Aide who saved Gabrielle Giffords' life speaks out about Jo Cox's murder

LONDON -- The intern credited with saving the life of U.S. Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords has spoken out about the murder of British MP Jo Cox, drawing on the risks politicians face while in office.

Cox was shot and stabbed outside a political surgery in her constituency in West Yorkshire and later died of her injuries. Her killer's motive is yet to be revealed by police.

In a blog post for The Hill, Daniel Hernandez, Jr. wrote about the questions people running for office must answer. 

Daniel Hernandez, Jr. -- an intern of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords' -- who is credited with saving her life. Credit: Getty Images

"From 'Am I qualified?' and 'How will this impact my family?' to 'Will I make the right choices?' But there’s another question that is rarely asked out loud. That question is 'Will my family and I be safe?'" wrote Hernandez. 

Hernandez was serving as intern to Giffords in 2011 when she was critically injured in an assassination attempt while meeting with constituents in Tucson, Arizona. Hernandez is believed to have held Giffords in an upright position and applied pressure to her head wound to prevent her drowning in her own blood. 

Hernandez wrote that people who choose public service understand that they "lose a sense of privacy" and are more accessible due to limited personal security. 

"It is that very accessibility that means at times we have people who protest us, shout at us, even threaten us. It is not unusual for public servants to receive death threats. We do what we can to cut down on the risks but at the end of the day they are a reality of modern political life," Hernandez continued. 

"Today, we hear of the death of Member of the British Parliament, Jo Cox, assassinated by a person who disagreed with her. It has become an all too normal occurrence that we give into hate. Fiery rhetoric from politicians is nothing new but what is new is the acceptance of demagoguery as political speech. Our continued acceptance that hate speech is “politics as usual” will divide us at a time when we need to come together. In the face of growing violence we must also take actions to address it. Gun violence particularly is not an unsurmountable problem, instead it is one with many solutions."

Hernandez called on those in public service to remember Cox's words spoke in the House of Commons. 

"The thing that surprises me time and time again as I travel around the constituency, is that we are more united and have far more in common than that which divides us," Cox said. 

Hernandez urged those in public service to remember the reasons they entered into it: "To help others."

"It is our duty as leaders in our communities to appeal to the better angels of our nature. We must rise above the rhetoric," Hernandez continued. 

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