Thursday, January 13, 2011

Dem Leader Clyburn Ties AZ Shooting To Sharron Angle Statement

Citing no evidence that the Arizona shooter had ever heard of Sharron Angle of Nevada or her remarks about Second Amendment remedies, a top Dem leader has nevertheless tied the shootings to Angle's statement.

Rep. James Clyburn, third in the House Dem leadership, made his allegation on Fox News Sunday today. He began with a general statment, then made a specific accusation.

JAMES CLYBURN: I think that what is happened here is that the vitriol has gotten so elevated until people feel emboldened by this. And people who are a little less than stable, and people aren't thinking for themselves are so easily influenced, they go out and do things that all of us pay a great price for.

Brett Baier, subbing for Chris Wallace, then read to Clyburn a statement from Tea Party leader Judson Phillips predicting that the left would blame the shootings on the Tea Party movem

Gun Sales Skyrocket After AZ Shooting

Gun sales are booming after the recent tragedy in Tucson, Ariz., and it's leading to an increased interest in shooting sports.

Joe Reddick with Heartland Outdoors of Edmond says, "Yesterday we did at least three times the number of gun sales we normally do; handguns mostly, assault rifles, AR15's, things like that, tactical style shotguns were flying out of here yesterday."

The shooting of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and other victims has sparked debate over the current gun laws, and now, Reddick says, "I think it's just cause people are scared the government's just going to try to take away their rights."

Others say they are simply concerned for their safety.

Lakin Best recently took up the sport of shooting and says, "It's really just for self-defense, for protection, I don't want to be afraid of the gun."

Despite the increase in sales, dealers caution interested buyers to not jump the gun.

Those who aren't familiar with weapons need to first get educated about gun safety and the law.

Obama Arizona Speech: 'I Want America To Be As Good As She Imagined It'

TUCSON, Ariz. — Summoning the soul of a nation, President Barack Obama on Wednesday implored Americans to honor those slain and injured in the Arizona shootings by becoming better people, telling a polarized citizenry that it is time to talk with each other "in a way that heals, not in a way wounds." Following a hospital bedside visit with Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, the target of the assassination, he said: "She knows we're here, and she knows we love her."


In a memorably dramatic moment, the president said that Giffords, who on Saturday was shot point-blank in the head, had opened her eyes for the first time shortly after his hospital visit. First lady Michelle Obama held hands with Giffords' husband, Mark Kelly, as the news brought soaring cheers throughout the arena.

Speaking at a memorial at the University of Arizona, Obama bluntly conceded that there is no way to know what triggered the shooting rampage that left six people dead, 13 others wounded and the nation shaken. He tried instead to leave indelible memories of the people who were gunned down and to rally the country to use the moment as a reflection on the nation's behavior and compassion.

"I believe we can be better," Obama said to a capacity crowd in the university's basketball arena – and to countless others watching around the country. "Those who died here, those who saved lives here – they help me believe. We may not be able to stop all evil in the world, but I know that how we treat one another is entirely up to us."

In crafting his comments, Obama clearly sought a turning point in the raw debate that has defined national politics. After offering personal accounts of every person who died, he challenged anyone listening to think of how to honor their memories, and he was not shy about offering direction. He admonished against any instinct to point blame or to drift into political pettiness or to latch onto simple explanations that may have no merit.

Speaking of Christina Taylor Green, the nine-year-old who was killed on Saturday, Obama said:

That's what I believe, in part because that's what a child like Christina Taylor Green believed. Imagine: here was a young girl who was just becoming aware of our democracy; just beginning to understand the obligations of citizenship; just starting to glimpse the fact that someday she too might play a part in shaping her nation's future. She had been elected to her student council; she saw public service as something exciting, something hopeful. She was off to meet her congresswoman, someone she was sure was good and important and might be a role model. She saw all this through the eyes of a child, undimmed by the cynicism or vitriol that we adults all too often just take for granted.


I want us to live up to her expectations. I want our democracy to be as good as she imagined it. All of us - we should do everything we can to make sure this country lives up to our children's expectations.

