Giffords had just begun her third term in January 2011 when she was shot in the head in an assassination attempt and mass shooting just outside of Tucson during an event with constituents. [75], On March 12, 2011, Giffords's husband informed her that six other people had been killed in the attack on her, but he did not identify who they were until months later. [106] After Hurricane Katrina struck in August 2005, Giffords spent time as a volunteer in Houston, Texas, in relief efforts for hurricane victims. [39][40][41] A 20th person was injured at the scene, but not by gunfire. Blue skies. After initially moving to New York City, where she worked in regional economic development for Price Waterhouse, Giffords returned to Arizona to work as the CEO of El Campo Tire Warehouses, a family business started by her grandfather. Stanton: Democrats damned by Iraq war vote. The rest of the vote went to minor candidates. She was awarded Arizona Family Literacy's Outstanding Legislator for 2003.[11]. [17], On November 5, 2010, Giffords was declared the victor after a close race against Republican Jesse Kelly. Gabrielle Dee Giffords (born June 8, 1970) is an American politician and gun control advocate who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives representing Arizona's 8th congressional district from January 2007 until January 2012, when she resigned due to a severe brain injury suffered during an assassination attempt. [33][54] The bullet passed through Giffords's head without crossing the midline of the brain, where the most critical injuries typically result. Giffords was a surprise witness at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on gun violence on January 30, 2013. Giffords launched her first candidacy for the U.S. Congress on January 24, 2006. [19] Giffords had been targeted for defeat by Sarah Palin's political action committee, SarahPAC. Gabby Giffords' husband Mark Kelly explains that even after tragedy, it can help to be around people who’ve gone through similar challenges. She worked with Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano to promote all-day kindergarten. [13] On September 12, 2006, Giffords won her party's nomination in the primary election. With longer efforts, she was able to produce more complex sentences. [108] She was periodically interviewed in 2007 together with Illinois Republican Peter Roskam on NPR's All Things Considered. [76] In late April, Giffords's doctors reported that her physical, cognitive, and language production abilities had improved significantly, placing her in the top 5 percent of patients recovering from similar injuries. "[119], Arizona's 8th Congressional District is one of ten in the country bordering Mexico. Giffords said on an interview with the Today show, "Oh, wonderful sky. [20], Giffords participated in the reading of the United States Constitution on the floor of the House of Representatives on January 6, 2011; she read the First Amendment. [79][80], After continuing her rehabilitation therapy in Houston,[81][82] Giffords returned to KSC for her husband's launch on May 16, 2011. I like a lot. [76], On January 22, 2012, Giffords announced in a video statement that she intended to resign her seat so that she could continue to focus on her recovery. [15][16], In 2008, Giffords was elected to a second term. [127], In January 2013, Giffords and her husband Mark Kelly started a political action committee called Americans for Responsible Solutions whose mission is to promote gun-control legislation with elected officials and the general public. [118] On August 1, 2008, she wrote to congressional leaders regarding tax credits that were set to expire, saying that failure to extend the scheme would be extremely harmful to the renewable energy industry "just as it is beginning to take off. A member of the Democratic Party, Giffords was the third woman in Arizona's history to be elected to the U.S. Congress. "[122], Giffords worked to secure passage of the August 2010 bill to fund more Border Patrol agents and surveillance technology for Arizona's border with Mexico. A joint memoir by Giffords and Kelly, Gabby: A Story of Courage and Hope, with co-author Jeffrey Zaslow, ... She worked with a speech therapist for months in preparation for the speech, and also performed "America" on the French horn, an instrument she had played as a teen, as a symbol of her recovery. [89], On August 1, she made her first public appearance on the House floor to vote in favor of raising the debt limit ceiling. She is also known as a strong proponent of solar energy as well as for her work to secure the Mexico–United States border. [2] Through her father, Giffords is a second cousin of actress Gwyneth Paltrow and director Jake Paltrow. [131], USS Gabrielle Giffords was christened at the Austal USA shipyard in Mobile, Alabama, on June 13, 2015. It reviews current energy usage and discusses how to increase the production of solar electricity. The business was sold to Goodyear Tire in 2000. [111][112] Giffords and Kelly were interviewed by ABC's Diane Sawyer in their first joint interview since the shooting, which aired on a special edition of 20/20 on November 14, 2011, in conjunction with the book's publication. [4], Giffords worked as an associate for regional economic development at Price Waterhouse in New York City. [30] She has also been a Girl Scout supporter for many years. [84][85] On June 9, 2011, Giffords's aide Pia Carusone announced that while Giffords's comprehension appeared to be "close to normal, if not normal", she was not yet using complete sentences. [129] In a halting voice, she called for Congress to pass tougher laws on guns, saying "too many children are dying." She was raised in a mixed religious environment, as her mother was a Christian Scientist and her father was Jewish. Bee was the President of the Arizona State Senate and considered a strong challenger in this race. Graf won anyway, helped by a split in the Republican moderate vote between two candidates. "Words once came easily; today I struggle to speak, but I have not lost my voice," Giffords continued. [3], Giffords graduated from Tucson's University High School. Rep. Giffords, still recovering from injuries sustained in the 2011 assassination attempt, attended the ship's keel-laying ceremony and etched her initials into a plate welded into the ship. [98], On January 8, 2014, Giffords marked the third anniversary of the shooting by going skydiving. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology and Latin American History from Scripps College in California in 1993;[4] and spent a year as a Fulbright Scholar in Chihuahua, Mexico. Federal officials charged Loughner on the next day with killing federal government employees, attempting to assassinate a member of Congress, and attempting to kill federal employees. [126] However, Giffords's bill was never voted on by the House of Representatives. Having learnt the French horn as a child she returned to the instrument as part of her music therapy and in August 2020 spoke about this experience in a speech endorsing Joe Biden's presidential bid. Music therapist Molly Bybee, 29, sings for her class of residents at the Paul's Run Halle Health Center. Giffords switched her party affiliation from Republican to Democratic in 2000 and was elected to the Arizona House of Representatives from 2001 to 2003. [45][46][47] After eventually facing more than 50 federal criminal charges, Loughner pleaded guilty to 19 of them in a plea bargain to avoid a death sentence. Her Republican opponent in the general election was Randy Graf, a conservative former state senator known for his enforcement-only position on immigration and illegal aliens. 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It's over 50 percent. Her letter of resignation was read on her behalf by her close friend and fellow Democratic representative, Debbie Wasserman Schultz. [90], Giffords argues that Americans are competing on a global level and that this competition starts in the classroom. She returned to her husband's Texas home. The launch of STS-134 was delayed due to mechanical problems, and Giffords and Kelly returned to Houston after meeting with President Obama, who had also planned to see the launch with his family at Kennedy Space Center (KSC).