Responding to Gabby Giffords’ Friday visit to Newtown, Conn., where she met with families of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, Connecticut state Rep. DebraLee Hovey (R) had a message for the former congresswoman: “Gabby Giffords stay out of my towns!”
According to the Hartford Courant’s Capitol Watch blog, Hovey, who represents Newtown and neighboring Monroe, posted the message on a public Facebook page. In a follow-up comment, she wrote:
“It was political. The Lt Gov was there, Blumenthall was there and ALL political types know it is courteous to let sitting Reps know when another political is in their District. So…… There was pure political motives.” She removed the item Sunday, according to the report.”
Hovey later issued an apology: “The remarks I made regarding Congresswoman Gifford’s visit were insensitive and if I offended anyone I truly apologize. My comments were meant to be protective of the privacy of the families and our community as we work to move on, and were in no way intended as an insult to Congresswoman Giffords personally. Our community has struggled greatly through this tragedy, and we are all very sensitive to the potential for this event to be exploited for political purposes. This is what I wish to avoid.”
(Photo: Giffords leaves the Newtown Municipal Center in Newtown, Connecticut, on Friday, January 4, 2013, with her husband, Mark Kelly, Senator Richard Blumenthal, and Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman. Photo credit: Hartford Courant/MCT)