He also deviated from his prepared remarks, saying emphatically, "I want America to be as good as she imagined it."

David Frum Blames Ariz. Shooting on Reefer Madness

The former Bush speechwriter who coined the term “axis of evil” claims a link between Jared Loughner, schizophrenia and pot smoking. Forget guns, “The Tucson shooting should remind us why we regulate marijuana.”

Much of our culture’s historic intolerance of marijuana grew out of racism and the quack science used to justify it. Frum acknowledges in his blog post that the “connection between marijuana and schizophrenia is both controversial and complicated.” But, he writes, “The raw association is strong.” That’s like saying “I can’t prove anything conclusively, but I’ve got a gut feeling.”

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, 42.6 percent of Americans have consumed marijuana by the time they graduate from high school. If Frum is correct, we’re going to have a lot more dangerous schizophrenics to deal with. Perhaps we should get on top of the situation by drastically increasing funding for mental health services and amending the Constitution to ban guns.

Whether pot makes you crazy, lazy or fat, you can’t shoot someone without a gun.

U.S. struggles with AZ shooting response

At the time of this publication, the motive for the attempted murder of Gabrielle Giffords, an Arizonian Democratic congresswomen, is still unclear. There has been wide speculation about the motivation of the suspected shooter, Jared Lee Loughner. He appears to be a paranoid individual with strong anti-government feelings. His YouTube videos are rambling and incoherent (and would probably be pretty amusing if they weren't so morbid at this point) warnings against government controlling citizen's grammar and encouraging people to create their own currency. Law enforcement even found evidence from his home indicates that he planned to assassinate Mrs. Gifford.

What should our response be to such an event? This is certainly a jarring moment for the U.S. Usually, assassinations of government officials take place on the other side of the border.

There have been several suggestions on how to handle this situation. Peter King (R – New York) has taken a somewhat hysterical approach by proposing a bill that would ban firearms within 1,000 feet of elected officials. This misunderstands the situation: anyone with the serious intent to kill a senator with a gun would not care about gun legislation.

Rather than the specific weapon (as political leaders have been getting themselves shot, stabbed, hanged or stoned since Hammurabi), is there a legitimate cause for this seemingly random act of aggression by an apparent lunatic?

Much of the blame is being placed on the vitriolic state of American political discourse. Deservedly so. As a society, we spend an incredible amount of money on the power of words. We are inundated daily with advertising, corporate communications, media campaigns and political messages that are all trying to make us feel a certain way. Increasingly, that feeling is isolation and fear. Millions of dollars are being spent on political attack ads that are intentionally divisive. Political and media leaders have profited from demonizing opponents and souring the political landscape. How can we expect to subject people (especially the delusional) to such phenomena and not expect the medium's tone to affect them? Every elected official has someone managing what they say: our leaders understand the portent of words, but they choose to disregard the ultimate impacts in favor of short-term political gain.

Those to blame know it. Minutes after Giffords was shot, a map of several Democratic congressmen with crosshairs on their states was taken off Sarah Palin's website. An aide claimed that the crosshairs were "surveyor's symbols" never meant to encourage guns or violence, a statement that contradicts Palin's own words. The entire structure of Palin's PR is based around isolation and otherization. She offers such sage-like, nonviolent advice like, "Don't retreat, instead- RELOAD!"

Even more egregiously, Giffords' Tea Party opponent held an event titled "Get on Target for Victory in November" that was described as, "Help remove Gabrielle Giffords from office. Shoot a fully automatic M-16 with Jesse Kelly." We should seriously question why a movement is trying to assert that assault rifles have a legitimate place in an election in a free democratic society. They don't.

Former President Bill Clinton had these words to offer: "This is an occasion for us to reaffirm that our political differences shouldn't degenerate into demonization, in the sense that if you don't agree with me you're not a good American." Let us, on both sides of the political spectrum, take this thought to heart. Liberal superiority and dismissiveness can be just as unhelpful to actual discourse as outright aggression, even if it is less dramatic. Hug someone you disagree with.

