captioning sponsored by macneil/lehrer productions >> lehrer: good evening. i'm jim lehrer. president obama flew to tucson today to meet with families of the victims of saturday's mass shooting and to speak to the nation at an evening memorial service. >> ifill: and i'm gwen ifill. on the "newshour" tonight, we have the latest on the tragedy, the investigation, and the medical status of the injured as congress paid tribute to the victims in washington today. >> lehrer: then, judy woodruff talks to congressmen john larson of connecticut and jason chaffetz of utah about congressional security. >> ifill: we look at how a community and a nation can come together in the aftermath of tragedy. >> most of the people we talked to here at the hospital where

rep giffords is recovering are looking forward to the presidents speech tonight. they hope he can help heal the community. >> lehrer: michael beschloss and ellen fitzpatrick provide some historical perspective on the president's role as national consoler. that's all ahead on tonight's "newshour." major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> for three hours a week, i'm a coach, but when i was diagnosed with prostate cancer, i needed a coach. our doctor was great, but with so many tough decisions, i felt lost. united healthcare offered a specially trained r.n., who helped us weigh and understand all our options. for me, cancer was as scary as a fastball is to some of these kids, but my coach had hit that pitch before. >> turning data into useful answers. we're 78,000 people looking out for 70 million americans. that's health in numbers. united healthcare.

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>> lehrer: this was a day of remembrance for the victims of the tucson shootings. they were honored in the u.s. house and president obama flew to arizona to address a memorial service and the nation. ray suarez begins our coverage. >> now, therefore be it resolved... >> reporter: that resolution-- introduced by house speaker john boehner-- paid tribute to the six people killed and the 13 wounded, including democratic congresswoman gabrielle giffords. >> our hearts are broken but our spirit not. this is a time for the house to lock arms in prayer for the fallen and the wounded and a resolve to carry on a dialogue of democracy.

we may not yet have all the final answers, but we already have the answer that matters most. that we're americans and we'll make it through this difficult period. we will have the last word. >> reporter: the outpouring of support for giffords was especially strong among colleagues in the arizona delegation, like republican trent franks. >> madame speaker, it is my prayer that god would comfort the giffords family and all of the victims of this horrible tragedy, and hold them closely in his arms as only he can, and that he would someday very soon return a smiling gabby giffords to this chamber and to all of us as clear-eyed and as whole as when she left us. >> reporter: democratic minority whip steny hoyer echoed that sentiment for all in the house. >> to our beloved colleague, gabby, we extend our love, our hopes for her early return to our chamber and our ranks.

all of us, in this time, have come together, reached out to one another, comforted one another, and lifted one another up. may that sentiment not pass quickly from this body or from this country. >> reporter: for her part, minority leader nancy pelosi alluded to the renewed national debate over political rhetoric since the shooting. >> 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. >> reporter: republican sarah palin has come in for criticism on that point. her political action committee placed crosshairs over giffords' district in an online graphic during the mid-term election

campaign. today, in a video posting on her facebook page, palin rejected any attempt to link her to what happened in tucson. >> within hours of a tragedy unfolding, journalists and pundits should not manufacture a blood libel that serves only to incite the very hatred and violence they purport to condemn. that is reprehensible. >> reporter: in tucson, meanwhile, the trauma chief at the university of arizona medical center peter rhee updated reporters on the condition of the six victims still hospitalized. >> one patient remains in a critical fashion, two are serious and three are in fair condition. >> reporter: he said congresswoman giffords' progress was going as anticipated.

downward way as well. and, i'm happy to state that none of the downward events have occurred at this time, which is exactly what we kind of want to happen at this point. and, we have really decreased the amount of sedation we're giving her and as a result of that she's becoming more and more spontaneous all the time. >> reporter: giffords' office released this image of her husband, astronaut mark kelly, sitting at her bedside. and the family of ron barber-- a giffords' staffer who was wounded in the rampage-- said his recovery was slow, but steady. >> he's doing as well as can be expected and day-by-day he has to heal, and it's going to take a long time to heal. but, he wants to express to the community, this wonderful community of tucson, his love and gratitude, because we are a wonderful community and we are a family and we all join together and he is very grateful for that. >> reporter: the city has planned an evening service remembering the shooting victims, with president and mrs. obama attending at the university of arizona campus. the president is scheduled to speak at the event, slated to there was also more from investigators, looking into 22-

year-old suspect jared loughner and his behavior leading up to the shooting. officials said he was pulled over for running a red light saturday morning. a short time later, he ran off. his father confronted him about a black bag loughner removed from the trunk of the family car. the pima county sheriff's department also confirmed deputies had been sent to the loughner home at least once before. back in washington, house members and congressional staffers lined up for a third day in the cannon office building to sign a book of well wishes and condolences. lawmakers also took part in a bipartisan prayer service. and u.s. capitol police held separate security briefings for republicans and democrats. >> i think this really did touch my staff in a very personal way because they can envision that event, that exact event, and what happened. and so, i think we have an obligation to our staff to think if there are ways that we can to make sure they are safer.

