Throngs of reporters waited hours Monday to get their first look at the mysterious man accused of a deadly shooting rampage that left Rep. Gabrielle Giffords critically wounded.

Jared Loughner, the 22-year-old loner accused of trying to assassinate a U.S. Congresswoman and killing six others, appeared in court Monday with his head shaved, a cut above the right temple and his hands cuffed.

Doctors treating Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords said Monday the congresswoman was responding to verbal commands by raising two fingers of her left hand and even managed to give a thumbs-up.

In an earlier time, the emerging portrait of a deeply troubled young man might have given Jared Loughner's lawyers the basis of an insanity defense. But John Hinckley's successful insanity claim after shooting President Ronald Reagan led Congress to raise the bar, making the task harder.

Some comments from top leaders and political figures about the shooting Saturday that critically wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and killed federal Judge John Roll and several others in Tucson, Ariz.

As a Republican activist for more than 35 years, I am sorry to say that I cannot be very optimistic about the resurgence of Republicans.

A soaring bridge that will let drivers bypass Hoover Dam a�� and steer clear of its security checkpoints and gawking tourists a�� is set to open after nearly eight years and $240 million worth of work.

A mushrooming crisis over potential flaws in foreclosure documents is threatening to throw the real estate industry into chaos, as Bank of America on Friday became the first bank to stop taking back tens of thousands of foreclosed homes in all 50 states.

The opportunity for thousands of young immigrants to become legalized faded away when Republicans in the U.S. Senate blocked the DREAM Act from being attached to a defense spending bill.

President Barack Obama appealed to Hispanics on Wednesday to support Democrats in the November elections despite his failed promise to pass an immigration overhaul.