Gabrielle Giffords Meets With Mayor Bloomberg, Discusses Gun Control

(Photo: REUTERS/Larry Downing)
U.S. President Barack Obama hugs Representative Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) as representative Jeff Flake (R-AZ) (L) looks on January 24, 2012.

By Sami K. Martin , Christian Post Contributor

January 3, 2013|1:51 pm

Gabrielle Giffords met with New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg to discuss gun control. Giffords was the victim of a shooting in Arizona only two years ago and has been a symbol of gun violence and what can happen if guns get into the wrong hands.

Giffords, a former Congresswoman, arrived in New York yesterday for the private meeting with Bloomberg. She was accompanied by her husband, astronaut Mark Kelly, The New York Post reported, and all three declined to speak to reporters after the meeting was over.

They "discussed (Bloomberg's) efforts to push for additional gun-control regulations in the wake of several mass shootings," a source told the Post. Bloomberg has been an outspoken proponent of stricter gun-control laws, not only for New York City or the state, but also across the nation.

Bloomberg is part of a group known as Mayors Against Illegal Guns, which is made up of over 600 U.S. mayors who support "commonsense reforms" to gun legislation. The group is relatively new but is continually growing and becoming more active, especially given the influx of mass shooting across the nation.

"We have heard all the rhetoric before. What we have not seen is leadership – not from the White House and not from Congress. That must end today. This is a national tragedy and it demands a national response," Bloomberg said immediately after news of the Newtown, Conn. shootings broke.

It was only two years ago that Jared Lee Loughner attended a small gathering where Giffords was meeting with her constituents. He opened fire and shot 18 people in total, six of whom died in just a matter of moments. Giffords was hit in the head and spent the next year recovering. She recently managed to climb a mountain with her husband, showing just how far she has come.

"The time for this kind of extreme rhetoric is over," Kelly posted on his Facebook wall after the Newtown shootings. "We must have a real conversation about preventing gun violence, because when it comes to protecting our children, families, and neighbors, we can't wait any longer."