>> reporter: already, there's been at least one proposal to ban weapons within 1,000 feet of members of congress and other top federal officials. >> lehrer: president obama arrived in tucson late today and he went first to visit representative giffords and the other shooting victims in the hospital. now to judy woodruff. >> woodruff: for more on the impact of saturday's shooting on members of congress, we are joined by represenative john larson of connecticut. he is chairman of the house democratic caucus. and republican representative jason chaffetz of utah. yes then, thank you both for being with us. i want to start by asking you about your own security. you did get these briefings today by the capitol police. we understand separate briefings. representative larson, to you first. what were some of the main points that were shared with you in these briefings? >> well, i think the overarching

theme from all of our members is we understand the role and responsibility that we have as elected officials, but certainly we want to make sure that we're doing everything feasible to protect all those people who work for us. you know, gabe zimmerman lost his live in the line of duty for his country. the impact that this has had all across the country but certainly back here in washington, d.c. has been nothing short of profound as we pray for those who are wounded to get well, we feel a special obligation to make sure that everything is being done within our offices. there's pretty good security here in washington, d.c., but the question is in the outlying districts and back home and in rural and urban and suburban districts differ generally in terms of the response. that's the overall emphasis of our members is to make sure that we come up with both whatever it takes financially to make sure

that the m.r.a.-- which is the allotment we get-- to make sure that we have security and this we're coordinating that security between state, local, and federal officials. >> woodruff: and representative chaffetz, how different would that be from what you're doing already now? how much of a change are we talking about? >> well, we've got to leave it to the security experts. quite frankly, we're still quite shocked. we're mourning the loss of those lives. we're cheering and rooting and praying for gabby giffords. i'm probably more concerned about my staff and our district offices. the threats that we get within the district. here at the capital you have a virtual army of people in are protecting us. while it's the world's number-one terrorist far get i feel like they're doing a very good job of securing us here in washington, d.c. in our own individual districts, i do think we're going to have to step up and take more seriously some of those threats that every member of congress on both sides of the aisle unfortunately get via the

internet or other means. and we're going to have to take those more seriously. and i think we need to dive a little deeper into those threats. >> woodruff: and representative larson, how will you do that? we know that all of you, of course, want to spend time with your constituents. so how do you both respond to these new security concerns and make sure that you're available to people who want to see you? >> well, of course you're going to continue to be available. that goes with the the job and the responsibility. but there can be security assessments made in every single district and precautions can be taken. and that's what we heard today both from the capitol police, what we heard from the sergeant at arms and the f.b.i. and taking those security measures and always being very much aware of this potential. sadly, this doesn't happen just in congress. in connecticut this past year we had another tragedy that took place where a gunman came in and

opened up and people were killed as well. we also have to spend time getting at the root causes of this and mental illness and doing something. i favor carolyn maloney's approach, but doing something in terms of what we have to do on assault rifles and weapons of that nature. just not a place for them. >> woodruff: well, as long as you brought that up, let me ask representative chaffetz about that, because there is some discussion now about needing a new look at gun laws to at least... at the very least to provide restrictions to make it harder for those who may be mentally unstable to get a gun or get ammunition. >> well, it seems to me that there are a number of laws on the books and as we examine the tragedy that happened in tucson, obviously that will be part of the date. i don't think there should necessarily be special rules or laws pertaining to members of congress. you mentioned in the preview a piece of legislation that would prohibit somebody with a firearm coming wan thousand feet of a

member of congress. i really disagree with that approach. look, we have to be cautious, we have to be vigilant, but we also can't be scared and we've got to continue to have vibrant public debate on the public corner. we've got to remember that this is a very, very rare occurrence and hope and pray it never happens again. but we've got to be open, accessible and interacting with our constituents at the same time. and i don't think that's going to change. we need maybe a few more law enforcement there is to deter anything like that. obviously i think that's the direction we're haded. >> woodruff: representative larson, is this going to turn into a big debate on the hill about how to respond to what happened? >> well, you know, i'm heartened by both the tone that the... that speaker boehner has set from the outset and i think that there are going forward an opportunity for us to come together in a very pragmatic way. this is not about the second

