During a segment on Friday’s Campbell Brown: No Bias, No Bull program, CNN tried to perpetuate left-wing stereotypes about gun owners, and sent mixed messages about whether or not President Obama and his administration is pushing for gun control. Correspondent Sean Callebs interviewed two Texas professionals who owned guns and concluded, “A nurse, an attorney -- not the usual portrait of Second Amendment diehards.” After asking a gun store owner if he was “profiting on this fear” of new gun control measures, Callebs expounded on the concerns of gun owners: “In fact, it may not be rational at all. It might even be paranoid. But one thing is certain. Many gun owners believe this president is somehow out to curb their rights and they’re stocking up just in case.” [audio available here]
Both Callebs and CNN senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin tried to assure their viewers that gun control was “way off the agenda right now” of the Obama administration, despite the fact that a graphic on the news crawl stated plainly that President Obama “wants to make expired Assault Weapons Ban permanent.”
The CNN correspondent traveled to Tyler, Texas, “one of those places all over America where a kind of quiet call to arms is getting louder and louder,” as he put it. Besides interviewing the lawyer and the nurse, he visited a local gun store, where he skeptically asked one of the employees of the store, “Why would someone own a semiautomatic weapon like this? I mean, is saying it’s my right, is that enough?”
Despite concluding that gun owners “might not be rational” in the concerns, Callebs had also detailed how Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stated that she thought “these assault weapons, these military-style weapons don’t belong on anyone’s street,” contradicting President Obama’s message that he “will not take away your guns.”
After Callebs report, anchor Campbell Brown turned to Toobin for a “reality check” and asked, “What are the president’s views on gun control, and given what is on his plate right now, is this anywhere on his priority list?” Toobin skipped answering the first part of her question and answered, “It’s zero....the Democratic Party has given up on gun control, with the possible exception of certain assault weapons, but even that is way off the agenda right now.”
Brown followed-up by asking about the concerns of gun owners: “So why are we seeing this kind of thing?” The legal analyst echoed Callebs in his answer, and threw the Timothy McVeigh card: “I think there is a kind of whipped up frenzy that is completely not based in reality....The extreme version -- not these people -- was the sort of Timothy McVeigh militia movement, but, you know, that is always part of American life. It has no basis in what this administration is trying to do.”
No basis in what this administration is trying to do? Toobin must either be ignorant or is trying to be deceptive. Besides the statement from Mrs. Clinton, Obama’s own attorney general, Eric Holder, is on the record as saying, “As President Obama indicated during the campaign, there are just a few gun-related changes that we would like to make, and among them would be to reinstitute the ban on the sale of assault weapons.”
The full transcript of the segment, which began 40 minutes into the 8 pm Eastern hour of Friday’s Campbell Brown: No Bias, No Bull program:
CAMPBELL BROWN: As drug violence on the Mexican border rages out of control, administration officials warn that the flow of drugs isn’t the only problem. They are pointing to the flow of illegal guns as well. And that has some American gun owners fearing a ripple effect, that by clamping down on guns heading south into Mexico, the government will try to take away Americans’ guns -- gun rights. Our Sean Callebs tonight has a revealing look at the freedom they say is under fire right now.
SEAN CALLEBS (voice-over): This is Tyler, Texas, one of those places all over America where a kind of quiet call to arms is getting louder and louder. Just ask attorney Sean Healy and Jimmy Moore, who’s a nurse.
CALLEBS: (on-camera): A show of hands here. Who thinks President Obama wants gun control, wants to restrict the kinds of guns you can get? (Both men raise hands.) Really? Why?
SEAN HEALY, ATTORNEY: If you look at what he said in the past and look at his actions, that if he and the people in control of Congress right now could have what they want, they would heavily restrict or eliminate guns from this country.
JIMMY MOORE, REGISTERED NURSE: He voted for a 500 percent increase on the tax on guns and ammunition -- doubling, basically, the cost of my hobby and my passion.CALLEBS (on-camera): So here in Tyler and other parts of the country, there’s been a run on ammunition. One man ran into a Wal-Mart and said, sell me all the ammo you have. Guns -- they’re also flying off shelves. Those highly prized semiautomatic rifles are becoming more and more expensive.
This is $2,200. Why is it so expensive?
STEVE PRATER, LOCK N’ LOAD MANAGER: Well, right now they’re just about impossible to find. They’re just hard to get. Everybody kind of got scared, the market got depleted.
