Likely seen by only a tiny audience, Sunday afternoon’s CNN Newsroom featured law enforcement analyst and former Jim Comey flack Josh Campbell decrying the lack of gun control in the state of Texas. He grimly suggested that more mass shootings, like the one in the Midland and Odessa area, would continue to happen due to Republican Governor Greg Abbott’s views about the Second Amendment.
In other words, CNN allowed a so-called “analyst” pontificate with their partisan takes and without pushback in ways that conservatives on the network couldn’t (and wouldn’t) be afforded
Campbell had heard former Obama official and fellow analyst Juliette Kayyem tee off on Texas officials for not being as forthcoming with details about the suspect (which they would be in the days following this segment) before lamenting how “our job” at CNN “is to help the public to sort of politics from facts and I think what we saw right there from the governor was a lot of political, you know, talking points.”
He remarked that Abbott seemed “a little defensive there as well when the question came up about what they were actually going to do about it”, and pinned blame on Abbott for the mass shootings since he assumed the governorship. He then insinuated that Abbott’s lack of action on gun control (read: confiscation) would cause more shootings in the Lone Star State (click “expand”):
[S]o the focus was really on the governor saying, you know, we love each other, thoughts and prayers and the like. But as you listened, he ticked off a number of incidents that have happened under his watch include Dallas, Southern Springs, Santa Fe, El Paso, and now Midland. That's been about four years since it happened and I recall after Santa Fe, I was there covering it in Texas, he said he was going to come up with this blue ribbon commission, have these, you know, tabletop gatherings where people could get together and discuss what they are going to do. That's been years and so, again, I don't know what the answer is. It sounds like nothing is going to be done. I don't have a lot of faith that I think just as the FBI in-charge there said, we are going to be there again talking about another fatal shooting in Texas because I don't really see happening after this.
Now, if Campbell were an actual conservative like Scott Jennings, Rick Santorum, or David Urban to name a few (thus not a faux conservative or anti-Trumper), chances were high host Fredricka Whitfield would have pumped the brakes or allow Kayyem to interrupt.
Alas, Campbell was a partisan cashing in on his days with Comey, so Whitfield went along with his train of thought (click “expand”):
[O]f course, the big question then that people have, you know, whether it's, you know, after El Paso or Dayton, and now, I mean, what is that action? And this taking place, by the way, this press conference taking place on the day when eight new Texas laws go into effect today that pertain to guns and just to name a couple of them, one of them, you know, it allows Texans to carry guns in worship places and synagogues and other places of worship unless otherwise, you know, banned by those places. Also, this — a new law loosens restrictions on a number of school marshals who can carry guns at public and private schools in Texas and also another provision allows Texans to carry handguns without a license during a state of disaster.
Campbell replied in a shot to Second Amendment supporters that “most sane people would submit that you can protect one's right to bear arms while also dealing with the issue of weapons of war that are on the street” and thus push for a ban and/or confiscation of the AR-15.
Instead of noting how Abbott was correct to point out that some mass shootings didn’t include an AR-15, Campbell seemed annoyed by that fact (click “expand”):
[O]ne thing that was so bizarre that he had mention, again, this isn't you know, partisan or a political comment. It's just listening to an elected official, someone in-charge trying to explain what just happened. One thing that he said is that, you heard him say, well, there have been other incidents that didn’t involve this AR-15 and then he ticked off, you know, the Santa Fe incident which we were there covering involved a shotgun and an IED, but again, that’s such a weird way to move attention away from this one weapon of war that has appeared in so many scenes by saying, well, there are other weapons. That doesn't really say what you are going to do about it.
To see the relevant transcript from September 1's CNN Newsroom with Fredricka Whitfield, click “expand.”