amendment. think about the victims here in this instance. think about that yin-year-old girl. i think that's what's weighing heavy on people's minds. it's not about guns but when you look about the equipment attached to that gun and what happened and when you think about the mental health precautions that could take place, when you think about the common-sense provisions to who should be on a list and not be able to purchase weapons, these are very pragmatic, common-sense i think issues that need to be discussed and i commend the speaker again for setting the right tone. >> woodruff: representative chaffetz i noticed you told the "new york times" this week that you might be more likely to carry your own gun now as a result of what happened in tucson. somethat that is legal in the state of utah. and we know there's another... there's a representative i guess from the state of texas who's talking about making it legal for members of congress to carry guns in washington on the floor of the house. what about all that?

is that something that you take seriously? >> well, i was a concealed carry permit holder before i got to congress. i've continued with that since i've been in congress and i will continue with it moving forward. i don't bring my gun here to washington, d.c. i feel very safe and secure here. in my own district, exercising my second amendment right it's something i personally feel comfortable with. i don't want nor do i ever recommend that anybody go out and simply do something different because of what happened on saturday. i think you need to be very cautious of that. i happen to feel comfortable with it. it is legal and lawful in the state of utah. i don't do it all the time, i just do it sometimes; sometimes i don't. i think what people, judy, are really struggling with, i wish... we're all mourning the difficult situation that happens in... on saturday to say the least. and i think people are struggling. they want a... how do we fix this so it never, ever happens again? and, you know, it's difficult to

point to just one thing. but it's very, very noornt we don't overreact, either. >> woodruff: representative larson, how long do you think this spirit that exists now will last? we heard a few moments ago representative... i guess minority leader steny hoyer say that he hoped that the sentment that is bringing members of congress together right now will remain longer with the body and with the country. do you think that's realistic? >> i hope so, judy. i can remember being here on september 11. i remember when congress gathered on the steps of the capitol and spontaneously broke into the singing of "god bless america" and we all felt that we had an opportunity to come together as a nation. and for a period of time there was that great patriotic fervor that overtakes a nation when an event of this nature happens. i agree with steny. i hope that this stays here. i do think based on the number

of members coming to the floor today and the sincere outpouring of concern not only for gabby and the victims but also to get this right as jason has said. so i take a great hope in what is transpired here on the floor of the house of representatives today. >> woodruff: finally, representative chaffetz, how long do you think this spirit, the sentiment of working together, coming together will last? >> i hope forever. i really do believe that the hallmark of our country has been the vigorous and vibrant debate. and as speaker-elect boehner at the time said, it's okay to be disagree, but not be disagreeable. we've got to remember we're all americans. and while we're going to fight vigorously for different policies, at the end of the day we ought to be able to reach our handout, shake hands together, recognize that we're all americans and we're all fighting for a better america. >> woodruff: representative jason chaffetz, representative

john larson, we thank you both. >> thank you, judy. >> thanks, judy. >> ifill: still to come on the "newshour": healing a community and comforting a nation. but first, with the other news of the day. here's kwame holman in our newsroom. >> holman: the governing coalition in lebanon collapsed today. cabinet ministers from the militant islamic group hezbollah and its allies resigned. they cited a u.n.-backed investigation into the assassination of rafik hariri, a former prime minister, in 2005. the inquiry is widely expected to indict members of hezbollah. u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton denounced the resignations, as she visited the persian gulf state of qatar. >> we view what happened today as a transparent effort by those forces inside lebanon, as well as interests outside lebanon, to subvert justice and undermine lebanon's stability and progress. >> holman: the announcement came as lebanon's pro-western prime minister saad hariri-- the son of the late leader-- was in washington.

he cut short his visit and flew home to meet the crisis. in afghanistan, five nato soldiers were killed in roadside bombings and other attacks. so far this year, 17 foreign troops have died in the fighting, including at least eight americans. taliban militants also carried out attacks today on members of the afghan intelligence service. four people were killed, and more than 30 wounded. the violence in afghanistan broke out shortly after vice president biden left kabul, for neighboring pakistan. there, he met with pakistani prime minister yusuf raza gilani in islamabad. and, he spoke to concerns that the u.s. infringes on pakistani sovereignty with attacks by drone aircraft. >> i would respectfully suggest that it is the extremists who violate pakistan's sovereignty and corrupt its good name. our goal is to work with your leaders, and you mr. prime minister, to restore and