CALLEBS: A run on guns because of President Barack Obama. But since he has been president, he has said -- quoting here, ‘I will not take away your guns.’ It couldn’t be more clear, but listen to his secretary of state. She sounds as though she has a different message.
CALLEBS: (voice-over): This is what she said in Mexico when asked why the administration isn’t fighting the sale of semiautomatic guns.
SECRETARY OF STATE HILLARY CLINTON: I’m not going to, you know, sugarcoat it. It’s a very heavy lift. I think that’s a mistake. I think these assault weapons, these military-style weapons don’t belong on anyone’s street.
PRATER: It is her intent to see gun legislation passed.
HEALY: It’s a little bit ridiculous to blame Americans for the fact that people in foreign countries are trying to ship illegal drugs into our country and they’re committing violence against each other.
CALLEBS: Back in the gun store --
CALLEBS (on-camera): Why would someone own a semiautomatic weapon like this? I mean, is saying it’s my right, is that enough?
PRATER: Yeah, I believe it is. Yes, I believe it is. It’s what sets us apart.
CALLEBS (voice-over): Remember Jimmy Moore -- he owns an AR-15.
MOORE: I’m not a freak. I’m a registered nurse. I’m a responsible individual. I’m a law-abiding citizen. I’ve been one my entire life.
CALLEBS: A nurse, an attorney -- not the usual portrait of Second Amendment diehards. And the man who owns the Lock N’ Load gun shop, he’s a cardiologist who moved here from New York.
CALLEBS (off-camera): Are you kind of profiting on this fear right now?
SCOTT LIEBERMAN, LOCK N’ LOAD OWNER: I think we are. Again, I don’t know how rational it is.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good afternoon, Lock N’ Load.
CALLEBS (voice-over): In fact, it may not be rational at all. It might even be paranoid. But one thing is certain. Many gun owners believe this president is somehow out to curb their rights and they’re stocking up just in case. Sean Callebs, CNN, Tyler, Texas.
BROWN: And let’s get into this a little more right now. We’ve got CNN senior legal and political analyst Jeff Toobin joining me right now. And set the record straight for us. What are the president’s views on gun control, and given what is on his plate right now, is this anywhere on his priority list?
JEFFREY TOOBIN: It’s zero. In fact, in the ‘90s, James Carville and others said to the Democratic Party, look, if you ever want to win a national election again -- if you want to win Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, Michigan -- you’ve got to give up on this gun control stuff, and the Democratic Party has given up on gun control, with the possible exception of certain assault weapons, but even that is way off the agenda right now.
BROWN: So why are we seeing this kind of thing?
TOOBIN: Well, I think there’s a tradition of skepticism about the Democratic Party on guns, and I think there is a kind of whipped up frenzy that is completely not based in reality, but it happened under Clinton, it’s happening under Obama. The extreme version -- not these people -- was the sort of Timothy McVeigh militia movement, but, you know, that is always part of American life. It has no basis in what this administration is trying to do.
(CNN GRAPHIC: “Pres. wants to make expired Assault Weapons Ban permanent”)
BROWN: All right. A reality check from Jeff Toobin, appreciate it. Good to see you.
—Matthew Balan is a news analyst at the Media Research Center.
Editor at Large
Comments Policy
The government can yap, yap
March 30, 2009 - 11:29 ET by ConservativeRexThe government can yap, yap yap all they want about the second amendment. They can pass an addtional 17K guns laws. They are not now, not ever, going to get the guns of honest people in the United States.
If they want to make criminals of all of us that are honest, they'll just have to call us criminals. But, we'll all be criminals with guns. They had just better retire all of this BS about it. We're not going to listen, we're not going to comply. So as they say, they just need to ....move on.
But they will find a
March 30, 2009 - 12:08 ET by SpaceManSpiffBut they will find a way.
In those 17,000 laws they pass, they will get the guns of honest people.
They will raise special taxes and fees that make ownership so expensive that average citizens can't afford guns or ammunition.
They will make absurd waiting lists, forms, and every sort of beauracracy as to make the process such a hassle that it deters honest people.
They will pass laws that either make minor criminal offenses cause for exclusion, or raise the penalties on minor offenses as to qualify, or both.
They will find a way to access your medical records and find any excuse to prevent 'an accident'.
They will get their way, preferably if it's one little piece at a time. That way, people are less likely to notice.
