US falls silent for shooting victims

PRESIDENT Barack Obama led a minute's silence yesterday for the victims of this weekend's Arizona shooting in which six people died and 14 were wounded, including Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords.

• At the White House, the Obamas observe a minute's silence in memory of the shooting victims. Picture: AFP/Getty

Mr Obama said Democratic Representative Giffords is "still fighting" after being shot in the head. In total, 19 people were shot in the attack; among the six killed were Arizona's chief federal judge, a nine-year-old girl interested in government, and one of Ms Giffords' aides.

Mr Obama said the courage of those who responded to the shooting showed "the best of America". He said that as both a president and a father he had spent time reflecting on the events and reaching out to family members of those affected by Saturday's shooting in Tucson.

The White House said Mr Obama had called Ms Gifford's husband, Mark Kelly, and the family of Christina Taylor Green, the nine-year-old girl killed.

Suspected gunman Jared Lee Loughner, 22, appeared in court yesterday on charges of murder and attempted murder.

Ms Giffords was still in critical condition at a Tucson hospital following emergency brain surgery. Doctors said yesterday it was a good sign that there was no increased swelling in her brain and that she continued to respond to simple commands such as squeezing a finger and wiggling her toes.

"Things are going very well," Dr Peter Rhee, the hospital's trauma director said.

The shooting spree has fuelled debate about extreme political rhetoric in the US after an acrimonious campaign for congressional elections in November.

While the motive for the attack is not yet clear, several facts have emerged about Loughner. People who knew him said he was a troubled young man who had been asked to leave a local college for disruptive behaviour.

Investigators said they found an envelope at Loughner's residence with the handwritten phrases "I planned ahead" and "My assassination," along with the name "Giffords" and what appeared to be Loughner's signature.

About 300 White House staff members joined the Obamas on the South Lawn yesterday for the ceremony.

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Hundreds of people also gathered on the steps of the US Capitol to observe the moment of silence.

Flags there flew at half-mast in remembrance of Gabriel Zimmerman, an aide to Ms Giffords, who was killed in the shooting.

The director of the FBI, Robert Mueller, has cautioned public officials to be on alert, but said there was no information to suggest a further specific threat.

Mr Mueller said "hate speech and other inciteful speech" presented a challenge to law enforcement officials, especially when it resulted in "lone wolves" undertaking attacks.

Clarence Dupnik, sheriff of Pima County, where the shootings happened, said: "When the rhetoric about hatred, about mistrust of government, about paranoia of how government operates; (rhetoric] to try to inflame the public is (seen] on a daily basis, it has an impact on people, especially those who are unbalanced personalities to begin with." Loughner was represented in court yesterday by Judy Clarke, the lawyer who defended the Unabomber, Ted Kaczynski.

The suspect is said to have opened fire while the congresswoman was attending a political event in a supermarket car park.

Investigators were looking at a rambling internet manifesto left by Loughner. There was no coherent theme to the writing, which accused the government of mind control and demanded a new currency.

Loughner withdrew from Pima Community College in October after several encounters with campus police, college officials said. He was told to obtain a mental health clearance if he wished to return, to show his attendance would not present a danger to himself or others.

The US army has confirmed he was rejected as a recruit after failing drug tests.