Rep. Gabby Giffords, who on January 8 was shot in the head by an assassin who left in his wake six dead and a dozen injured, returned to the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives tonight in an historic move, to vote in favor of the debt ceiling increase bill.
“I had to be here for this vote,” Rep. Giffords said, in her first public appearance in which she appears walking and speaking. “I could not take the chance that my absence could crash our economy,” Giffords said in a statement.
“Giffords stole the show well before the vote fell into the passing range,” reports TPM DC. The House, which has been consumed for weeks on finding a way to raise the debt ceiling and avoiding sending the country into default, was mesmerized by her arrival with colleagues from both sides of the aisle lining up to hug her. Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) hugged her and wiped away a tear from her eye.
“Rep. Jeff Flake (R-AZ), who could oppose her in a Senate campaign should she decide to run, made a beeline to the Democratic side of the aisle, and waited his turn for the chance to embrace her.”
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