives. i love gabby giffords. i don't think there's a better example of a true public servant than this remarkable woman who the country has got ton know over the last few days. she's kind and caring and dedicated and the very fact that she was doing her congress on the corner just four days from the time she was sworn in for another term gives you some idea of how dedicated she was to her job. while i watched in horror like most of the country and was riveted to my television set this weekend, i also couldn't

help but marvel at those who rose above personal fear, who had the presence of mind, who, in spite of their own personal safety, tackled the perpetrator of this heinous crime, the young intern that possibly saved gabby's life by his medical attention to her, those that tended the wounded and comforted the bystanders. these are the true heroes in our country. the medical personnel, the hospital administrators and staff, the entire citizenry of tucson has given us hope for our nation as they have risen to this occasion and demonstrated to the rest of us how good we are in times of trial. i've gone through many stages of grief in the last few days. first, -- may i have 30

seconds. >> i yield the gentlewoman 30 seconds. ms. berkley: first, i was heart sick at the news, then i was angry, now i'm resolved. and i'm going to do my own congress on the corner in honor of gabby this coming friday because nobody, no lone gunman, nobody can stop the democratic process and stop us from doing our job of interacting with our constituents. on behalf of myself and my family and the people i represent from southern nevada, i send our collective condolences to those people that have lost loved ones in tucson and are thoughts and -- and our thoughts and prayers are with the survivors and we wish them all god speed. god bless them and god bless this great nation. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: before i yield two minutes to mr. la tham, may i ask unanimous consent that mr.

calvert may control the time. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from california may control the time. mr. lungren: two minutes for mr. latham. the speaker: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. latham: i thank you, madam speaker, i thank the gentleman for yielding. i rise today in joining my colleagues in offering my condolences to the victims of saturday's senseless violence in tucson. to the families and loved ones of those who lost their lives and were injured, know that every member of congress and their staff members stand with you today. this legislative body was designed to be a forum for the will of the american people and congresswoman giffords as always met her constituents in accordance with that spirit. she and her staff members who accompanied her on saturday possess a deep understanding that a representative of the people's house must listen and remain as accessible as possible to the people.

the citizens who lost their lives saturday morning were exercising their patriotic duty to participate in the democratic process. a widely respected federal judge, a dedicated church servant, a great grandmother who deeply believed in her country, a former secretary and homemaker, and a 9-year-old girl. herself a leader, getting an early glimpse of our our -- of how our democracy works. and it is with an especially heavy heart we mourn the loss of gabe zimmerman, a tireless servant to the people of arizona's eighth district. that those voices and lives were cut short is a national tragedy of the highest order. this is a heartbreaking moment in the history of the house of representatives and our nation. but we cannot allow this tragedy to put ounce the defensive. we cannot retreat from our

responsibilities to be accessible and responsive to the will of the american people. i look forward to the day when congresswoman giffords rejoins us in this chamber. until then we can strive for the lofty standard she has set. we can find inspiration in her steadfast commitment to those she serves and draw strength from her unwavering belief in democracy. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from iowa. >> i yield two minutes to the gentleman from rhode island, mr. cicilline. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. cicilline: i rise to honor those injured or killed in last saturday's attack. congresswoman gabrielle

giffords, members of her staff and other members of the tucson community are now fighting for their lives. six innocent others, including a 9-year-old little girl and the congresswoman's director of outreach, gabe zimmerman, gave the ultimate sacrifice in the exercise of our democracy. this tragedy gives us great pause as we begin the work of the 112th congress and serves as a painful remainder -- reminder that our democracy is built on the ability of citizens to fully participate in the democracy and we must protect that. these have been tragic hours for our country, for those who lost loved ones, and for those who were injured and their families. on behalf of the people of the first district of rhode island and my colleague, representative langevin, we send our sincere condolences from the entire state to all those who have lost loved ones as a result of this hideous attack. we also extend our thoughts and prayers to congresswoman

