The focus this morning turns back to Tucson on the second anniversary of the mass shooting that killed six people and severely wounded Arizona Congresswoman Gabby Giffords. Giffords and husband Mark Kelly have been key voices in the gun control debate since her recovery, visiting Newtown Connecticut last week and writing in USA Today about the fight to prevent gun violence.
President Obama’s nomination of Former Senator Chuck Hagel as the next leader of the Defense Department drew some reaction in today’s opinion pages: The New York Times’ David Brooks says Hagel will need to supervise a generation-long process of defense cutbacks to pay for health care spending; The Wall Street Journal’s Bret Stephens gives an assessment of Chuck Hagel’s background on domestic and international issues.
This afternoon, senior Obama Administration officials will hold a conference call previewing Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s visit to the White House later this week.