AZ shooting sparks debate about political rhetoric

The nation continues to recover from the shocking shootings in Tucson, Ariz. that left six people dead and 14 injured, including U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

Doctors at the University of Arizona Medical Center’s trauma unit think a bullet passed right through the left side of Gifford’s brain but are confident she will survive, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Giffords is now breathing on her own and might open her eyes soon, doctors said.

Jared Loughner, the 22-year-old suspect sure to go down in the annals of infamous assassins such as John Wilkes Booth and Lee Harvey Oswald, has been charged by federal authorities with counts of murder, attempted murder and attempting to assassinate a member of Congress.

The shooting has also sparked a controversial debate about the tone of political rhetoric in the country.

Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik singled out the rhetoric of conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh.

“[Limbaugh] attacks people, angers them against government, angers them against elected officials and that kind of behavior, in my opinion, is without consequence and I think he’s irresponsible,” he said in an ABC News interview.

Tea Party favorite Sarah Palin responded to criticism from the left with a video posted on her Facebook page Wednesday.

“If you don’t like a person’s vision for the country, you’re free to debate that vision,” she said. “If you don’t like their ideas, you’re free to propose better ideas. But, especially 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.”

A poll conducted by CBS News on Jan. 9 and 10 indicated 57 percent of respondents felt a harsh political tone did not have anything to do with the Arizona shootings, while 32 percent felt it did.

President Barack Obama will speak at a memorial service in Tucson tonight. He will address civility in the nation’s political discourse, White House officials said.

AZ shooting changes plans for Boehner's first days as speaker

WASHINGTON (AP) Wednesday was supposed to be House Speaker John Boehner's first test of leadership, as Republicans had planned to hold a vote on repealing the controversial health care law, a campaign promise for many tea party freshmen.

Instead, the West Chester Republican faced a different test - reassuring lawmakers who were worried about their safety and leading them in prayer and tribute to Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and other victims of the shooting spree in Tucson, Ariz., over the weekend.

The health care vote has been postponed, putting off what is expected to be a passionate and highly partisan floor debate. A resolution honoring the dead and wounded in the weekend's shootings was considered instead.

With a breaking voice and a handkerchief on hand, Boehner spoke of the "unspeakable act of violence" that took six lives, including that of Giffords' aide Gabe Zimmerman, whom Boehner called "one of our own."

"At the time of the attack, he was engaged in the most simple and direct of democratic rituals - listening to the people, listening to his neighbors," Boehner said, his eyes welling with tears as he thanked staff members for what they do to "make this institution work."

With all eyes on him, Boehner sought to both soothe and affirm lawmakers and viewers shaken by the violence.


"We feel a litany of unwanted emotions that no resolution could possibly capture," he said. "We know that we gather here without distinction of party. The needs of this institution have always risen above partisanship."
'The lifeblood of our democracy'

Boehner's remarks led off a day of tributes to Giffords and the other victims.

"Today I stand here to say - not as a Republican or a Democrat, but as an American - that violence has no place in our society, and I wish and pray for peace and justice for all of those who have been involved in this tragedy," said Rep. Mike Turner, a Centerville Republican who represents part of Warren County.


Rep. Jean Schmidt, a Miami Township Republican, called on everyone to pray for Giffords and the families of all those affected by the shootings.

"I don't think any words can sum up what we need to do here," Schmidt said. "Let us hope that all of those who have been touched by this tragedy can heal."

Recalling his first speech as speaker, Boehner called on his fellow lawmakers to continue carrying out the duties that they pledged exactly one week ago.

"Today it is not ceremony, but tragedy that stirs us to renew our commitment to fulfill our oaths of office," Boehner said. ''Let us not let this inhuman act frighten us into doing otherwise. The free exchange of ideas is the lifeblood of our democracy."
'Taking all the right steps'

Earlier on Wednesday, Boehner met with GOP lawmakers and Capitol Police behind closed doors in a basement office of the Capitol to discuss security precautions.

