Quotes of the Day: 'There Was a Burst of Shots ... And People Running Everywhere'

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Quotes of the Day: 'There Was a Burst of Shots ... And People Running Everywhere'
"There was a burst of shots and more bursts of shots and people running everywhere.” -- Rev. Greg Schannep, who was about to enter a graduation ceremony at Ft. Hood when shots rang out “He was mortified by the idea...
Obama: Flags half-staff for Fort Hood

by Mark Silva and updated

The president today ordered flags flown at half-staff until Veterans Day in respect for 13 killed and 30 wounded in a shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas.

"We don't know all the answers yet, and I would caution jumping to conclusions until we have all the facts,'' President Barack Obama said today in a Rose Garden appearance.

The lowering of flags will be "a modest tribute to those who lost their lives even as others were preparing to risk their lives for their country,'' Obama said of "one of the worst mass shootings ever to take place'' on a U.S. military base.

The president plans to travel to Texas for memorial services when they are scheduled next week.

The memorial service will be scheduled for the convenience of the families, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said today, and the president will adjust his schedule around that to attend. The president is scheduled to leave for an annual summit of Pacific-rim nations in Asia on Nov. 11.

Obama met with FBI Director Robert Mueller and other officials this morning and said, "As we continue to learn more about what happened at Fort Hood, we will continue to provide you updates.''

The president plans this afternoon to visit Walter Reed Army Medical Center, where the Army-trained psychologist accused of the shootings at Fort Hood worked for six years before assignment to Texas. The White House says the visit to the Army hospital was planned before the shootings.

(President Barack Obama pictured above walking out of the Oval Office of the White House to speak in the Rose Garden today. photo by Alex Brandon)

Week In Politics Reviewed

This week, Republicans took governorships in Virginia and New Jersey, and Democrats won a long-held GOP House seat in New York. Also, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is pushing for a possible health care vote this weekend. E.J. Dionne, of The Washington Post, and David Brooks, of The New York Times, discuss the week in politics.