GIFFORDS MAKES A SECOND VISIT TO TUCSON THIS WEEKEND

posted by Andrea Kelly

U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords is spending the long Labor Day weekend in Tucson. This is her second trip home since she left for rehabilitation in Houston to recover from the gunshot wound she suffered in January.

Giffords spent several months doing inpatient rehab at TIRR Memorial Hermann hospital in Houston, and is now an outpatient there. That means she gets to go home at night with her husband Mark Kelly.

She's still not spending much time in Tucson, and her staff says she's anxious to get back to her hometown.

In a news release, Giffords' office said the visit will be private, just as her first visit was during Father's Day weekend in June.

BORDER POLITICS: FACTS VS. TRUTH

posted by Michael Chihak

Border czar Alan Bersin was armed with the latest statistics and facts on U.S.-Mexican border crime and illegal crossings when he spoke to municipal officials from across the state in Tucson this week.

From Bersin: Violent crime in the border region is down by double-digit percentages from San Diego to Brownsville, including 17 percent on the Arizona border; illegal immigrant arrests are down, too, including by four-fifths in the Tucson Sector in the last decade; drug cartel violence in Mexico, some of it within sight of the border, hasn't spilled across the line at all.

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer was armed with no statistics when she strode to the microphone a few minutes after Bersin, who was applauded by the crowd of 800. She had no facts. She had nothing to refute the commissioner's stance.

All she had were two quick-draw statements: We'll have to agree to disagree, and we need the border secured.

Thunderous applause followed.

It reminded me of the scene in an Indiana Jones movie in which Jones is confronted by a nasty-looking thug wielding a sabre. Jones' response: a shrug as he pulls out his gun and calmly shoots the guy dead.

In the case of the debate over illegal immigration, guess who Jones was?

FEC RULES ON SECURITY MONEY

posted by Christopher Conover

The Federal Elections Commission has ruled that Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords can use campaign funds to pay for security upgrades to her Houston home.

The decision is a formality, with the draft of the ruling being released days ago. Commissioners said the use of campaign funds for home security is permissible because Giffords was injured while performing her duties as a member of Congress.