Alleged Tucson gunman says little in court beyond 'yes'

The man charged with killing six people in Arizona's weekend shooting rampage made his first court appearance Monday, and US President Barack Obama will travel to Tucson today to attend a memorial service for the victims, including Democratic Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and a federal judge.

Jared Loughner, a troubled 22-year-old college dropout who faces the death penalty, appeared amid tight security at the federal court building in the Arizona state capital Phoenix.

Wearing a brown prison jumpsuit for the 15-minute hearing, Loughner said little beyond answering "yes" to basic questions from federal judge Michael Anderson, AFP reported.

The judge agreed to his request to have as his attorney Judy Clarke, who represented the Unabomber - an anarchist serving life without parole for a 20-year, mail bombing spree - and 9/11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui, AFP reported.

Loughner's parents, Randy and Amy Loughner, are devastated, the AP reported, according to neighbor Wayne Smith. "And they feel guilty for what happened," Smith told KPHO-TV on Monday evening. "They want to know, where did they fail?"

At a Tucson hospital, doctors said Giffords remained in critical condition, despite suffering a close-range shot to the head.

President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama led the nation Monday in a somber minute of silence in Washington to honor the victims.

At the Capitol, lawmakers put off much of their work for the week, including a vote on a bill to repeal Obama's healthcare overhaul that Giffords and other Democrats backed.

Shi Yinhong, a professor at the Renmin University of China, told the Global Times that politically motivated gun violence is rare in the US, but the Arizona shooting rampage is unlikely to bring any major change in the political climate.

"The Republicans will not change their attitude on the healthcare reform, because the shooting incident is basically a complicated gun-control issue that is decided by US history and culture," Shi said.

Agencies - Global Times