Former Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-AZ), who survived an assassination attempt in 2011, on Monday called on lawmakers to “find the courage it will take to make progress on the challenging issue of gun violence.”
“I know this feeling of heartbreak and horror too well. The massacre in Las Vegas is a grave tragedy for our nation. This must stop — we must stop this,” Giffords said in a statement.
A gunman killed more than 50 people and injured hundreds more after opening fire Sunday night on a music festival in Las Vegas. Police identified the suspected gunman as Stephen Paddock, a 64-year-old white man living in Mesquite, Nevada, and said the suspect fatally shot himself before police entered his hotel room.
Giffords was shot in the head in 2011 at a public event in Tucson, Arizona, where six other people, including a federal judge, were killed. Giffords was critically wounded but survived.
She said she was “grateful for the heroism and professionalism of the first responders who acted so courageously to bring this horror to an end” and told those injured in the shooting to “be strong.”
“I am praying for the victims of this shooting, their families and friends,” she said. “But I am praying for my former colleagues, our elected leaders, too. I am praying they find the courage it will take to make progress on the challenging issue of gun violence. I know they got into politics for the same reason I did — to make a difference, to get things done. Now is the time to take positive action to keep America safer. Do not wait. The nation is counting on you.”
