AJC

Capitol Hill Scene

By Jamie Dupree
Jan 10, 2011

It was a somber day in the halls of the Congress on Monday, as staffers and lawmakers alike grappled with the weekend shootings in Arizona that seriously wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

In the morning, staffers from various lawmakers dropped by the Giffords office, some with flowers, some with food for the staff members, whose work life has been turned upside down.

Soon after, staffers from offices in both the House and Senate began walking across the Capitol plaza to join in a moment of silence for those killed and injured in Saturday's attack.

There were only a handful of lawmakers in town, as they stood in front of the crowd gathered on the steps of the House wing of the Capitol.

After the moment of silence, Rep. Emmannuel Cleaver (D-MO) led an impromptu prayer - he's in the green tie just to the left of center in the first row of this next photograph.

Instead of leaving flowers out in the hallway by the Giffords office, officials decided to place them on the main steps of the Capitol that lead up to the Rotunda.

As flags were at half-staff all around Capitol Hill.

It was a somber day in the halls of the Congress on Monday, as staffers and lawmakers alike grappled with the weekend shootings in Arizona that seriously wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. In the morning, staffers from various lawmakers dropped by the Giffords office, some with flowers, some with food for ...

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Jamie Dupree

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