strengthen sovereignties in those areas of your country where extremists have violated it. >> holman: as the vice president was visiting the country, a suicide car bomber killed 18 people in northwestern pakistan. and two roadside bombs exploded near a van carrying school children outside peshawar. two teachers in the van were killed. haiti marked the first anniversary today of the earthquake that devastated the caribbean nation. and, the prime minister raised the death toll to more than 316,000. we have a report from bill neely of "independent television news." on this day a year ago, haitians had no idea it would be their last day, that the earth was about to crack and pulverize an entire city. the today the survivors awe can to a life they never dreamed of and a day they had dreaded. of the 1,200 camps, three quarters get no help from

charities. the 40,000 people who live here amidst squalor are lucky-- they have clean water. a charity helps them. but not their government. >> we are here. we don't know when we're going to leave here. the government never comes here to talk with the people. >> reporter: they're not just remembering the dead, today they're still digging them out. one year on and the body of an old lady, mrs. hechtor, is pulled from the rubble of her home. one of eight that collapsed here. her neighbors have no idea where her family is now and they're not sure what to do with the body. there will be many more scenes like this in the future because there are not hundreds or thousands but tens of thousands of bodies buried in the rubble here. haiti simply doesn't have enough heavy equipment to get them out. blessings today for the dead and the living at a service next to the ruins of the national

cathedral where so many were killed. across the capital, hundreds of thousands are marking the day of their disaster with a show of sheer energy, life and joy. a solemn bill clinton marked the day here watching haiti's president lay a wreath at a government office. one-third of all haiti's public officials were killed in the quake. there's years of work to do here the rubble clearing goes on even on this day, the anniversary of haiti's worst catastrophe. >> holman: billions of dollars in aid have been pledged to haiti. but to date, the work of reconstruction has barely begun. russian investigators today blamed the poles for a plane crash that killed polish president lech kaczynski last april. he and 95 others died when their jetliner went down, trying to land in western russia in heavy fog. the russians concluded the crew was pressured to land, despite

the bad weather, by a polish air force commander, who'd been drinking. >> ( translated ): according to the conclusion made by flight experts and aviation psychologists, including polish ones, the presence of poland's air force commander in the pilot's cabin, up until the collision of the plane with the ground, had a psychological influence on the commander's decision to take an unjustified risk by continuing the descent with the overwhelming goal of landing by all means necessary. >> holman: polish officials said the report failed to note that russian air traffic controllers may have made mistakes that contributed to the crash. a powerful winter storm extended its reach to new england today, after leaving an icy mess in the south. the snow was heaviest in massachusetts and connecticut, where upwards of two feet fell. and it had a ripple effect on flights across the country with nearly 2,000 canceled. crews in new york city were able to clear the streets quickly. a snowstorm after christmas had paralyzed the city for days. the snow wasn't enough to keep wall street down. the dow jones industrial average

gained 83 points to close at 11,755. the nasdaq rose 20 points to close at 2,737. those are some of the day's major stories. now, back to jim. >> lehrer: the third largest city in australia-- brisbane-- was a ghost town today after scores of people fled from massive floods. the disaster has left dozens of towns in queensland state submerged. today, the brisbane river hit its peak and isn't expected to recede until tomorrow. john irvine of "independent television news" reports from the flood zone. >> reporter: for weeks, the people of brisbane have been spectators, watching on television as disaster unfolded elsewhere. but now suddenly they are experiencing the big flood firsthand. much of australia's third-largest city has been built on the flood plain of the brisbane river chp is expected

to peak at 20 feet above flood level. throughout the day, brisbaneites have watched as various pieces of debt rits large and small have been carried downstream towards the sea. this will may be just a fore taste of what's to come here. the streets around the river are largely deserted. shopkeepers have been sandbagging their properties and people have been stockpiling food and fuel. but they may know all too well what has happened to their neighbors in the nearby town of ipswich. in this part of queensland, there's not much land still visible. it's become a vast muddy lake instead. normal life is being stifled. just out of the johnson family, they've lost their house and its contents and are now in a

brisbane shelter. >> the water was up to the traffic lights before we left. >> yeah, literally. >> we just had to leave with two bigs, that's our property. >> reporter: many others will have to take shelter here in the days ahead. brisbaneites went to bed fearful of what they might wake up to. because of this creeping mammoth and the sense of impending doom, thousands of properties here-- homes and businesses-- have been abandoned by people who know that for the time being at least they must surrender much of their city and leave it at the mercy of forces far beyond their control. the australian prime minister has spent the day in brisbane. she's provided what comfort she can. >> australia is standing with you, working with queensland to help queensland through this crisis. and we will be there shoulder to shoulder not only for the days ahead but for the many months of

