Vice President Biden called former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) to wish the former lawmaker luck on a skydiving trip she planned Wednesday to mark the third anniversary of the mass shooting that left her badly wounded.
“Gabby’s courage [and] determination has been absolutely inspirational,” Biden tweeted from his official account.
Giffords tweeted a picture of herself and her husband, former astronaut Mark Kelly, speaking with the vice president by phone — and inviting him to join them on the next jump.
Giffords wrote that she loved skydiving and expected southern Arizona to look “beautiful and peaceful from the top of the sky.”
“It’s been step by step since I was shot three years ago. I’ve overcome a lot. Progress has come from working hard,” Giffords tweeted. “Today, I grieve, I remember, and I take another step. I’m stronger now. I’m winning back movement in my right arm.”
Biden and the Arizona congresswoman have forged a friendship over their joint gun control efforts in the aftermath of the Tucson shooting.
In an op-ed for The New York Times on Tuesday, Giffords said she was not “daunted” by last year’s failed vote on expanding background checks.
“Our fight is a lot more like my rehab. Every day, we must wake up resolved and determined. We’ll pay attention to the details; look for opportunities for progress, even when the pace is slow. Some progress may seem small, and we might wonder if the impact is enough, when the need is so urgent,” Giffords wrote.
Other lawmakers, including Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), also marked the anniversary of the Tucson shooting.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the six murdered and 13 wounded Arizonans, and with the people of Tucson,” McCain said in a statement. “We remember with great admiration the heroic actions our fellow citizens took to save the lives of others that day, which in some cases came at the expense of their own. We pray for the continued recovery of all those wounded, including my friend Gabrielle Giffords, whose courage and perseverance has inspired our state and nation.”