By JULIE PACE
Associated Press
AURORA, Colo. (AP) - Despair all
around him, President Barack Obama on Sunday offered hugs, tears and
the nation's sympathy to survivors of the Colorado shooting rampage and
to families whose loved ones were shot dead. He looked for hope in the
heartbreak, insisting a brighter day will come for the grieving and
declaring that "much of the world is thinking about them."
In dramatic detail, Obama
offered a glimpse inside the horror that took place in the Denver-area
movie theater early Friday, relaying a story he said spoke to the
courage of young Americans. With two fingers pressed to his own neck,
Obama recalled how one woman saved the life of a friend who had been
shot by keeping pressure on a vein that had "started spurting blood" and
by later helping carry her to safety.
In private, Obama visited one by
one with anguished families gathered at a hospital and wounded patients
recovering in intensive care. He emerged before the TV cameras and kept
his focus on the lives and dreams of the fallen and the survivors, not
the sole shooting suspect or his "evil act."
"I come to them not so much as
president as I do as a father and as a husband," said Obama, addressing
reporters from a hospital hallway after his visits. "The reason stories
like this have such an impact on us is because we can all understand
what it would be to have somebody we love taken from us in this
fashion."
For a president nearing the end
of his term and seeking a second one, it was another grim occasion for
him to serve as national consoler in chief, a role that has become a
crucial facet of the job. National tragedies compel presidents to show
leadership and a comforting touch - or risk a plummeting public standing
if they cannot match the moment.
The massacre in the Aurora movie
theater left 12 dead and 58 wounded. It also temporarily silenced a
bitter campaign fight for the White House between Obama and Republican
Mitt Romney.
Both men were searching for the right time and manner to re-enter the political debate.
Obama's stop in Colorado - which
happens to be a key electoral state in the race - came as he was about
to shift into a mix of campaign fundraisers and official travel across
the West starting Monday. Romney resumed political activities Sunday in
California, where he courted Republican donors in three fundraisers in
the San Francisco area.
"I know the president is in
Colorado today," Romney told supporters while keeping a subdued tone.
"He's visiting with families and friends of the victims, which is the
right thing for the president to be doing on this day - appreciate
that."
Obama said his conversations
with family members were filled with memories of brothers, sons and
daughters who had left their mark on others. He said there were laughs
as well as tears.
Jordan Ghawi, brother of
shooting victim Jessica Ghawi, tweeted that Obama was already familiar
with his sister's story before sitting down with him but wanted to learn
more.
"My main task was to serve as a
representative of the entire country and let them know that we are
thinking about them at this moment and will continue to think about them
each and every day," Obama said. "The awareness that not only all of
America but much of the world is thinking about them might serve as some
comfort."
A single suspect, James Holmes,
is being held without bond on suspicion of multiple counts of
first-degree murder after the shooting rampage, which occurred minutes
into a premiere of "The Dark Knight Rises" Batman movie early Friday in
this suburb outside Denver.
Obama said he assured the
families that even though the suspect behind "this evil act has received
a lot of attention over the last couple of days, that attention will
fade away. And in the end, after he has felt the full force of our
justice system, what will be remembered are the good people who were
impacted by this tragedy."
The president's most vivid lines
came in describing the story of two friends, 19-year-old Allie Young
and her best friend, 21-year-old Stephanie Davies. Both were in Young's
hospital room when Obama visited.
Obama recounted that when the
gunman entered the movie theater and threw canisters of gas at the start
of his killing spree, Allie stood up to warn people.
"And she was shot in the neck, and it punctured a vein, and immediately she started spurting blood," Obama said.
"And apparently, as she dropped
down on the floor, Stephanie - 21 years old - had the presence of mind
to drop down on the ground with her, pull her out of the aisle, place
her fingers over where Allie had been wounded, and applied pressure the
entire time while the gunman was still shooting," Obama said.
The president said Davies eventually joined others in carrying her friend to an ambulance. He said Young was going to be fine.
"As tragic as the circumstances
of what we've seen today are, as heartbreaking as it is for the
families, it's worth us spending most of our time reflecting on young
Americans like Allie and Stephanie," Obama said. "They represent what's
best in us, and they assure us that out of this darkness a brighter day
is going to come."
The task of articulating sorrow and loss has become a familiar one for Obama.
In November 2009, he led
mourners at a service for victims of the mass shooting at Texas' Fort
Hood. In January 2011, he spoke at a memorial for the six victims killed
in Tucson, Ariz., when a gunman attacked Rep. Gabrielle Giffords as she
met with constituents.
The following April, when some
300 people were killed in a multistate series of tornadoes, Obama flew
to Tuscaloosa, Ala., to commiserate with residents whose homes were in
ruins. A month later, Obama went to Joplin, Mo., after a monster twister
claimed 161 lives.
___
AP White House Correspondent Ben
Feller in Washington and AP writers Steve Peoples in San Francisco and
Catherine Tsai in Denver contributed to this report.
Copyright
2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not
be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
President Obama meets with survivors of the theater shooting in this photo released by the White House on Sunday.
