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Obama Speech Tucson

January 13, 2011 by · Comments Off on Obama Speech Tucson 

Obama Speech Tucson, (CNN) – Obama was trying to console a grieving community as he spoke at the memorial service for victims of the weekend shooting in Arizona. He paid tribute to those who lost their lives and encouraged Americans to talk to each other in a manner “that heals, not in a way that hurts.”

The president spoke Wednesday night at the University of Arizona McKale Memorial, whose school was held just under 14,000 people, with a crowd of 13,000 in the stadium football school.

Obama in Tucson: the unit on the angry rhetoric

Obama’s remarks came four days after a gunman-opened fire during a political event outside a supermarket in Tucson. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords remains in critical condition after being shot in the head. The shooting left six dead, including a federal judge and 9 years, Christina Green.

Memorial to honor young victims of mass shootings in Arizona

The president’s speech praised, although some observers were surprised by the atmosphere and tone.

Here is an overview of some of the reaction. Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below.

David Gergen, CNN senior political analyst:

“Many of us in the TV room listening to Tucson expect a solemn service commemorating the dead and wounded. So it was jarring at first to find an atmosphere more like a rally, even a campaign rally. John King on the scene to CNN said that people in Tucson needs a catharsis.

. “Once we adjusted to the atmosphere, I thought the president had an important message – that in the wake of the massacre, we should talk to each other to heal, not wound Now the question becomes: Will we get what we? Leaders eventually become models? What should we do? ”

John King, CNN chief national correspondent:

“Some in the house could have been a little surprised at how exciting, all the encouragement, all the applause, and have been here for a few days as you travel through town, you go to coffeeshops, you are in the hospital where Giffords member is still hospitalized, and some of the other victims, the makeshift shrines in different locations throughout the city, there are many tears in Tucson in recent days.

“There are plenty of stunned, shocked silence in Tucson these days. And I think tonight, after five horrible days, this city should applaud.

Douglas Brinkley, presidential historian:

“I thought Obama did a great job tonight. I thought he really brought people together. I mean, when he, in the middle of the floor, said: “Gabby has opened my eyes, Gabby opened her eyes, and you could almost hear an inflection Martin Luther King-like – and that he wore throughout much of speech.

“I was, as David Gergen earlier, a bit put off by the weather, 14,000 people mad. But the president, I think, made its way into the atmosphere. Thus, by the end of it, one could almost feel the excitement people embrace in the warmth and love in the arena. ”

Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2011/POLITICS/01/13/obama.speech.reaction/

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