Honoring Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords Support of Democracy

Over the last several days conservative bloggers and journalists reacted swiftly and decisively in condemning, subduing, and fighting liberal bloggers and journalists were spreading a false narrative about the shootings in Arizona, and now that that is done (excepting the few liberal bloggers and media members who are just determined to use dead people as props in their little political games), our nation can move on to mourning the fallen and celebrating the lives of those who were killed. In that spirit, I'm going to celebrate with this post Congresswoman's Gabrielle Giffords commitment to democracy.

By all accounts, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was a strong supporter of democracy in our nation and believed that it was important for members of the House of Representatives to regularly meet with constituents and hold many town hall meetings. Sadly, it was her strong belief in being accessible that may have played a factor in her being shot, but to be honest, we all run the risk every day that some sicko is going to randomly walk in and start shooting. Although it is reasonable to have a discussion on increasing protection for high-profile people like Congressmen and Congresswomen, we have to be careful that they continue to be accessible and close to the people of our great nation, or else the 'peope's house' will be insulated from the public and that'll be a bad thing for our nation. Congresswoman Giffords said so, and I agree with her strongly on that.

One great feature of our nation is that our elected leaders are so accessible to most voters- many members of Congress (mine excepted) hold town halls, 'meet your Congresswoman' days, bring in local business leaders for roundtable discussions, and work on other ways to find out what sort of laws, regulations, and policies that their district favors. Members of the House know that the only way they can legitimacy get elected (providing they don't run an expensive smear campaign funded by out of state interest groups like my Congressman Gary Peters did) is by the support and guidance and authority of the people they represent. Giffords did this, regularly meeting with people in her district, holding town halls and other events, and it is for this reason that she was able to win several terms of office in a swing district that was targeted by both the right and left.

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords is a great example of a Representative who does the hard work necessary in their district to talk to voters and connect with them, and although I disagree with many of her votes in Congress, I pray for her and wish her a speedy recovery so that she can continue her fine work in Congress and she can once more engage in the spirited debate on the nature of government in America that makes our democracy so vibrant and great.