Obama meets with Colorado shooting victims

(CBS News) During a visit to Aurora, Colo., Sunday, President Obama met with victims of Friday's mass shooting at a movie theater, which killed 12 people and injured 58 others.

Mr. Obama, accompanied by Gov. John Hickenlooper, Aurora Mayor Steve Hogan and other local officials, spoke to victims and victims' families at the University of Colorado Hospital in Aurora, where 23 of the victims were taken in the aftermath of the shooting and 10 remained Sunday. 

"I confessed to them that words are always inadequate," Mr. Obama said, following the meeting, but added that his "main task was to serve as a representative of the entire country and we think of them at this moment and we will continue to think of them each and every day."

Peter Burns, a Denver radio host and a friend of Jessica Ghawi, who was killed in Friday's massacre, wrote about Mr. Obama's visit on Twitter.  Burns said that he heard a request that was repeated more than once: pleas for the media focus more on the victims and not on the suspect, James Holmes. The president promised to try to help on that front, Burns said.

Jessica Ghawi's brother, Jordan, wrote on Twitter, after meeting with Mr. Obama, "Sat down with President Obama. He has been incredible. He ... has agreed not to mention the shooter's name."

The president said after his meeting, "I also tried to assure them that this perpetrator has received a lot of attention, that attention will fade away. ... In the end... what will be remembered are the good people who were impacted by this tragedy." 

President Obama hugs Stephanie Davies, who helped keep her friend, Allie Young, left, alive after she was shot during the movie theater shootings in Aurora, Colorado, at the University of Colorado Hospital, July 22, 2012.

/ White House

He said he was moved by the story of survivors Allie Young, a 19-year-old who was shot in the neck, and her best friend, Stephanie Davies, 21, who saved Young's life by keeping pressure on her wound as bullets flew.

Mr. Obama said they "represent what's best in us."

"Because of Stephanie's timely actions - I just had a conversation with Allie downstairs and she's going to be fine," he said.

"I don't know how many people of any age would have the presence of mind to do what Stephanie did," the president said, adding, "out of this darkness, a brighter day is going to come."

On a lighter note, Burns added on Twitter, when one victim told Mr. Obama that he lost his driver's license during the shooting and was worried about being able to get on a plane to get home, the president quipped, "I have a little pull with the TSA."

When asked how the shooting will affect the presidential campaign, Obama campaign spokeswoman Jen Psaki said, "[T]his is so fresh and new for so many people, including the people in Colorado, who are still mourning the loss of their loved ones, will be for a long time, many people are still recovering, we're still learning what exactly happened here and more details -- that's where our focus is right now."

"And so it's really too early to say how this will play. ... we're just taking it day by day," Psaki said.

She added that a Tuesday campaign rally in Portland, Ore., was canceled, explaining that one reason was because "the nature of the tragedy and the feeling, while there's not a playbook for this, that given the tone of grassroots [campaign] events, it was the right step to take."

"Clearly, the tragic events of last Thursday have changed ... the tone" of the campaign, Psaki said and noted that the negative TV ads the campaign stopped running in Colorado on Friday would remain off the air for the rest of the week. Meantime, Mitt Romney's campaign told CBS News their ads in Colorado are down "until further notice."

The shooting has thrust the gun control debate back into the spotlight. White House Press Secretary Jay Carney was asked if Mr. Obama feels current gun laws are sufficient to prevent shootings like Friday's.

The president "believes we need to take steps that protect Second Amendment rights of the American people but that ensure that we are not allowing weapons into the hands of individuals who should not, by existing law, obtain those weapons," Carney said.

After putting politics aside for the past couple of days, the president stopped in Colorado en route to the west coast, where he'll resume his official schedule. Monday, he will speak to the Veterans of Foreign Wars convention in Reno, Nev., where he's expected to discuss national security and the fight against terrorism - and not spend time criticizing his Republican rival. Following that speech, Mr. Obama will attend several fundraisers in California, Oregon and Washington State.

