Obama: 'Gabby Opened Her Eyes'

Obama seemed to announce to the nation last night that he's a healer. To hear Obama tell the story, one could consider him to be capable of producing a miracle.

Video.



Transcript, White House

OBAMA: Our hearts are full of hope and thanks for the 13 Americans who survived the shooting, including the congresswoman many of them went to see on Saturday.

I have just come from the University Medical Center, just a mile from here, where our friend Gabby courageously fights to recover even as we speak. And I want to tell you -- her husband Mark is here and he allows me to share this with you -- right after we went to visit, a few minutes after we left her room and some of her colleagues in Congress were in the room, Gabby opened her eyes for the first time. (Applause.) Gabby opened her eyes for the first time. (Applause.)

Gabby opened her eyes. Gabby opened her eyes, so I can tell you she knows we are here. She knows we love her. And she knows that we are rooting for her through what is undoubtedly going to be a difficult journey. We are there for her. (Applause.)

Coincidence?

What are the odds that right after Obama visited, just minutes after he left Rep. Giffords' hospital room, she opened her eyes for the first time?

Just another of Obama's wondrous deeds?

From the Washington Post:

At first, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords opened her eyes just a tiny bit. Then she opened them again, and again. With female friends from Congress and her husband huddled around her hospital bed - just moments after President Obama paid a visit Wednesday night - Giffords opened her eyes a total of five times and reached for her husband's hand, according to the people in the room.

It was the first time she had opened her eyes since the shooting that wounded her Saturday outside a Tucson grocery store. "We all started crying," Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) said in a phone interview from Air Force One later Wednesday night. "Other than the birth of my children, it was the most incredible moment I have ever had."

Having just flown in from Washington with Obama to attend a memorial service, the visitors did not expect Giffords to make one of the most affirmative gestures of her recovery so far.

When Giffords opened her eyes the first time, her husband and the doctor in the room reacted with shock. Giffords's husband, Mark Kelly, asked Giffords if she could give a thumbs up. She didn't at first. But after a few minutes, she was able to reach toward him. "Her whole arm went up in the air," Wasserman Schultz said. "She started touching his wedding ring." By the time Giffords opened her eyes for a fifth time, she was able to keep them open for more than 30 seconds, Wasserman Schultz said. The group was in the room 10 to 15 minutes.

Politico also recounts "the miracle."

There is no question that it is a tremendous positive sign that Giffords opened her eyes.

I understand the reaction of the people in her room. I personally have experienced seeing a loved one open his eyes for the first time after a health crisis. To see the person's eyes open again, after days of being closed, is a moment of great joy and hope. It feels like a gift from God.

I am so happy that Rep. Giffords continues to make progress in her recovery. Her husband and family and friends must be greatly encouraged. I'm happy for them, too. I'm praying this is just the beginning of much more progress to come. My prayers are with the other victims of the shootings also fighting to recover.

Regarding Obama's announcement of the improvement in Giffords' condition--

The way he phrased it during his speech opens himself up to criticism because he makes it sound like there was a cause and effect relationship between his visit and Giffords opening her eyes. He points out that it happened only minutes after he left her room.

That's not good.

I think Obama could easily have avoided this by simply saying he had some good news about Giffords' condition to share.