recovery and rebuilding to come. >> reporter: this part of australia-- the land down under-- will be even further under this time tomorrow and there's nothing anybody can do to prevent that. >> lehrer: there's also been widespread flooding in sri lanka after days of heavy rains. at least 18 people have died in mudslides there, and more than 200,000 are now homeless. >> ifill: now, looking ahead to tonight's memorial service in tucson first from the scene in arizona. "newshour" correspondent tom bearden reports. >> reporter: the collection of candles, flowers, and posters has grown dramatically. it's four or five times bigger than it was on sunday. micca white's emotions were very

close to the surface this >> this travesty has touched me as deeply as its touched anyone here in tucson, and i came here especially for gabrielle giffords. >> i'd want him to talk about peace and healing and how we can all come together on this. i understand that's the theme of his evening tonight, and i would hope that our community and all around the world and anybody aware of this tragedy really looks at this as an opportunity for change and how we can make this better one person at a time. >> well, of course, he is going to give his sympathy and condolences. i wasn't especially happy to hear that he was coming though because it brings extra attention to this. all of the news is tragedy in tucson which is a negative impact. >> well, i'd like for him to

what's his name ... daniel? the one who helped gabrielle, recognize him whenever he comes. he will. we all appreciate what he did with the lady. if it wasn't for i don't think anything would have happened. >> i think he should talk a lot about peace in this country. there's a lot of prejudices and there's a lot of anger and i think we need to be more united as a nation, and there should be more love and peace. >> reporter: the funeral for the youngest victim christina green, will be held tomorrow. >> ifill: all too often, the country has mourned tragedies through major memorials and services like the one in arizona tonight. we get some perspective from people involved with three past events. frank deangelis is principal of columbine high school in littleton, colorado.

he was principal during the columbine massacre in 1999. kari watkins, executive director of the oklahoma city national memorial and museum. and the reverend janet vincent is rector of saint columba's episcopal church in washington, d.c. in the aftermath of the september 11 attacks, she ministered to rescuers, workers, and families of those killed at the site of the world trade center. i want to start with you, carr i watkins. when you hear in tom bearden's piece people saying that they are hoping for healing this from this public memorial, is that an experience you're familiar with? did that happen in oklahoma city as well? >> it did. president clinton was here just a few days after the event, has been here five or six times over the last 15 years. i think when he came it didn't matter if he was a republican or a democrat, it mattered that he was the president and that he came to offer healing, to understand the depth of the grief that we were going through here. and really his visit began to start healing process. people will not be healed tonight.

they're not going to be over it tonight. but it's a process that shows the people of arizona that the nation's arms are around them and that together we'll get through this. >> ifill: mr. deangelis, in the years since the columbine massacre, did that kind of communal public grief did that healing take? did it work? did it help people? >> yes, it did. it just showed that we had the support of the world, that we were not in this alone. and when vice president gore did come to colorado on the sunday after the tragedy it brought a community together to show that they had support. and then president clinton did visit us at the one-month anniversary of the tragedy and he met with our kids, the parents, community members and teachers and we knew that we had the support and it was just the first step in the healing process and the healing continues as we approach the 12-year anniversary of the tragedy at columbine. >> ifill: 12 years and we're approaching the ten-year anniversary of 9/11.

reverend vincent what is it about these incidents which require us to have some sort of public airing of our shock? what is that? >> i think everyone is touched in some way. we all are deeply moved by the tragedy in arizona, but every time a trauma like this happens, we also are touched by our own pain and different incidents in our own lives come up and we feel the need to gather with each other, to get strength from each other, to just know that we are being remembered by the rest of the country. that was very important in new york in 2001. >> ifill: do it feel like we're... do victims of these previous tragedies relive it every time something new happens? >> i think many do. some don't, some luckily don't, but i think many do. certainly it happens to me. >> ifill: back to you kari watkins. when you talk to people now, all these years after oklahoma city, you run a memorial there in oklahoma city. do people still come there looking for that kind of grief

sharing all these years later or is this something that people have said oh, this is history now. >> well, it is history, it's 16 years past. but they're also coming to look for answers and they're trying to find a depth of hope and the good that can come out of it. i mean, in the very worst of circumstances we have faith that something good will come. we've heard the acts of heroism, from the people in the parking lot to the other folks who've helped and that's what people have come to look for. they've come to try to find the good and those are important lessons we've learned. we try to share those to the memorial museum. we have lesson plans available to teachers and we'll reach out to the folks of arizona when enough time has passed and offer what lessons we've learned and try to share those. if we can keep them going through the same pain that we've learned it's something we feel compelled to do. >> ifill: 16 years later people still come to the memorial museum still trying to work through that grief from that day? >> well, i don't know if it's that grief from that day or from their own personal life, dealing with a bout of cancer or personal loss or just trying to

