Utah congressional delegation shocked, horrified at colleague's shooting in Arizona

SALT LAKE CITY — Horrified sums up how members of Utah's congressional delegation feel about the shooting Saturday of one of their colleagues.

"We're shocked. We're outraged. We're saddened and we're hoping for the best," Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, said at a news conference.

And it has them thinking about their own safety as they go about their highly public positions.

Rep. Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona was shot in the head Saturday when an assailant opened fire outside a Tucson grocery store during a meeting with constituents. A 9-year-old and a federal judge were among six people killed in a rampage that shook not only her peers in Congress but the entire nation.

Giffords underwent surgery, and doctors were optimistic about her recovery.

"This is an outrage that this sort of thing could happen in our country," Matheson said. "We're a country about ideas. We're not a country about violence."

Like Matheson, Giffords is a member of the Blue Dog Coalition of conservative Democrats in the House of Representatives. Matheson said he interviewed her when she was running for office and wanted to join the group. The two also serve on the House Science and Technology Committee.

"I think she represents one of the real up-and-comers in American politics," he said, describing her as bright, passionate and energetic. "She has all the qualities you'd want in public service."

Giffords recently moved into an office next door to one of Utah's other congressmen, Republican Jason Chaffetz.

Chaffetz said he was "deeply shocked" by reports of the morning shooting.

"It really hits home," he said. "It shook me."

Still, he knows as a congressman he can't shy away from public interactions.

"I want to be accessible as possible. I don't want to clam up and hide somewhere. But at the same time, you worry about that one errant person who's just a little more than off-balance, who just does something stupid," he said.

Chaffetz said the gravity of the shooting isn't lost on his children. "They're watching it," he said. "They're a little scared by it."

Matheson said Giffords liked being out among the people in her district as do many members of Congress.

"Today's action certainly disturbed all of us who value that interaction between public officials and their constituents," he said.

House members are not afforded Secret Service protection. Matheson said he hasn't given a lot of thought to his personal safety, but suspects the shooting will cause some reflection about security policy.

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, issued statement saying he joins every Utah and American in "condemning this senseless and brutal act of violence in Tuscon. This is a national tragedy and we all mourn those who lost their lives. Acts and threats of violence have no place in our political discourse or in a civil society."

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