Donald Trump shooting brings words of support from Gabby Giffords, Mark Kelly

Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly and his wife, former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, were among the first to condemn political violence after news broke of the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at a political rally in Pennsylvania.

Television footage showed Trump bleeding from his right ear after the gunfire. He was whisked away by U.S. Secret Service agents as he pumped his fist and appeared to mouth the words "fight" to his supporters, some of whom were screaming or shrieking in fear in the chaos.

The gunman, who was at an elevated position outside the rally venue, was killed by U.S. Secret Service personnel. He was identified late Saturday as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania.

One spectator was reported killed and two were critically injured.

Trump was treated for his wound. He said in a written statement he was shot in the ear.

It was only natural for Giffords and Kelly to comment. Their lives were ripped apart by a shooting at a political event 13 years earlier in Arizona. Giffords survived with a serious brain injury that limited her speech, and both have redoubled their efforts since to promote what they call sane gun safety regulation.

In 2011, Giffords herself was the target of an assassination attempt in the Tucson area, her home. That shooting, also on a Saturday, killed six, including an 8-year-old girl and a federal judge, and wounded 18, plus Giffords.

Giffords, others shot at 'Congress on Your Corner' event

On Jan. 8, 2011, a few minutes after 10 a.m., a gunman walked up to a "Congress on Your Corner" in front of the Safeway at La Toscana Village mall, north of town. A line of well-wishers and constituents were there to meet Giffords, who was respected for her bipartisanship. And courage.

Then, like now, there was a climate of political anger in the wind. Giffords had received death threats and was singled out in political ads that struck some commentators at the time as menacing. Weeks earlier, she had voted for President Barack Obama's then-controversial Affordable Care Act.

The night of Jan. 7, her staff sent out thousands of robocalls to announce the meet-and-greet, a hallmark of her tenure in Congress.

One was received by Jared Lee Loughner, a 22-year-old north Tuscon man who struggled with undiagnosed and untreated schizophrenia. His struggles had cost him jobs, and, in the weeks leading up to the shooting, his behavior at Pima Community College classes had grown increasingly bizarre. Some students felt menaced by his outbursts in class and his weird campus videos.

Inspired, in part, by the writings of George Orwell, Loughner had developed a theory that the federal government was brainwashing people by manipulating words and math. He spent a restless night before shooting, taking selfies with a gun and texting friends in increasingly ominous language.

The next morning, he arrived at the Safeway and marched up to Giffords with a 9 mm Glock semiautomatic pistol. He shot her point-blank before turning on the others. He was taken into custody quickly at the scene.

It was the first targeted attempt on the life of a sitting member of the U.S. House of Representatives in more than a half-century.

Mark Kelly, then a NASA astronaut, was flying back from Texas when news of the shooting broke. Early reports that Giffords was dead were false. Kelly did not know that at the time.

Misinformation rampant in first hours after shooting

In the first hours after the shooting, numerous political figures and media commentators blamed the supercharged political rhetoric for motivating the assassination attempt. This, too, proved false.

Loughner was apolitical, a loner who vented his growing anger, rage and alienation on social media posts and in gaming chat rooms. Hours before the shooting, he posted "goodbye" on one site and wrote to friends: "Please don't be mad at me."

When federal agents searched Loughner's bedroom, they found a lockbox that contained a 9 mm bullet and a four-year-old letter from Giffords thanking him for attending an event. His name was misspelled. He had scribbled "die, b----" on it.

In the aftermath, Giffords made a slow recovery while Loughner was treated in federal prison so he could stand trial. He pleaded guilty to 19 felony counts and in November 2012, he appeared in federal court and was sentenced to seven consecutive life terms plus 140 years in prison without parole.

The survivors and family members of the slain were present for the hearing and later told the media they were satisfied with the outcome. In an act of incredible grace, they said they did not want to add to the suffering by seeking the death penalty for a man who was mentally unwell.

In August 2011, eight months after the shooting, a visibly frail Giffords took her seat on the floor of the House of Representatives. She was received with a standing ovation on both sides of the aisle. But she was too frail to continue her job and resigned a year after the shooting.

Kelly ran for the U.S. Senate successfully in 2020 and won a full six-year term in 2022.

'Political violence is un-American and is never acceptable — never'

Both Kelly and Giffords issued statements after the attack on Trump.

"Gabby and I are horrified by the incident in Pennsylvania," Kelly said. "No one should ever have to experience political violence — we know that firsthand. We’re keeping former President Trump, his family, and everyone involved in our thoughts."

Giffords echoed her husband.

"Political violence is terrifying. I know,” Giffords said. "I’m holding former president Trump, and all those affected by today’s indefensible act of violence in my heart. Political violence is un-American and is never acceptable — never."

Sean Holstege is a Republic editor who covered the Giffords shooting and its aftermath as a reporter for The Republic.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Trump shooting evokes flashbacks to Giffords attack