understand this moment of history that changed our nation. but we have... you know, we with welcome the two millionth visitor in the museum this summer and it's because people want to come and learn and share. they want to understand whying this like this would happen. this blows people mind. why would this happen? why would this guy come to a parking lot and do this to a community? and that's what we have to figure out as a community is how we can come together and stop these senseless acts of violence. >> ifill: frank deangelis, it does seem like it does blow people's minds, to use kari watkins' words and that people are still trying to figure out the answer to a central question not only immediately in the case of tucson but also over the years in your case which was why? do you find people still struggling with that question all the time later? >> yes. i can remember when the tragedy occurred at columbine that i said that i hoped that the 13 who lost their lives on that horrific day did not die in vain and that school violence would

end. but it continues. and there are not answers. if we had one set answer, then you could work on correcting that. i think that's the question i'm asked the most, what can we do differently? and there's not an answer, you know, during the time of the columbine tragedy there were a lot of people that tried to figure out what caused so much hate in the two murderers that they would come in and kill classmates and teachers. and i'm sure those same questions are being asked now in arizona. you know, what can we do to stop these senseless deaths. and the question that people ask me "what do you do as a school?" i say "what do we do as a society?" if we have any hopes of making our society a better place to live, that we are not mourning more senseless deaths we need to come together as a society, respect and value life. and i think that's so important as a nation. >> ifill: reverend vincent you didn't just counsel people, you preached on this very topic.

how was that received? is this the sort of thing where people say "oh, well, that's just the way we are" and they dismiss it or are they coming back repeatedly saying "no, really why? what? how?" >> i found people enormously hungry to hear some kind of word. and sometimes people came looking for an explanation of what had happened and i could not give an explanation. no one can. but often people are coming to see what's the word of hope. and not just the hope for the future. for instance last week in this awful, awful tragedy good things were happening. just as one man was taking a life, another husband was shielding the body of his wife. he was giving his life for her. so my job is to explore the things that show our deepest humanity and our courage and our bravery even in these circumstances. >> ifill: car irrelevant watkins, we're expecting 14,000 people at the university of arizona tonight. obviously events like this affect people who were not directly impacted by the shooting itself. is there a way, is there an opportunity to speak to all of

those people? not only just the president and the members of congress but also we as individuals in a one-on-one way? >> well, i think you want to show the people of arizona that people care. and the nation is mourning with them. so we're also celebrating those lives that were saved and we're going to walk with those people, too, in the coming days. so it's not... it's both life and death. and to help everyone try to understand this incredible issue that surrounds us so that we had to teach the consequences of these actions and together as you've heard from the other two folks that we have to come together as a nation and to point out the positives that come out of this. but also to teach the lessons that were learned and to teach the impact of violence. and when you see something, you have to say something. and we've got to stop these random acts. in america, a country that can do so much, we've got to figure this out. and i think tonight as a nation we've got to pause and come back to the middle and say together we can get this done. and it's not a feeling that it's

fleeting. it's got to be something that we stick with forever. >> ifill: frank deangelis, in all three of these events and many others we can name-- virginia tech-- we paid incredible attention to it for weeks. days, at least days and weeks in many cases. what happens then when all of that attention goes away? does it change the task? >> no. and i think people have the perception that there's going to be this magical date in which everything's going to return back to normal. and that is the one question that i'm asked even now almost ten years out. when did it return to normal? and what i tell people is columbine high school and the columbine community and what we had prior to tragedy will never return to that normalcy. we had to redefine what normal is. and what happens throughout this journey and what i said early on it's a marathon not a sprint. and what happens a lot of times during our journey is you do have some bumps in the road. you have obstacles that get in

the way such as 9/11 or other school shootings or what happened in tucson. you know, last week in nebraska there was a school shooting and for us at columbine and i'm sure for many people throughout the nation we lived the tragedy that they experienced even though it was several years ago. so it's something that affects us for the rest of our lives. as i told the students in the community the day after columbine, i said "time will heal" but i said "the scars that we experienced as a result of this columbine tragedy will remain with us forever." but the message that i wanted to share and i'm sure president obama will share this evening is you're not in this alone. you do not have to mourn this alone. so there's that feeling of hope. our theme has always been a time to remember and a time to hope. we'll remember the 13 who lost their lives, all who were injured, all that were impacted. but it also allows us to provide for a hopeful future.

