From the Communist Party USA:

Saturday, Jan 8, US Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, Federal Judge John Roll and many others, including a nine-year-old girl were shot during the congresswoman's constituency meeting at a Tucson, Ariz. Safeway grocery store parking lot. As of Sunday morning six have been reported killed, including Judge Roll, and 12 wounded, including Rep. Giffords, who was shot in the head and is expected to survive.

In no uncertain terms, the Communist Party USA strongly and unequivocally condemns this outrageous act of violence. We extend our condolences to the family and friends of the victims. We hope for full recoveries for all the wounded, including Rep. Giffords.

It is reported that law enforcement has in custody a 22-year-old white man, Jared Lee Loughner, as the accused shooter. It is not clear whether the shooter acted alone or with accomplices.

Many are dubbing this a tragedy, which undoubtedly it is. But it doesn't end there. 

While we do not yet know the motivation of the crime, many have surmised that the motivation is political because of the atmosphere of violent language and threats against Rep. Giffords and other Congressional Democrats. Political or not, the extreme right-wing tea party movement and their anti-government rantings and ravings helped create an atmosphere that allowed or even encouraged this attack. For instance, until the day of the event when it was removed, Sarah Palin featured Giffords on her webpage with the congresswoman's district in the crosshairs of a gun, targeting her for her support of healthcare reform.

Political hate speech has consequences. Giffords herself said, "Palin has crosshairs on our district; people have to realize there are consequences to that." She said that in a TV interview after her Arizona office had been broken into and vandalized after her vote for the national health care reform bill. Giffords was a frequent target of the tea party movement. Judge Roll, a Republican, had also received threats from the right.

Yet, the link to rhetoric and violence doesn't end with the Palin and her tea party. It extends to the political leadership of Arizona and the Republican Party, who have fomented laws and policies that logically lead to violence. Starting with the anti-immigrant SB 1070 and banning ethnic studies, leaders like Governor Jan Brewer, and Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio have to take as much responsibility for this violence as Palin and her cohorts. All their condolences ring hollow because of their callous inflammatory rhetoric and romanticization of guns and "Second Amendment remedies". Arizona is burning. It is Ground Zero for this extreme far-right, and their corporate, multi-billionaire sponsors. In the words of Pima County Sheriff Clarence Dupnik in responding to political mood leading to the shooting shooting, "Arizona I think has become the capital. We have become the mecca for prejudice and bigotry."

In the hours after the shooting, some right wing elements seem to have created fake social networking pages in order to associate Loughner with the Left. The full story about the mental state and political motivations for the shooter will hopefully come to light soon. The attempt to paint this suspect as a leftist continues the far-right's use of anti-communism and anti-democratic rhetoric to cover-up their own role in continuing the hate until its logical violent conclusion.

It was Giffords father, 75-year-old Spencer Giffords, who wept when asked if his 40-year-old daughter had any enemies, and answered, "Yeah," to The New York Post, "The whole tea party."

This shooting marks a dangerous and sad day for our country. It's up to the American people to say, "Enough" to the hate, the racism, incitement to violence and the fascist-like behavior of anti-government thugs. Political violence and assassination has no place in our democracy.

The following statement from the National Organization for Women seems pertinent regarding yesterday's targic events and on violence in general:

Rep. Giffords Shooting is an Attack on All of Us:
NOW Calls on Right Wing to Disavow Violence and Hate Speech
Statement of NOW President Terry O'Neill

January 8, 2011

NOW condemns the tragic shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) that stole six lives and seriously injured 12 today. We condemn, equally, the culture of hate and violence increasingly reflected in extreme right-wing opponents of those who support progressive solutions to our country's challenges.

Rep. Giffords, whose office was vandalized after she voted for the federal health care reform law last year, was also named on Sarah Palin's "Targeted" list. Giffords (who has been consistently endorsed by NOW's PAC) herself understood the not-so-well veiled threat, stating "the thing is that the way she [Palin] has it depicted, we're in the crosshairs of a gun sight over our district. When people do that, they've got to realize that there are consequences to that action."