"We're hearing what we need to do," Rep. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., said while leaving the meeting. "I think Speaker Boehner is taking all the right steps."

Rep. Buck McKeon, R-Calif., agreed. "The briefing was good," he said. "Speaker Boehner has done an outstanding job of setting the proper tone and making sure that the members are informed."

Even Democrats have praised Boehner's response.

"He has said the right things and set the right tone," Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., told the New York Times. "I think he has acted swiftly, effectively and responsibly."

Leading by example, Boehner's office told The Enquirer that despite security concerns in the wake of the shooting, the speaker would continue to fly commercial between Ohio and Washington, something he promised in November.

"Boehner did fly commercial this past weekend and will continue to do so," spokesman Cory Fritz said in an e-mail.

Past House speakers - the officeholder is second in line for the presidency after the vice president - have used government jets.

Boehner passed up a chance to fly to Wednesday’s service on Air Force One with President Barack Obama and other government officials so that he could attend a Washington, D.C., reception for Maria Cino, who is seeking to become chairman of the Republican National Committee, Politico reported Wednesday.

Aides for Boehner told Politico he would complete his remarks before Obama’s speech at the Giffords memorial.

Loughner's dad feared he was 'out of control,' neighbor says

Tucson, Arizona (AP) -- The father of Arizona massacre suspect Jared Lee Loughner had a front-yard argument with his son the morning of the killings and had told a neighbor the 22-year-old was "out of control," according to neighbors and investigators.

The shaven-headed youth had quit a community college in October after being suspended and had been warned not to come back without a mental health evaluation. Postings attributed to Loughner on websites including MySpace and YouTube show "classic signs of psychosis," one expert told CNN.

Loughner had complained for years about U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords -- the apparent target of Saturday's bloodbath, according to a law enforcement official.

Loughner is now accused of killing six people and wounding 13, including Giffords, who remained in critical condition with a head wound Wednesday. Among the dead were Arizona's presiding federal district judge, a Giffords aide, a 9-year-old girl and three of constituents who had come out for Giffords' "Congress on the Corner" open house at a local Safeway supermarket.

The morning of the shooting, he had argued with his father, Randy Loughner, in the front yard of their Tucson home, Richard Kastigar, the head of the Pima County Sheriff's Department's investigations bureau, told the AP" The younger Loughner was in the front yard with a bag, possibly a backpack, when his father asked him what he was doing with it, Kastigar said.

"Jared mumbled something back to his dad, and his dad said he didn't understand what was said. It was unintelligible," Kastigar said. "And then Jared left. The father followed. The father got in his vehicle and tried to locate his son and followed the direction that he went and he could not locate his son."

Randy Loughner thought his son "went into the desert some place," Kastigar said. But by Saturday afternoon, he and his wife returned home to find police waiting for them, neighbor Stephen Woods said.

"His hand went on his head. He seemed very upset. His wife was crying. I assume that's when they told him," Woods said. Randy Loughner "was just holding his head, saying, 'No. No.' "

Woods said Randy Loughner had complained to another neighbor that his son was "out of control." Kastigar said the family is cooperating with investigators, and "There's nothing that indicates to us that these were bad folks."

"You know, this is a tragedy for them as well," he said.

Loughner's parents said Tuesday they do not know why the shooting occurred and that they were "very sorry" for the loss felt by victims' families.

"It may not make any difference, but we wish that we could change the heinous events of Saturday. We care very deeply about the victims and their families. We are so very sorry for their loss," they said in a written statement given to reporters gathered outside their home.

Searches of their home after the killings turned up a 2007 letter from Giffords, thanking Jared Loughner for attending a 2007 event similar to Saturday's. An envelop in the same strongbox was scrawled with phrases like "die bitch" and "assassination plans have been made," Kastigar said.

A law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity told the AP Loughner asked Giffords a question at the 2007 event and was unhappy with her response.

"He never let it go," the source said. "It kept festering."

Online, Loughner ranted about poor grammar, illiteracy and "mind control" and argued that space shuttle missions were faked and that people could make their own currency.

