Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, speaking haltingly in her first interview since she was critically wounded by a gunman?s bullet, said her political future was contingent on getting ?better.?

The Arizona Democrat?s road to recovery was the focus of a television special, which aired Sunday night on ABC. It featured excerpts from hours of video taken as the Giffords struggled to relearn how to walk, talk, and ask questions in the weeks and months following the January 8 shooting.

Six people died, and Giffords was among 13 injured when Jared Loughner opened fire at a Tucson meet-and-greet that the congresswoman was hosting. Giffords told Diane Sawyer that she remembers nothing of that tragic day.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Sitting alongside her husband, retired astronaut Mark Kelly, Giffords appeared to comprehend all of the questions Sawyer posed. But as a result of the nearly fatal brain injury she suffered, she had difficulty formulating responses ? searching for words, and speaking in short fragments.

The interview coincided with the release of a ?Gabby: A Story of Courage and Hope,? a memoir that Giffords and Kelly wrote with veteran journalist Jeffrey Zaslow.

Despite everything, Giffords, who in 2007 became Arizona?s firs Jewish congresswoman, remains relentlessly optimistic. She told Sawyer that she is not angry about all she has had to endure. ?Life, life,? Giffords said.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$90 $180

$360

Other amount