CNN Newsroom with Fredricka Whitfield
September 1, 2019
2:01 p.m. EasternJULIETTE KAYYEM: I believe in the capacity of the public and government to learn from the past and I believe that the responsibility of public officials is to speak truthfully about what information that I have they can disclose to the American public and policy makers about how we can do better next time. I have lived in the world of disaster management and crisis management my entire career and we often say the devil only wins if you don't do better next time. That is — that is what we have to learn from, so I don't know who he is. I don't know his motivation. I now have got an entire social media — I was looking at it, thinking it's whitewashed, thinking that he’s, you know, a Trump supporter, whatever. They don't know because the public officials didn't disclose it. This is — I have never — I'm just telling you. I have done this a long time for you guys. I’ve never seen a press conference like this before. I don't know —
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD: Yes.
KAYYEM: — maybe Josh will — maybe Josh will —
JOSH CAMPBELL: If I can add —
WHITFIELD: — and one thing that, you know, the FBI official did say that, you know, there appears at this point to be no connection between this gunman or any domestic or international terrorist group. I mean that was a salient point, you know, to omit, I guess, any association that this gunman might have, but then, Josh, continue with the thought or answer why you believe there was such a deletion of information when it does appear that these officials do know more than they were willing to give, even as it pertains to like the sequence of events after the traffic stop.
CAMPBELL: Yeah and I agree wholeheartedly with what Juliette said as well. I think having covered enough of these press conferences, it takes on an added flare when you have the politician leading the press conference, right? And our job here is to help the public to sort of politics from facts and I think what we saw right there from the governor was a lot of political, you know, talking points. I think he got a little defensive there as well when the question came up about what they were actually going to do about it. Absent the actual information that, you know, we didn’t get a lot of details from law enforcement on what actually transpired or what the investigation entails, so the focus was really on the governor saying, you know, we love each other, thoughts and prayers and the like. But as you listened, he ticked off a number of incidents that have happened under his watch include Dallas, Southern Springs, Santa Fe, El Paso, and now Midland. That's been about four years since it happened and I recall after Santa Fe, I was there covering it in Texas, he said he was going to come up with this blue ribbon commission, have these, you know, tabletop gatherings where people could get together and discuss what they are going to do. That's been years and so, again, I don't know what the answer is. It sounds like nothing is going to be done. I don't have a lot of faith that I think just as the FBI in-charge there said, we are going to be there again talking about another fatal shooting in Texas —
KAYYEM: Yeah.
CAMPBELL: — because I don't really see happening after this.
WHITFIELD: But to your point on the governor, I mean, he did say, you know, words alone are inadequate. Words must be met with action and, of course, the big question then that people have, you know, whether it's, you know, after El Paso or Dayton, and now, I mean, what is that action? And this taking place, by the way, this press conference taking place on the day when eight new Texas laws go into effect today that pertain to guns and just to name a couple of them, one of them, you know, it allows Texans to carry guns in worship places and synagogues and other places of worship unless otherwise, you know, banned by those places. Also, this — a new law loosens restrictions on a number of school marshals who can carry guns at public and private schools in Texas and also another provision allows Texans to carry handguns without a license during a state of disaster. So, Josh, we also heard from the governor who said, you know, we want to do more, but at the same time, preserve, you know, Second Amendment rights. You heard that during this press conference.
CAMPBELL: That's right and that is the debate, right? Maintaining the rights that are enumerated inn the Constitution with what we are actually seeing that on our streets right now and you know, most sane people would submit that you can protect one's right to bear arms while also dealing with the issue of weapons of war that are on the street and one thing that was so bizarre that he had mention, again, this isn't you know, partisan or a political comment. It's just listening to an elected official, someone in-charge trying to explain what just happened. One thing that he said is that, you heard him say, well, there have been other incidents that didn’t involve this AR-15 and then he ticked off, you know, the Santa Fe incident which we were there covering involved a shotgun and an IED, but again, that’s such a weird way to move attention away from this one weapon of war that has appeared in so many scenes by saying, well, there are other weapons. That doesn't really say what you are going to do about it. So I think, you know, in the aftermath, there are a lot of questions there and the last thing was inching today too is the President himself backtrack from this idea of background checks saying that he doesn't believe strong background checks would stop the shooting today or I think he mentioned the last seven years of shooting, background checks wouldn’t have stopped it. So I have very little faith that action will take place. It's going to be a lot of words.