"In conclusion, reading the second United States constitution I can't trust the current government because of the ratifications: the government is implying mind control and brainwash on the people by controlling grammar," he wrote in one piece posted to YouTube. "No! I won't pay debt with a currency that's not backed by gold and silver! No! I won't trust in God!"

Alan Lipman, director of the Center of the Study of Violence at Georgetown University, said the postings show "classic signs of psychosis."

"People were looking for whether he was on the left or the right. He was neither," Lipman told the AP. "He was incoherent. Those were signs, classic signs you'd see in a psychiatric unit of formal thought disorder."

And forensic psychologist Kathy Seifert called the postings "absolutely psychotic." Loughner should have been evaluated for schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, autism or other mental illnesses, she said.

"I understand the thing about the grammar," Seifert said. "There is a group, or a person, that talks about how the grammar is used to control the population, and so I hear that he's picking up that from someone else, too. So he's been influenced by other people."

Loughner dropped out of high school in 2006, after being taken to a hospital for alcohol poisoning near the end of his junior year, according to Sheriff's Department records released Wednesday. In 2007, he was arrested for possession of drug paraphernalia, but the charge was dismissed after he completed a pretrial diversion program, according to court records.

When he tried to enlist in the Army in 2008, the service rejected him for reasons it says it can't disclose due to privacy laws. But an administration official told CNN on Sunday that Loughner had failed a drug test.

In October of that year, he approached sheriff's deputies with a complaint about identity theft.

"I noted that Jared was slow to respond to my questions." The deputy who took his complaint noted. "He often hesitated as if he was trying to think of an explanation."

Police were unable to contact him at the number he left for them, and the matter went no further, according to a sheriff's report.

After dropping out of school, Loughner enrolled at Aztec Middle College, a partnership between Tucson schools and Pima Community College that helps high school dropouts transition to community colleges, PCC President Sylvia Lee told CNN. He took classes at the college until October 2010, when withdrew after five contacts with police and a suspension.

Algebra instructor Ben McGahee said he had Loughner removed from his class in June after multiple disruptions in the first three weeks of the course. McGahee said Loughner sometimes shook, blurted things out in class and appeared to be under the influence of drugs at times.

Another classmate, Steven Cates, told the AP that Loughner "didn't interact socially like other people."

"He would sit at his desk with that grin that you see in the mug shot that I've seen on the news," Cates said. "He would sit at his desk with that grin, clenching his fists sitting at the desk."

Pima Community College told Loughner that he needed a letter from a mental health professional certifying that he posed no danger to himself or others before he would be allowed to return. Yet nothing in his record turned up in the background check carried out in November, when he bought the weapon police say was used in the killings.

Kastigar said the investigation into Saturday's killings focuses less on who was responsible than why. But he cautioned, "You can't really make reason out of something that is unreasonable."

"Perhaps some psychologist or psychiatrist may opine at some point why they think this happened," he said. "We can present the evidence, give it to experts, and somebody else might come up with why. But law enforcement at this point doesn't have it."

Memorial to honor youngest victim of Arizona mass shootings

Tucson, Arizona (AP) -- A memorial on Thursday will honor the youngest victim of the Arizona mass shooting, a 9-year-old dancer and swimmer whose untimely death has broken hearts nationwide.

Six people were killed and 13 others wounded when a gunman opened fire Saturday at Rep. Gabrielle Giffords' meet-and-greet event in Tucson. Giffords was among the injured.

The youngest victim, Christina Green, was born on September 11, 2001. Christina had just been elected to the student council at her elementary school, and was attending the event with a neighbor. She was there to meet the lawmaker when the gunman struck.

The neighbor, Suzi Hileman, was shot three times and is recovering, but is struggling emotionally with the girl's death, relatives said.
Mother shot while shielding kids
Obama: We mourn with you, stand by you
'It was like witnessing a miracle'


Christina entered the world "on a tragic day and she went out on a tragic day," said her father, John Green. "There's going to be a lot of those kind of moments that -- I had one this morning, just waking up. She comes up and says, 'Daddy, it's time to get up.' She didn't do that this morning."