giffords, her staff and constituents, all of whom were victims of the tragedy and pray that those injured have a speedy and full recovery. may god grant our nation and all the victims peace and comfort and may we renew our commitment to the ideals that have made america great, including the free exchange of ideas and a democracy that continues to listen carefully to the people we serve. mr. lungren: i yield myself as much time as i may consume. >> last saturday, congresswoman giffords and many others were victims of a brutal and brazen attack as they participated in a "congress in your corner" event. six people were killed, many more were injured. mr. calvert: like many of my colleagues i had the pleasure to work with representative giffords and can attest, she is thoughtful, kind and wonderful person. my prayers are with her and her

family as she begins the road to recovery. my thoughts are with the families of those who were killed. no words can ease the pain of their families and our country shares in the grieve of six lives cut short. the goodness of dorothy morris, judge john roll, phyllis schneck, dorwin stoddard, gabe zimmerman and nine-year-old christina taylor green who will never be forgotten. during moments of tragedy, americans forget our differences and unite around common goodness. we love our country and countrymen and not let anyone act or one individual deter us from living in freedom and without fear. as members of congress, we refuse to be cowered by senseless violence and we will fulfill our duties without

reservation or hesitation. the lesson from last saturday can be found in the courageous acts of strangers and neighbors who banded together to help others and confront a mad man. let's honor representative giffords and david hernandez, who did not hesitate to come to her aid and three arizonans without regard to their own lives tackled and subdued the attacker. whatever the did he ranged shooter, it marvels at the bravery and kindness of our fellow americans who without thought of their own safety, acted in the face of evil. it is their stories of bravery that will be remembered and held up as an example of an exceptional nature of our great american character. as we move forward from this horrible event, let us keep the feelings of broots hood and

compassion that should not only exist in the wake of a tragedy, but in our every day lives. god bless our dear friend gabby giffords, all those who were injured, the families of the fallen and god bless america. the speaker pro tempore: does the gentleman continue to reserve his time? mr. calvert: i ask unanimous consent that the the gentleman from california, mr. lungren control the balance of the time. without objection. the gentleman from iowa. mr. braley: i yield two minutes to the the gentleman from new jersey, mr. andrews. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey, mr. andrews is recognized for two minutes. mr. andrews: thank you, madam speaker. we are gathered here to show respect for our colleague to mourn the dead and provide

support for those wounded in body and in spirit. we have a special responsibility here this afternoon to tell the truth about the nature of america. our children and people all over the world saw acts of heinous violence on saturday and many thing that that represents the true nature of america. it does not. it is not an evil. the true nature of this country is due diligence as. the true nature of america is the optimism of a nine-year-old girl eager to become involved in the political process. the true nature of america is the ultimate act of selflessness as a long-term husband, interposes his body between that and the bullets and saves the

life of his beloved wife he met in grammar school. the true is the young intern five days in the service of congresswoman giffords who rushed to her side and very likely. the true nature of america is the judicious nature and the federal judge who gave his life at this moment. the true nature of america is the three brave arizonans who ran toward a man with a loaded gun who is firing away, through their bodies at him and saved the lives of countless others around him. saturday was a horrendous day, but let us be resolved that it not be marked in history by the manifestation of evil that it represents, but by the manifestation of optimism and diligence and selflessness and goodness that reflects the

spirit of the american people. may god bless our colleague and all those who suffered through this long nightmare. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i would like to yield two minutes to the the gentleman from alabama. the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. >> first i would like to join in with my colleagues. i join millions of others in praying for the recovery of all those that were injured especially we pray for our colleague, the honor representative gabrielle giffords. it has been my privilege and honor to work with her e7s on the nation's space program and i pray for her full recovery and her husband and entire family. in a nation where there is

freedom, some individuals will choose to do evil and no law can cure the human heart. i do pray for individuals who are suffering from anger, like those of the accused. that they will find counseling and healing that they need. actions like this, which include the tragic death of a nine-year-old child are not normal. even in tragedy, we see the great strength of this nation. we see the heroic actions of individuals, private and professional, who helped subdue the attacker and helped the wounded survive and see a nationwide outpouring of concern and prayer for gabby giffords and all those that were injured and of course that rises far above political differences. may god bless the families and bless us in our work this year in the 112th congress and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from iowa. mr. braley: i yield two minutes