>> ifill: reverend vincent, so there's not a moment where we can point to where we can declare a community healed after something like this? >> that's one word i wish we could vanish from our skfrgs the word "closure." it adds such a burden to those who are grieving where they think there's some day or some moment they're supposed to feel better as if nothing happened. i think over time we all come to or have the possibility of coming to make friends with our grief, of coming to some kind of accommodation with the things that have hurt us and find purpose in our lives to move on. but we should not be announcing a date of closure, either this day or one greer this date. the. >> ifill: reverend janet vincent kari watkins and frank deangelis thank you all very much. >> lehrer: now, a look at the president's role at moments of national grieving. when he speaks in tucson this evening, president obama will, in effect, become national comforter in chief. both for the victims of last saturday's shooting, and for the nation.

presidents as far back as abraham lincoln at gettysburg, have tried to make sense of the senseless, in the wake of national tragedy. 70 years ago, the day after the pearl harbor attack, president roosevelt, addressed congress. >> yesterday, december 7, 1941-- a date which will live in infamy... >> lehrer: and there was lyndon johnson, newly sworn in, just hours after the assassination of president john f. kennedy. >> this is a sad time for all people. >> lehrer: in more recent times, president reagan confronted the loss of space shuttle challenger and its seven member crew-- january 28, 1986. mr. reagan had been scheduled to deliver his state of the union address that night. instead, he remembered the victims in a speech from the oval office. >> the crew of the space shuttle we will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this

morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and slipped the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of god. >> lehrer: in april 1995, the country was jolted by the oklahoma city bombing that killed 168 people, 19 of them children. four days later, president clinton appealed to a grieving people. >> let us let our own children know that we will stand against the forces of fear. when there is talk of hatred, let us stand up and talk against it. when there is talk of violence, let us stand up and talk against it. in the face of death, let us honor life. >> lehrer: and then, a scant six years later, the attacks of september 11. that night, president bush evoked what he called the "steel of american resolve." >> our country is strong. a great people has been moved to defend a great nation.

terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of america. >> lehrer: tonight will be the third time president obama has faced the nation at such a moment. in november 2009, he eulogized the 13 soldiers who were gunned down at fort hood, texas. and last april, in west virginia, he remembered the 29 men killed in the nation's worst coal mining disaster in 40 years. here now two of the "newshour's" regular historians: presidential historian michael beschloss and ellen fitzpatrick, professor of history at the university of new hampshire. michael, some have suggested that helping people get through tragedies like the tucson tragedy is actually a major and critical function of presidents of the united states. do you agree? >> i do, but it's only been

really in recent times. really probably the last 24 years since ronald reagan gave that speech that evening on the "challenger" accident. you know, i was thinking about this today, jim. you remember in 1963 there was a disaster, there was a nuclear attack submarine called the "tlesher." >> lehrer: yes. >> sank off cape cod. 129 people killed. so by what we expect of presidents, i thought, well, what was the ceremony in their memory, what speech did president kennedy give. didn't give one. he issues an executive order, flags were flown at half-staff, but in those days people didn't expect it. 1967 there was an "apollo" 1 disaster. three astronauts killed in a fire on the launch pad. lyndon johnson attended the funeral service not far from here at arlington cemetery, two of the families were so furious at the negligence that caused the deaths of their family members that they barely spoke to johnson but no speech. this is really a recent phenomenon. >> lehrer: and you think it

began with ronald reagan and the "challenger"? >> because he did it so well. jimmy carter tried to do it in 1981 when "desert 1" the helicopter that crashed near tehran killed some american soldiers. he gave a speech at the time of the burial, i think that was in arlington, too, but it was not carter's forte. it was reagan's and because reagan was so good at this, we expected that of later presidents. >> lehrer: do you agree with that, ellen, that was the ronald reagan who began this in a major way that continues to this day? >> i think it's true in the sense of various kinds of national tragedies like the explosion of the challenger. one example, of course, an obvious one. but in acts of political violence there's an interesting history to this. in the 1935 when senator huey long was assassinated, president roosevelt issued a two-sentence statement upon that occasion saying that he deeply regretted

this attack on long and that violence was un-american. but in 1968 when senator robert kennedy was assassinated when president kennedy was assassinateed in the midst of a campaign, president johnson gave an address, the rhetoric of extreme in the country. he called for congress to enact gun control laws and it was really actually quite a powerful speech. it was a different speech in many ways than the examples michael has cite which had i think more common in recent years the themes really are of the nation speaking through its president its condolences to the victims and tries to bring the country together in this moment of national mourning. >> is it a time, ellen, one of the few times, when a president