Obama eulogized the victims at a service at the University of of Arizona Wednesday night. He paid special attention to the young girl whose life was cut short.

"In Christina we see all of our children. So curious, so trusting, so energetic, so full of magic. So deserving of our love. And so deserving of our good example," Obama said.

"Christina was an A student; she was a dancer; she was a gymnast; she was a swimmer. She decided that she wanted to be the first woman to play in the Major Leagues, and as the only girl on her Little League team, no one put it past her."

The president said she had a unique appreciation for life.

"She'd remind her mother, 'We are so blessed. We have the best life,' " the president said. "And she'd pay those blessings back by participating in a charity that helped children who were less fortunate."

Obama urged the crowd to remember those who survived.

"Our hearts are broken -- and yet, our hearts also have reason for fullness," the president said. "Our hearts are full of hope and thanks for the 13 Americans who survived the shooting, including the congresswoman."

Suspect Jared Loughner allegedly fired at the lawmaker first, striking her in the head.

For Christina's memorial, two fire trucks will raise their ladders and connect a U.S. flag that was nearly destroyed in the 2001 terror attacks in New York City. The flag will form an arch-like design, under which her family will walk before entering church.

The controversial Westboro Baptist Church initially vowed to picket the young girl's funeral, but later said it would not after it got an offer for 30 minutes of airtime on a radio program.

Other victims killed in the shooting are Dorwan Stoddard, 76; Dorothy Morris, 76; Phyllis Schneck, 79; U.S. District Judge John Roll, 63; and Gabriel "Gabe" Zimmerman, 30.

Alleged Loughner postings paint disturbing picture

(AP)NASA has never flown a manned space shuttle mission.

There was no Mars rover.

People can make their own currency.

From February 2009 through September 2010, someone using the name "Erad3" made these and a series of other assertions -- unusual at best, disturbed at worst -- on the website abovetopsecret.com.

Erad3, according to site co-owner Mark Allin, was almost certainly Jared Lee Loughner, the 22-year-old man accused of killing six people and injuring 14 others last weekend, including U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Arizona.

The site, Allin said, focuses on "alternative news" and information "not covered by the mainstream media." Allin noted that all 130 messages from Erad3 were posted from Loughner's hometown of Tucson, and many of them bear a striking resemblance to postings made by Loughner on the popular social media site YouTube.

Investigators are examining the postings on Allin's site, according to a law enforcement source.

The messages from Erad3 -- riddled with grammatical errors -- often became the object of ridicule, scorn or sympathy from other contributors.

"The ranting about proof, (your) inability to make a coherent sentence gives you away red handed," one person wrote. "It won't be long (until) you have been banned once again!"

"You sound absolutely bonkers," added another.

"I think you're frankly schizophrenic," said a third. "That's not an amateur opinion and not intended as an uninformed or insulting. ... You clearly make no sense and are unable to communicate. I really do care. Seek help before you hurt yourself or others or start taking your medications again, please."

Erad3 replied with a series of unrelated arguments before concluding with a brief expression of thanks for the writer's concern.

None of Erad3's postings mentions Giffords or a desire for violence, unlike language used in documents found in Loughner's residence. They do, however, appear to reflect a strong urge to break free of any constraints -- real or imagined -- imposed by government officials.

"Every human who's mentally capable is always able to be treasurer of their new currency," he wrote at one point. "If the treasury creates one new currency then why couldn't they create an infinite amount? Wouldn't (it) be beautiful to see your face on the new coins?"

The investigation into the postings is part of a pledge from law enforcement authorities to pursue every lead relating to Saturday's shooting. President Barack Obama is scheduled to address mourners at a memorial service in Tucson on Wednesday night.

Documents detail Ariz. suspect's college outbursts

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) -- For four years, Jared Loughner was an unremarkable college student, commuting to classes near his home where he studied yoga and algebra, business management and poetry.

