joining me now former congressional aide to gabrielle giffords ron barber. for inviting me. >> you said you would not run for the full term. what thanked your minted. >> i never intended to run for any political office. i had to set up the business of putting together a campaign staff, opening an office, getting on ballot. we had 18 days to gather signatures. we ended up with 71 signatures so i felt it was a ground swell of support for my candidacy. then i went around the district and met with different people from different communities. as i was going around the district i kept getting asked by people well, aren't you going to run for the congressional two seat. toyed give it consideration, which i did. in the indiana it was a decision i had to make in consultation with my doctor and my family. this is a huge decision for all of us, certainly from my family. and last weekend on saturday and sunday we got together, and the decision was that they would support me running and i declared my candidacy on monday. >> was there conversations with congressman giffor

ron barber joins me. ?ñ? countdown on current tv you're missing two hours of our political lineup. >>it's our job to bring you stories that other people aren't bringing you. >>unlimited, unfettered. >>check out "the young turks" with cenk uygur. >>you can't beat that, it's such a winning issue. >>step into "the war room" with jennifer granholm. >>never ending enertainment. >>the young turks at seven countdown with keith olbermann at eight and the war room at nine. current tv's prime-time lineup weeknights starting at seven-six central. only on current tv. >> the been 14 months since the shooting that wounded gabby giffords and took the life of six otherwise. ron barber was acting as an aid announced this week he would be running for a full congressional term this fall. mr. barrber will join me in a moment. you'll recall the moving house floor. barber announced that he would be running the june special election to fulfill her term. and then announced with the support of ms. giffords and her hustled be running.

ron barber was shot in the face that left giffords with a gunshot wound to the head.covery, and barber says he'll run to fill out the remainder of his former boss's term. he is also running again in august for his own term. and i'm joined now by ron barber. sir, it's nice to have you on with us this morning. and i know that there is a lot to talk about here. but i want to focus specifically on how much does winning this election mean to you, given how closely you worked alongside gabrielle giffords? >> well, it mostly means a lot to me, because i really feel i'm here and trying to serve the people of southern arizona. congresswoman is someone i respect and who inspires me and many other people in our country. but i think the important thing to note is that while we all dearly love her and what she has done for our community, this is not her seat, this is the people's seat. and i went to present myself as a candidate who can take the issues that are concerning middle class in our community to washington and fight hard for them. along with veterans and seniors. those ar

ron barber had previously announced he was running to fill giffords' vacated seat in a special electionngress in january to focus on her recovery after she and barber were shot and wounded in the tucson massacre that left six people dead. >>> more shake-ups today for the oprah winfrey network, own, as the struggling cable operation lays off some 30 people. that's about 20% of its workforce. it's also restructuring operations in new york and los angeles. winfrey called the moves business decisions that were difficult and tough. >>> and now for a look at what is trending today. our quick roundup of what has you talking online. a little jail time hasn't dampened george clooney's sense of humor. twitter is buzzing after his arrest friday during protests wrought side the sudanese embassy in washington. clooney's cell mate said he tried to pin the whole thing on his pal, telling police his name was brad pitt. well, we knew the latest ipad was a hot commodity but now tech blogs are posting reports of customers complaining that the tablet is becoming too warm to hold after prolonged use. and ot

barber not exactly a radical talking about limiting u.s. military involvement in places like afghanistan, he decided not to run. but it's not just the ron pauls of the world. ron paul takes it to it's logical extreme. but it's a strain within the republican party now that says should we even be doing it. it's not a majority, but it's a reality and the polls number that you have shown. >> don't forget, how many of the states that are critical swing states are states with strong military presence. it cuts both ways. the military is wary as well. if you talk to people in mcnorth carolina -- people in north carolina, and other places where there's large military bases, this is starting to on settle in. the home life is very, very difficult. >> no question, you know, look, andrea, in some way, and we will not get it this year. in an election year, you'll not get the big picture rethink. but it's about what role does, whoever is the president of the united states, but what is their vision of what america should and should not do in this post iraq and afghanistan or in the middle of afghanistan world? what is our role? and i don't know that th