By Phil Riske | Senior Reporter/Writer
I recall a night in 2004 when I was covering the Arizona Senate for Arizona Capitol Times Gabrielle Gifford, with a tremendous knowledge of parliamentary procedure, thwarted an attempt by Republicans to sneak a bill past the body.
It was a display of what one elected official can do to bring about fairness and balance in a time of hyperpartisanship.
Like all politicians, Giffords liked publicity and she often — sometimes kidingly, sometimes not — told me I wasn’t giving her enough ink. It wouldn’t be long before her name was known worldwide.
I recall returning from a golf game and hearing “Gabby” had been shot in the head by an assassin, who killed others at a constituent event in Tucson.
The rest of the Gabrielle Giffords story is an example of what one human can do to thwart a sneak assassination on democracy and turn it into a mission to bring about an end to deaths by guns.
In Galveston, Tex. today, the U.S. Navy underestimated the public’s interest in its newest war ship. Hundreds waited in line for as long as three hours to take a public tour of the USS Gabrielle Giffords, which is in Galveston this weekend for its commissioning ceremony. The warship is the 13th to be named after a person.
From that night in 2004, I’ve never underestimated Gabby Giffords.