Romney was off the campaign trail until Sunday, after addressing the shooting on Friday in New Hampshire. He's in California through Monday for campaign events and will address the VFW in Reno, Nev., on Tuesday before traveling to London for the Olympics opening ceremonies. Following his trip to England, he will also make stops in Poland and Israel.

At a fundraiser in San Francisco Sunday night, the event began with a moment of silence.  Romney referenced the president's trip to Aurora saying it's "the right thing for the President to be doing on this day. I appreciate that."

"I will note that my remarks here today will not be as partisan as normal," he continued.

"We obviously have heavy hearts. It is a reminder of loss, a loss of young minds and youthful voices and souring spirits lost senselessly and thoughtlessly," Romney said. "We turn to a power greater than our own to understand purpose and if not to understand at least to be able to soothe the wounds of those who have been so seriously hurt."

CBS News' Mark Knoller and Sarah Boxer contributed to this report.

[hillzhavays]

by TimeToEvolve July 23, 2012 3:39 PM EDT
Actually Canada is doing quite well because they plan for future and pay government to do that. And they all have health care, better than ours at much less cost.
__________________________________________

It's nutcases like you, Time that have convinced me that Obama is out this year. That's so nice you stick up for Canada, Time, especially with their healthcare system in a shambles like it is, and bankrupting the country like it is, and with the architect of the system admitting it's totally in ruins.

This from the Edmonton Journal (a CANADIAN newspaper, not a lib blog (I can also paste links to myriad other reports that say the same thing):
"In the Health Quality Council of Alberta report is a sentence that truly captures a system gone awry: "As we carried out our work, we learned of troubling instances of personal suffering by patients in crowded emergency departments; people in pain waiting unacceptably long times for medication; people waiting for many hours, even days, for a hospital bed; very ill people in their last hours of life who needed compassionate, palliative care, who died instead on a stretcher in the ED (emergency department)."

Keep sucking down the Kookaid up on your planet, Time, you're giving us all a great laugh.

[TimeToEvolve]

Maybe we can get a brain and stop the ridiculous NRA industry front group from running our gun laws. We need an actual common sense set of strict regulations on ALL guns, especially assault weapons.

Maybe someday we will have a real nation like Canada and some of the European democracies.

[hillzhavays]

Good idea, they seem to be doing so well right now LMAO

[TimeToEvolve]

Actually Canada is doing quite well because they plan for future and pay government to do that. And they all have health care, better than ours at much less cost. Europe will do much better after they stand up to the banks who caused the entire problem there.

[dryoungblood]

Thank you President Obama for sharing the storie of Stephanie and Allie. Stephanie and Allie, I think the courage you both demonstrated was the caring and compassion that our Heavenly Father loves for us all to share. I cried as the President shared your story. Allie I weep for joy and true amazement at your love and commitment to your Best Friend Stephanie. I thank God that you risked your life to save Stephanie's. My prayer is that you will be rewarded a hundred times more both in this life and in the life to come. I pray that you enjoy the best this world has to offer. God Bless you both.

Best Regards,
Dr. Youngblood

[bsvitamins1]

Name change needed
The United States Of America is now The Divided States Of America
We are a divided not united in so many ways that we may never get back to being united ever again.

Repblicans = RICH AND CORP AMERICA and BIG OIL
DEMOCRATES = The Poor elderly disabled
And neither are willing to do the right thing for the other it is all about me and me only.
GREED has even got into both sides and divided the nation all people think about is what they want not what is good for all as used to be the normal way of thinking. Until we get back to thinking as a united or whats best for all not just me we will be divided. We are fighting a different kind o civil war this time and we are all losing on this one.

[bsvitamins1]

I really think CBS does this an injustice by putting a political advertisement before the video that takes away from what the President was doing and in my book s down right disrespectful of the PESIDENT AND THE FAMILYS.

[michaelamsterdam]

More mindless partisan hatred from some of the usual suspects...no surprise there

**********************************

@sweetbobby
"inadequate" by Barack Obama means he is too stupid to know what to say
(You reveal yourself to be quite the authority on stupid)

@booooCBSbooooooooooo
He would not dare want the American people know how incompetent or even worse, how evil he and those around him.
(Well phrased...NOT)

by -__--_One_American_--__-
Obama is surely exploiting this tragedy for the purpose of imposing more restrictions on second amendment freedoms, and for personal political gain, is sickening.
(Well...obviously SOMETHING has made you this sick)

@qpqpqpqpq1234
What a pathetic loser you all voted for as president. Will you learn from your mistake? I doubt it!

