"I will recover and will return" --- Gabrielle Giffords resigns from Congress

Gabrielle Giffords resigns from Congress

CNN) -- Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who moved the nation with an improbable comeback after a gunman shot her in the head last year, formally resigned Wednesday in an emotional appearance in the U.S. House of Representatives.

"I will recover and will return," the Arizona Democrat said in a letter read aloud by her friend and colleague, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who fought back tears.

A standing ovation roared across the House chamber for Giffords. Teary-eyed legislators from both parties applauded Giffords as she submitted her letter of resignation to House Speaker John Boehner, who also fought back tears.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi called Giffords the "brightest star among us."

http://www.cnn.com/2012/01/25/politics/gabrielle-giffords/index.html