to another fine gentleman from new jersey, mr. pallone. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey is recognized for two minutes. mr. pallone: earlier this afternoon, many of us attended a congressional prayer service for the victims of the shooting in arizona and i wanted to reflect on three things that occurred there that really were meaningful for me. one was after the prayer service, the staff of gabby giffords were gathered and we had an opportunity to meet them and shake their hands and talk to them a little bit. and i was just taken aback, first of all, by how young they were and optimistic they were, optimistic about her bus they really feel and praying and hopefully has a full recovery and can't help on the fact that not only the congresswoman but her staff were so dedicated. i would often talk to gabby on

the floor in the back of this room and as many have said, she was wonderful. she was so enthusiastic about her job, about her constituents. she was also a beautiful person. and i was just so happy to hear that after the operation that they were optimistic about her recovery and every day she gets better. and i'm looking forward to her coming back here and pay tribute to her staff. one was killed. that person was killed and all of them were facing the reality unfortunately that we do face now that when we do outreach, there is a certain amount of danger, but i think it's important for us to say that we're going to fight against that. we are going to continue to be out there meeting with our constituents and we want people to come and meet with us. the second thing was the house

chaplain, at the prayer service he said the victims were martyrs to the cause of america because they were out there participating in democracy. and i really think that that's true. the need to participate and the democratic process is what this is all about. and to the extent that we reinforce that in the aftermath of this tragedy, it's really important. and the last thing i would say, some of the members today particularly ed pastor when he spoke, he said that we have to be inspired to better the lives of others. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. pallone: if i could have another 30 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for an additional 30 seconds. mr. pallone: and i noticed the little girl, christina green, actually told her parents, the one who unfortunately passed away, she wanted a career that involved helping those less fortunate than her. and if there is anything we can

do in the aftermath of this tragedy, as ed pastor said at the prayer service, let us be inspired to better the lives of others and make something positive of this tragedy. that little girl was so much in my heart when i heard about her and her wanting to have a career in public service and her being there at this outreach center because of that desire. thank you, madam speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from california. mr. lungren: i yield two minutes to the the gentleman from florida, mr. stearns. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida is recognized for two minutes. mr. stearns: on behalf of myself and my constituents from the 6th congressional district of north central florida, we offer our thoughts and prayers to our colleague gabrielle giffords and her family and i join the american people in extending our condolences to the other victims of this terrible event. this is a heartbreaking loss. but i'm encouraged by the positive news of her doctors and

commend those medical professionals in tucson for their dedication and outstanding work. we look forward to gabby coming back to the house floor and miss her warm demeanor and courageous qualities. in paying respect respect to her and others killed in this event, we must make it clear that we will not be deterred from meeting with the american people. the act of this individual should not alter the routine duties of our office. i have had 560 town hall meetings and i understand what it must be to remain available. and an attack on this institution and we must carry. i extend my best wishes to my colleague for a satisfactory and swift recovery and share my deepest sympathies with the families, the families of the victims who were killed.

let me close with two bible quotes. god is our refuge and strength and ever present help and trouble and 1 peter, but even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. do not fear what they fear. do not be frightened. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from iowa. mr. braley: madam speaker, i yield two minutes to the distinguished the gentleman from georgia, mr. johnson. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from georgia, mr. johnson, is recognized for two minutes. mr. johnson: i rise in support of this resolution that recognizes the tragedy in tucson on saturday. i'm deeply shocked and saddened and i'm praying for gabby, her family, staff and the other victims of this senseless act of violence. in times like these, words often fail to describe our anguish and

pain. as a fellow member of the class of 2006, i've gotten to know congresswoman giffords well and have developed enormous respect for her intellect and love of this country. she and i served together on the house armed services committee and she was very gracious on the morning of president obama's swearing-in and offered to share her blanket with me as we both braved the cold during the inauguration. we kept each other warm and we had warm dialogue and happy moments. gabby and her staff were performing a fundamental duty as a member of congress, that is listening to the concerns of her constituents. our democracy depends on this type of open and informal meeting of elected officials