But last year, his classroom conduct began to change. In February, Loughner stunned a teacher by talking about blowing up babies, a bizarre outburst that marked the start of a rapid unraveling for the 22-year old, who is accused of slaying six people and wounding 13, including Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

After his first flare-up, campus police decided not to intervene.

"I suggested they keep an eye on him," an officer wrote.

Loughner's on-campus behavior grew increasingly erratic, menacing, even delusional. Fifty-one pages of police reports released Wednesday provided a chilling portrait of Loughner's last school year, which ended in September when he was judged mentally unhinged and suspended by Pima Community College.

As the records were released, President Barack Obama visited Giffords in the hospital. Later, during a nationally-televised memorial service, the president revealed the congresswoman had opened her eyes shortly after he left her bedside.

Obama touched on themes of unity, patriotism and heroism in his address to the crowded arena with about 14,000 people, and he spoke at length about 9-year-old Christina Taylor Green, the youngest victim of the attack. Her funeral was set for 1 p.m. MST (3 p.m. EST) Thursday, the first of six funerals.

As Tucson and the nation remembered the victims, new details surfaced about the busy morning Loughner had in the hours before the shooting.

According to authorities, Loughner hustled to Walmart twice, was caught by police running a red light but was let go with a warning, and later grabbed a black bag from the trunk of a family car before fleeing into the desert on foot with his suspicious father giving chase. Eventually, he took a cab to the grocery store where he opened fire on Giffords and a line of people waiting to speak to her.

Just three months earlier, he had been kicked out of school.

In a Sept. 23 campus police report, days before his suspension, an officer called to quiet another one of Loughner's outbursts described him as incomprehensible, his eyes jittery, his head awkwardly tilted.

"He very slowly began telling me in a low and mumbled voice that under the Constitution, which had been written on the wall for all to see, he had the right to his 'freedom of thought' and whatever he thought in his head he could also put on paper. ... His teacher 'must be required to accept it' as a passing grade," the officer wrote.

"It was clear he was unable to fully understand his actions."

The school reports provide the most detailed accounts so far of Loughner's troubles at the college, and he is depicted at times as "creepy," "very hostile" and "having difficulty understanding what he had done wrong in the classroom." School officials have not said if the reports were shared with any authorities beyond campus.

During his first outburst, in a poetry class, he made comments about abortion, wars and killing people, then asked: "Why don't we just strap bombs to babies?"

In an April report, librarians called police because Loughner, with ear buds, was making so much noise at a computer it was disturbing others. He promised it would not happen again.

But a month later, he became hostile with a Pilates instructor when he learned he was going to receive a B in the class. The teacher told police Loughner said the grade was unacceptable.

Outside of class, she spoke with Loughner and later told police she felt the discussion "might become physical." The professor was so concerned she wanted a campus police officer to watch over her class.

According to school officials, Loughner studied at the college from the summer of 2005 to September, when he was suspended after campus police discovered a YouTube video in which Loughner claimed the college was illegal under to the U.S. Constitution.

In all, he had five run-ins with police on two campuses.

In early June, the dean's office received a report that Loughner had disrupted a math class when he started arguing with the professor about a number. The possibility of a suspension was raised at the time, but no action was taken.

In a second memo on the math class, Loughner was proclaimed he had a right to exercise his freedom of speech. "I was not disruptive, I was only asking questions that related to math."

DeLisa Siddall, a counselor in the Educational Support Department, asked Loughner to explain the dispute. "My instructor said he called a number 6 and I said 'I call it 18.'"

According to the police report, Loughner said he paid $200 for the class "so he should have a right to speak." He said he felt that he was being scammed, as he had been in other classes.

Loughner was warned that the behavior had to stop or disciplinary action would begin. Since Loughner chose to continue attending class but remain silent she "had no grounds to keep him out of class."

On Nov. 30, the same day he bought the Glock, Loughner posted a YouTube video, seething about campus police and the college.

"If the police remove you from the educational facility for talking then removing you from the educational facility for talking is unconstitutional," he said on the video. "The situation is fraud because the police are unconstitutional. ... Every Pima Community College class is always a scam!"