The pious condemnations we are now hearing by right-wing leaders are of little comfort if not accompanied by concrete action. Conservatives cannot have it both ways, screaming sexist, racist and homophobic slurs at legislators as they vote for health care reform, putting legislators on a violence-inciting "Targets" list, and then simply saying how sorry they are when someone explodes into murder.

In November 2009, as Democratic women spoke on the House floor about how the Affordable Care Act would benefit women, Republican Congressmen shouted them down. Led by Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.), who repeatedly yelled "I object. I object. I object. I object. I object," as Rep. Lois Capps (D-Calif.) tried to talk, they carried on this attack for half an hour.

In March 2010, Tea Party supporters screamed a racial epithet at Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) as he walked toward Congress from a health care reform meeting. Rep. Andre Carson (D-Ind.) was walking with Lewis and confirmed the protesters were yelling "Kill the bill, kill the bill," when they used the racial epithet. One man spit on Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.) as he walked to the Capitol. Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) was taunted with anti-gay epithets as he left the same meeting in a House office building.

We call on Republican leaders to do more than disavow hatred, hostility and violence-laden speech as a political tool. We also call upon the Justice Department to investigate -- to the fullest extent of federal anti-terrorist legislation -- reports that this mass murder, which included the killing of a federal judge and the attempted assassination of a member of Congress, was part of a conspiracy.

NOW offers our sincere condolences to the families of those who were slain, and we hope that all those who were injured will soon recover. Our thoughts are with all those involved in this horrible tragedy.

The below were some thoughts posted on MichaelMoore.com:

Dem Rep Giffords shot in head in Az. Sarah Palin had put CROSSHAIRS/ BULLSEYE on Giffords on her website! OUTRAGE! http://mmflint.me/fcHmJf

When Rep Giffords voted in favor of health care bill, her office in Tucson was attacked & vandalized. http://mmflint.me/hKYtR7

Palin "set gun sights on 20 Dems (including Giffords)." http://mmflint.me/fcHmJf Palin site now seems 2 b 2 taking down crosshairs map!

In 2009, another gun nut showed up where Rep Giffords was speaking (at another Safeway) & dropped his gun http://mmflint.me/gPnApk

Giffords opponent held June event 2 "Shoot a Fully Automatic M16" to "Get on Target" & "Remove Gabrielle Giffords" http://mmflint.me/hF1BN5

When Palin put crosshairs on a map w/ Rep. Giffords & 19 other Dem congressmen/women, she urged followers to "reload" & "aim" for Democrats.

RT @RichardKimNYC Giffords was impt brave ally in fight to defeat 2006 AZ anti-gay marriage initiative. i covered in brief http://tinyurl.com/285hk92

Past photo of alleged Tucson shooter (in background) http://yfrog.com/h5oq9gj

Stunning admission by Tucson sheriff: Arizona "a mecca" of hate & bigotry which unhinges the unbalanced http://mmflint.me/hOlRG8 Wow.

Thanks, Keith, 4 ur powerful Special Comment just now & 4 mentioning Glenn Beck's violent fantasies: http://mmflint.me/eTc1LC

Christina Green was the 9yr old killed. She was born on 9/11. Was on student council & only girl on baseball team. http://mmflint.me/dOs1oY

If a Detroit Muslim put a map on the web w/crosshairs on 20 pols, then 1 of them got shot, where would he b sitting right now? Just asking.

And this from Planned Parenthood:

Statement from Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America and
Bryan Howard, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Arizona on shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords:

"The thoughts, wishes, and prayers of the entire Planned Parenthood family are with Rep. Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona and all of the victims of the tragic shooting incident in Tucson, Arizona today.  Congresswoman Giffords is an invaluable and indefatigable advocate and public servant whom we respect for her courageous leadership on behalf of the people of Arizona and women everywhere.  She is a fearless champion of health care for all Americans, and she played a vital role in the passage of the most important health care legislation in our nation's history. She is a close friend of Planned Parenthood, and our staff and supporters in Arizona and across the country fervently hope for her recovery. We mourn all who were killed in this tragedy, and we will keep their families in our thoughts and prayers."