(That's it, imbecile...rage against the returns of the LAST election)

**********************************

And it's these hate-mongering reich-wing cretins who have the audacity to claim that it's the PRESIDENT who is exploiting this tragedy to advance a sick, partisan agenda...and not them

Had President Obama NOT gone to Colorado to extend his sympathy to the dead victim's families and to offer his best wishes for the recovery of the surviving victims...these same Rushbot hate-mongers would be demanding to know why...at the top of their shrill, semi-coherent, whining voices!

It's long been known that these imean-spirited ndividuals and others of their depraved ilk have precious little intelligence...even less empathy for the victims...AND ABSOLUTELY NO SHAME!

[michaelamsterdam]

Not me, deoppressoliber1964...

I don't believe I've ever truly hated anyone...not even those my government wanted me to hate and kill...and certainly not those with a different political view

As for bozos like you...I merely hold you in great disdain...I would never bother hating the likes of you...

That would be as rational and productive as hating foul weather...or the foul odors people like you emit when they act as apologists for Paterno's moral lapses

OF COURSE Paterno knew what Sandusky was doing...he even admitted it and "wished he had done more"

Responsibility for the young boys who became Sandusky's victims AFTER McQueen told Paterno what he had observed in the shower room...

Can all be laid at Paterno's feet every bit as much as at Sandusky's...perhaps more, since the degenerate pedophile would have been stopped in 1998 if Paterno had indeed been a "man of integrity"

[michaelamsterdam]

I wasn't commenting on the story, imbecile...I was commenting on "hate-mongering" comments that attempt to politicize this tragic situation...

And I will comment on what I damn well please without instruction from the likes of you, deoppressoliber1964 ...

[rksharma-2009]

Thank you Mr. President for being presidential.

[greatisthyname]

Theater killings: 1) I think we need to use some common sense: 2) What does the right to bear arms have to do with civilians needing a 100-round clip? It's illegal for civilians to have machine guns 3) Where there is more people in one place, we need to increase security, scan for weapons and increase control of access points. 4) It is imperative that we learn from these type incidents and take action sooner than later to prevent a reoccurrence. 5) We still have too many schools in America where strangers can literally walk into schools and class-rooms off the street without been screened or escorted 6) The perps/ killers are getting too much attention. We give them what they crave the most: Notoriety and fame. 7) The American people will continue to be at risk because politicians will continue to kick the can down the road because they fear their political careers more than protecting the general public. 8) You can protect the right to bear arms while using a little common sense. Sen. Ron Johnson says he doesn't believe there isn't anything we can do to prevent this. I don't accept failure and believing doing nothing is why you're elected. That is not the leadership the American people deserve. We simply need the will, courage and common sense to serve and protect the American People.

[scottpatrick1234]

Obama supports partial-birth abortion, leaving babies of botched abortions to die, and abortion through all 9-months. We have a madman for president.

[fstopme]

Way off-topic.

[fstopme]

... and way wrong I met add.

[Pouncekitty]

Mike Huckabee started this on Saturday night. Obama is just copying Huckabee. Huckabee has a thousand times more sense than Obama, who just glommed onto a convenient way not to mention the shooter. Obama must watch Fox News to get his good ideas. Certainly he has none from his radical communist advisers.

[fstopme]

Radical communist adviser? oh jeez. Anyway, if it helped a victim even in the slightest for the President of the United States to stop by for a minute or two, then who cares who thought of it first? Lets try to stay on topic for cryin out loud and remember who this story is about. My God, people.

[democracy8]

I hadn't known that Mike Huckabee had done that (good for him), but I've been doing that (not mentioning the lunatic's name) since the day afterwards either. So who am I copycatting from? I guess it wouldn't occur to you that MANY feel the same way and don't need someone else's example in order to do it themselves.