School officials told Loughner and his parents that to return to classes he would need to undergo a mental health exam to show he was not a danger. He never returned.

Palin: Journalists incite hatred after Arizona shootings

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) -- Sarah Palin posted a nearly eight-minute video on her Facebook page early Wednesday, accusing journalists and pundits of inciting hatred and violence in the wake of a deadly Arizona shooting that gravely wounded U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

Last spring, Palin targeted Giffords' district as one of 20 that should be taken back. Palin has been criticized for marking each district with the cross hairs of a gun sight.

In the video, the 2008 GOP vice presidential candidate said vigorous debates are a cherished tradition. But she said after the election, both sides find common ground, even though they disagree.

"But, especially 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," she said.

Jared Loughner, 22, is accused of trying to assassinate Giffords, wounding 12 others and killing six people.

"There are those who claim political rhetoric is to blame for the despicable act of this deranged, apparently apolitical criminal," Palin said. "And they claim political debate has somehow gotten more heated just recently. But when was it less heated? Back in those 'calm days' when political figures literally settled their differences with dueling pistols?"

Rep. Giffords opened eyes for 1st time since AZ shooting

(01/12/11) TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) - Summoning the soul of a nation, President Barack Obama on Wednesday implored Americans to honor those slain and injured in the Arizona shootings by becoming better people, telling a polarized citizenry that it is time to talk with each other "in a way that heals, not in a way wounds." Following a hospital bedside visit with Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, the target of the assassination, he said: "She knows we're here, and she knows we love her."

In a memorably dramatic moment, the president said that Giffords, who on Saturday was shot point-blank in the head, had opened her eyes for the first time shortly after his hospital visit. First lady Michelle Obama held hands with Giffords' husband, Mark Kelly, as the news brought soaring cheers throughout the arena.

Speaking at a memorial at the University of Arizona, Obama bluntly conceded that there is no way to know what triggered the shooting rampage that left six people dead, 13 others wounded and the nation shaken. He tried instead to leave indelible memories of the people who were gunned down and to rally the country to use the moment as a reflection on the nation's behavior and compassion.

"I believe we can be better," Obama said to a capacity crowd in the university's basketball arena - and to countless others watching around the country. "Those who died here, those who saved lives here - they help me believe. We may not be able to stop all evil in the world, but I know that how we treat one another is entirely up to us."

In crafting his comments, Obama clearly sought a turning point in the raw debate that has defined national politics. After offering personal accounts of every person who died, he challenged anyone listening to think of how to honor their memories, and he was not shy about offering direction. He admonished against any instinct to point blame or to drift into political pettiness or to latch onto simple explanations that may have no merit.

"At a time when our discourse has become so sharply polarized - at a time when we are far too eager to lay the blame for all that ails the world at the feet of those who think differently than we do - it's important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we are talking with each other in a way that heals, not a way that wounds," the president said.

The shooting happened as Giffords, a three-term Democrat who represents southern Arizona, was holding a community outreach event in a Tucson shopping center parking lot Saturday. A gunman shot her in the head and worked his way down the line of people waiting to talk with her, law enforcement officials said. The attack ended when bystanders tackled the man, Jared Lee Loughner, 22, who is in custody.

Obama's speech, by turns somber and hopeful, at times took on the tone of an exuberant pep rally as he heralded the men who wrestled the gunman to the ground, the woman who grabbed the shooter's ammunition, the doctors and nurses who treated the injured, the intern who rushed to Giffords' aid. The crowd erupted in multiple standing ovations as each was singled out for praise.

The president recalled how federal Judge John Roll was on his way from attending Mass when he stopped to say hello to Giffords and was gunned down; Dorothy Morris, shielded by her husband, but killed nonetheless, and Phyllis Schneck, a Republican who took a shine to Giffords, a Democrat, and wanted to know her better.

Obama spoke to a crowd of more than 14,000 in an arena and thousands more listened on from an overflow area in the football stadium. About a mile away, at University Medical Center, Giffords lay fighting for her life. Other victims also remained there hospitalized.