Assault Weapons
March 30, 2009 - 11:32 ET by ThomNJThe other night I was chatting with a friend who asked me "I can understand why the president wants to ban assault weapons. Why would anyone need a machine gun?" I told him that one could not purchase a machine gun. He looked profoundly confused. I explained to him what it meant to have an automatic or semiautomatic rifle or hand gun. I explained that as fast as one pulls the trigger is as fast as it will fire. He said, "But then, why do they call them assault weapons?" I replied that "most people are like you and have limited or no knowledge of guns. Just because a rifle looks like an M-16, doesn't make it an M-16." It is all a part of anti-gunners and anti-2nd amendment types to deceive the public (and their own members). What percentage of gun crimes (not ALL crimes) are committed with LEGALLY obtained guns? I believe the number is around 1%. That would leave an awful lot of illegally obtained guns out there - kind of like the ones used to, sadly and recently, murder the 4 Oakland police officers.
Until recently, one needn't show a handgun ID card to purchase handgun ammunition in New Jersey. You have to jump through umpteen hoops to get the permit and handgun (and more hoops when you actually pick up the hand gun), but until a month or two ago, a bad guy could purchase the ammuniton at a gun store just like the good guys. Go figure.
Just because Campbell isn't
March 30, 2009 - 11:40 ET by RogerCfromSDJust because Campbell isn't on her period doesn't mean she isn't on the rag.
Same logic.
A nation cannot be free without a free, unbiased media. We are not free.
Why did they bring up Mc'Veigh?
March 30, 2009 - 14:01 ET by dronetekThey brougt him up as though hes somehow connected to the 2nd amendmendmant meovement? Mc'Veigh attacked, because of the Clinton's raid on the Branch Dividians as far as I remember.
The reality of Gun Crimes Vs. Liberal response...
March 30, 2009 - 13:59 ET by Doc_NavyAs a gun owner and member of the military the "Gun Issue" is near and dear to my heart. I agree with you Thom, that the biggest problem we have is an "Hollywood" idea of what guns are and how they work as well as a general lack of real knowledge about them in the public. Liberals take advantage of ignorance and spin these incredible tales of violence and death. Here's some FACTS and then an actual conversation I had with a Liberal college of mine that puts things into perspective. (2007 Statistics)
Regarding murder victims of 2007 for whom gender was known, 78.5 percent were male. (Based on Expanded Homicide Data Table 1.)
Of murder victims for whom race was known, 50.1 percent were black, 47.6 percent were white, and the remaining victims were of other races. The race was unknown for 222 victims. (Based on Expanded Homicide Data Table 2.)
Concerning single victim/single offender incidents in which the age of the offender was known, 93.6 percent of the victims were killed by adults.
Of single victim/single offender incidents, 91.9 percent of black victims were murdered by black offenders, and 82.5 percent of white victims were murdered by white offenders.
For murders in which the offender’s gender was known, 90.1 percent were males.
Among murder offenders for whom race was known, 53.9 percent were black, 44.0 percent were white, and 2.0 percent were other races. (Based on Expanded
Homicide Data Table 3.)
Of the homicides in 2007 for which the type of weapon was specified, 72.9 percent of the offenses involved the use of firearms. Handguns comprised 87.8 percent of the firearms specified. (Based on Expanded Homicide Data Table 7.)
Where did the guns come from?
Purchased or traded from a retail outlet:
Family or Friend purchased, traded, rented or borrowed for the offender:
Off the Street/Illegal Scource:
and finally...
10 most used firearms in a crime according to the ATF:
Brand and Caliber Type
1. Smith and Wesson .38 revolver
2. Ruger 9 mm semiautomatic
3. Lorcin Engineering .380 semiautomatic
4. Raven Arms .25 semiautomatic
5. Mossberg 12 gauge shotgun
6. Smith and Wesson 9mm semiautomatic
7. Smith and Wesson .357 revolver
8. Bryco Arms 9mm semiautomatic
9. Bryco Arms .380 semiautomatic
10. Davis Industries .380 semiautomatic
So, now that we know all this... exactly WHAT does "Assault" type weapons have to do about public safety? Since the chance of someone getting shot by one is almost ZERO. If your dog is digging holes in your yard, do you solve the problem by kicking your cat?
Doc
2008: The year that the great LIE died.
How we know that they know that they are Lying.
Friedrich Nietzsche summed up how I feel about the MSM in this quote:
"I'm not upset that you lied to me, I'm upset that from now on I can't believe you."
So a liberal would say, ban
March 30, 2009 - 14:05 ET by SpaceManSpiffSo a liberal would say, ban all handgun sales to black and white adult males, and totally ban the top 10 offenders!
