Laura Richardson is “horrified, but not shocked” about the events that transpired in Tucson, Arizona on Jan. 8, 2011 (Commentary; Jan. 14, 2011). Her views are laughable, but not surprising.
While she is correct that the debates in Washington, D.C. are not restricted to the Capitol, her inference that there is a connection somehow between those debates and the tragic events that day are not only NOT supported by fact, but are controverted by fact.
Friends of the alleged gunman have stated that he did not listen to news, TV or political speech; however, he admired Hitler’s Mein Kampf and the Communist Manifesto.
Also not supported by fact are the allegations that lawmakers were spat upon or called racial slurs during the healthcare debate. The $100,000 reward offered by Andrew Breitbart to anyone who can provide evidence that racial epithets were shouted at Congressional Black Caucus members on March 20 remains unclaimed.
Common sense and emerging evidence about the alleged gunman point to mental illness as the probable cause of the Tucson tragedy, not political rhetoric. It is disingenuous of anyone to imply otherwise. Rep. Richardson says she “stands ready to return to Washington this week to work on ensuring this incident never happens again.”  I trust she will be focusing on mental-health issues and not restrictions to the 1st and 2nd Amendments of the US Constitution.
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Deborah J. Hess
Long BeachÂ