whether he or she be a republican or a democrat, a liberal or conservative actually speaks as a representative of the american people and everybody accepts it without any qualms? >> absolutely. and today, of course, the newspapers were filled with discussions of what president obama would say. so there's a greatly heightened attention to the president in his role as the chief executive of our country as in some sense the person who we look to for moral leadership at a moment like this. >> lehrer: michael, is it really about symbols or is there any evidence that this actually helps people get through these things? >> i think there is some polling data that suggests that. but jim, the founders said one of the jobs of president is head of state. that's a unifying function. another part is prime minister, essentially, which is divisive. so especially in a wake like

this in barack obama's, it's a moment he can show he can do a good job of unifying this country. there's the echo, you had in the your report. bill clinton in 1995. he had lost both houses of congress, many people were saying was he relevant? he gave a very moving speech that caused people to think maybe there's more to clinton than i thought. >> lehrer: do you agree with that, ellen, these that these things do... they cast a larger shine than you would expect as just a symbol? >> yes. because they are also opportunities and rare as they may be for the president to really show great eloquence. i think that there's broad agreement prargen's remarks after the "challenger" explosion is really one of the best speeches he gave. it was tremendously moving. it was comforting, i think, to the country. and, of course, to the people who had lost loved ones in that tragic accident.

and the same might be said about clinton's speech after the oklahoma city bombing. so it's a moment for a president to really in some ways reiterate the core moral values of the country even as he seeks to bind up the wounds, as abraham lincoln said. >> lehrer: and there is an assumption, michael, that there are core values, no matter their politics that everybody agrees with. >> one of them is you don't shoot members of congress and anyone who doesn't agree with that doesn't deserve to be in this country at all. so there really are. and the sweet thing is we're living in this poisonous time, everyone seems to be cynical. there's still something in america that causes them-- even if it's a president didn't vote for-- to listen to what a president says and say how does he see this? what will he tell us about what this means? >> lehrer: ellen, las vegas a small discordant note sounded in tom bearden's piece of the woman in tucson who said "well, i wish

he wouldn'tn't come." meaning obama. "i wish he wouldn't come because it brings negative attention to the event because it happened in tucson. what do you make of that have? that's natural inclination? >> yes, i think that's often the case. these tragedies unfortunately have happened all across the country. but for the people that live locally and experience them very immediately, there's a kind of visceral response and a worry that the place they live will be associated as if somehow violence and irrationality and this horrific attack would be something that would be restricted to one place and not symptomatic of some sort of deeper problem. one of the interesting themes in the presidential addresses on these occasions is that they try to personalize the victims of these tragedies very often to make them real people and so that everyone will understand the nature of the loss that is

sustained in these mass murder eventss. presidents very often have done that and they often reach out to children who tragically have been so deeply impacted by these events. in this case a young child losing her life. >> lehrer: okay. ellen and michael, thank you both very much. >> thank you. >> lehrer: again, the major developments of the day, in addition to plans for tonight's memorial service in tucson the u.s. house honored those killed and wounded in the shootings, including arizona congresswoman gabrielle giffords. lebanon was thrust into political limbo when the islamic militant group hezbollah withdrew from the ruling coalition. haiti marked one year since a devastating earthquake, as the prime minister raised the death toll to 316,000. and a flooded river submerged major sections of brisbane,

australia-- the country's third largest city. and to kwame holman in our newsroom, for what's on the "newshour" online. kwame? >> holman: we'll have live streaming coverage of tonight's special newshour report on the memorial service in tucson beginning a 8:00 p.m. easter. plus, we look at haiti one year later. ray suarez reflects on his reporting in the days after the powerful earthquake. and we talk to a los angeles times photographer about his experiences documenting the disaster. all that and more is on our web site: newshour.pbs.org. >> lehrer: and before we leave tonight, we remember the victims from last saturday's shooting in tucson. here in silence are the six who died and eight of the 13 injured. the names of the remaining five have not been released.

>> ifill: and that's the "newshour" for tonight. on thursday, we'll look at haiti's reconstruction efforts, one year after a devastating earthquake killed hundreds of thousands of people. i'm gwen ifill. >> lehrer: and i'm jim lehrer. we'll see you online and again here tomorrow evening. as well as later tonight on many public television stations for live coverage of the tucson memorial service. for now, thank you and good night. major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by:

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