Conversation
March 30, 2009 - 14:30 ET by Doc_NavyHere's that conversation:
Collegue: I'm for the ban on guns. There's no reason to own anything more than a .22 pistol for self defense.
me: You are totally falling for a hollywood stereotype.
Collegue: How do you figure?
Me: One. you think that the caliber of gun is important. It's not. Two, factually speaking almost all crimes are committed using a small caliber handgun, not a large caliber one or "Assault" weapon. Why? Small caliber handguns are the cheapest. If .50 cal Desert Eagles were the cheapest gun around you'd see .50cal guns as the No.1 most used crime gun. They're not. Neither are Rifles or "Assault" weapons. It's about the $$ not the caliber.
Collegue: That's Bu*****t. What about Shotguns?
Me: Shotguns are cheap. You can buy them at Wal-Mart for $100. Seriously. Go look it up. On top of that, White folks and African Americans are getting killed at roughly the same rate, ANNND 90% of the time the person doing the shooting is the same race as the person being shot. Although, statistically a Black person (usually a man) is slightly more apt to shoot a white person (also usually a man) than the other way around.
Collegue: You're a racist. That's racist. You can't say that.
Me: Umm, I can, and I did. Besides, its not racism to quote a fact. Those are the FACTS. Look it up, Bro.
Collegue: Your facts are RACIST.
Me: Riiiight. Guess it's true... there's really no arguing with a liberal.
Doc
Re Conversation
March 30, 2009 - 17:53 ET by slickwillie2001Part of the problem I suggest is that our educational system is so totally broken that many simply don't know what 'racist' means, just as they don't know what 'context' means. With the help of race hucksters and the liberal media, racist is being sold as any criticism of black people by non-black people. So as well as the political corruption, there's a lot of simple stupidity at play here.
Spot on Thom!
March 30, 2009 - 19:16 ET by pagg30The media and liberals refuse to distiguish between Semi and Full auto in descriptions of firearms. This made it easier for the 1995 gun ban to write a new definition of a machine gun: "Any weapon that will discharge multiple rounds for a single trigger pull OR any weapon that can be fired more than 10 times without manual reloading." There you have it, now a semi auto is the same as a full auto. All it took was the stroke of a pen.
Paranoid? No...
March 30, 2009 - 11:44 ET by CobraManWell armed? YES!
Get with the game, CNN, even your own security guards (all civilians who own their own guns, btw) carry guns. And you all look to them for protection! Yet you don't like the idea of private citizens carrying guys? Why the double standard?
The Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in the several States.
The US Constitution
Unless you're a fetus.
The US Supreme Court
Yes Campbell
March 30, 2009 - 12:47 ET by FormerMarineOfficerI trust Resident Obama implicitly, if for no other reason than the unimpeachable character of his associates.
The Audacity of Mendacity
2nd ammendment worries
March 30, 2009 - 14:01 ET by soosan"chance of gun control zero" according to the media - you're kidding. right? tell that to the head of GM, his government just fired him from his private sector job. and we should trust Obama because.....
Brown Really a Blonde
March 30, 2009 - 14:07 ET by deerjerkydaveCampbell Brown is really a blonde who dyes her hair brunette. Clearly this is a case of artificial intelligence as Brown is unable to think beyond her liberal prism.
Campbell should rename her segment to this.
March 30, 2009 - 14:42 ET by Lord Erond"ALL THE BIAS AND TWICE THE BULLS--T!"
"To sin by silence when we should protest, makes cowards of men" -Ella Wheeler Wilcox
She's a fool
March 30, 2009 - 18:41 ET by Willis_Leon_JohnsonThat braindead twit really doesn't care who gets raped and murdered, as long as it isn't her.
In the last century, various really swell countries instituted 'gun control' laws.
Then, when the populace had no means of self defense, over 56 million people were rounded up and murdered by their government.
A "JOURNALIST" would know that.
Nobody in the news media is aware of that detail.
http://gjresult.com
Ignorance is rampant
March 30, 2009 - 22:17 ET by pagg30I love when you get these people that admit they know nothing about a topic yet still have a strong opinion about it.
I'm no 30days Morgan Spurlock fan but i did catch the show when they had the ultra anti gun woman and sent her to live with a father and son where sport shooting was there favorite passtime.
Sum up:
Day 1: she breaks down in an emotional heap the first time she fires a gun.
Day 30: She would give me a run for my money on the trap range.
The only difference is knowledge.