WASHINGTON — The shooting of Representative Gabrielle Giffords and others at a neighborhood meeting in Arizona on Saturday set off what is likely to be a wrenching debate over anger and violence in American politics.
While the exact motivations of the suspect in the shootings remained unclear, an Internet site tied to the man, Jared Loughner, contained antigovernment ramblings. And regardless of what led to the episode, it quickly focused attention on the degree to which inflammatory language, threats and implicit instigations to violence have become a steady undercurrent in the nation’s political culture.
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The legislation stirred strong feelings that flared at angry town hall meetings held by many Democratic lawmakers during the summer of 2007. And there has been a broader anger and suspicion rising about the government, its finances and its goals, with the discourse partially fueled by talk shows and Internet sites.
Tea Party activists also condemned the shooting. Judson Phillips, the founder of Tea Party Nation, a social networking site for Tea Party activists, noted on his Web site that Ms. Giffords is “a liberal,” but added, “that does not matter now. No one should be a victim of violence because of their political beliefs.”
But other groups said it was hard to separate what had happened from the heated nature of the debate that has swirled around President Obama and Democratic policies of the past two years.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/09/us/politics/09capital.html?hp
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