The last Twitter post yesterday morning from Representative Gabrielle Giffords (D):

Rep_Giffords  Gabrielle Giffords

My 1st Congress on Your Corner starts now. Please stop by to let me know what is on your mind or tweet me later. 21 hours ago

Early last August:

Arizona: the good, the bad, and the ugly

…There’s still a lot of good in Arizona. Like Raul Grijalva (D) and Gabrielle Giffords (D). And it’s a toss-up whether Missouri or Arizona has the most egregious eye roll inducing right wingnuts. If pressed I’d have to give a slight edge to Arizona…

President Obama at the White House yesterday afternoon:

Representative Gabrielle Giffords (D): …things, for example, we’re on Sarah Palin’s targeted list. But, the thing is, the way that she has it depicted has the crosshairs of a gunsight over our district. When people do that they’ve got to realize there’s consequences to that action…

FLASHBACK: Gabby Giffords Faced Threats Over Heath Care Vote

….Giffords’s father Spencer Gifford, 75, told the New York Post that her enemies were “the whole Tea Party….”

….Giffords was also one of the members of Congress “targeted” by Sarah Palin for their vote on health care. An image posted on Palin’s Facebook page featured crosshairs over the geographical districts of 20 members of Congress.

On Twitter, Palin linked to the page with this message: “Commonsense Conservatives & lovers of America: “Don’t Retreat, Instead – RELOAD!” Pls see my Facebook page.”

Since the incident today, Palin’s staff removed Gifford’s name from the list on her “Take Back The 20” site, which has since gone down….

[emphasis added]

ddayen  David Dayen

I’ll say this, if your first instinct after hearing about a tragedy is to scrub your websites, you have a problem as a political movement 13 hours ago

And at what cost?