In a serious and pointed opening monologue during her Thursday show on HLN, conservative host S.E. Cupp scolded the liberal media, including allusions to her network (CNN) for shunning serious discussion and understanding of guns and gun owners for unbridled political activism.
“I do know that there isn’t likely a law, existing or imagined, that would have prevented it. Anyone who says otherwise is not being honest with you,” she began her media rebuke. “Speaking of honesty. If you're like me, you turn on the news to get information, a set of facts … Well, if you turn on cable news last night and this morning, it is safe to say you didn't get the news.”
Cupp expertly observed that “when it comes to guns, news anchors take off their journalist hats and put on their activist hats. And they do it without shame or disclaimer because they believe righteousness is the same thing as being right.” That was followed up by the calling out of her colleagues for their ridiculous finger pointing and blame assigning that did nothing but alienate reasonable people.
“Many of these journalists blame the gun lobby for what happened yesterday. They blamed the NRA, which represents law-abiding gun owners, like me. I'll say it again, law-abiding gun owners,” she said with a sarcastic emphasis on the word “journalists” and a slam against their anti-Republican bias:
They blamed Republicans because Republicans represent a sizable constituency of gun owners who already comply with thousands of Byzantine gun laws that criminals don't follow. And so, Republican lawmakers who do their jobs in representing those constituents are the problem.
She called out the leftist media for their hyperbolic and political accusations of GOP lawmakers being in the pocket of the NRA and their disdain for gun owners: “They, in fact, blame you. Because without a law degree you couldn’t possibly understand the Constitution. No, it's your ill-conceived notions of what the Second Amendment means that’s the problem because you’re too stupid to interpret it correctly. You know, the way they do.”
Cupp also pointed out that the media wouldn’t dare grill Democrats about why they failed to pass gun control when they controlled everything. “If they spend an hour blaming Republican lawmakers for the deaths of school children and calling their constituents too stupid to understand their own rights, don’t be surprised when they don’t want to come on,” she declared, an obvious jab at CNN’s Chris Cuomo for his morning lunacy.
She doubled down and ripped into them even more:
Maybe if they stop disguising activism as journalism, they would. Maybe if they could have these conversations without offending half the country, they would. No no no, let's keep having the same one-sided conversations on the news and then pound our fists that nothing ever changes. That makes way more sense.
“Look, this issue is hard, it's emotional, it's important. I want to change this as much as anybody. But we will never get change as long as these people are leading the discussion,” Cupp concluded in one final condemnation before going to a break.
Transcript below, click expand to read:
HLN
S.E. Cupp Unfiltered
February 15, 2018
5:02:53 PM Eastern(…)
S.E. CUPP: This murder reportedly bought his gun legally. I don’t know whether the NICS system failed. But I do know that there isn’t likely a law, existing or imagined, that would have prevented it. Anyone who says otherwise is not being honest with you.
Speaking of honesty. If you're like me, you turn on the news to get information, a set of facts. If you want opinion you come to shows like mine where our prejudices, biases, and opinions are made known. There is no false pretense that you’re getting pure objectivity here.
Well, if you turn on cable news last night and this morning, it is safe to say you didn't get the news. That’s because when it comes to guns, news anchors take off their journalist hats and put on their activist hats. And they do it without shame or disclaimer because they believe righteousness is the same thing as being right.
Many of these journalists blame the gun lobby for what happened yesterday. They blamed the NRA, which represents law-abiding gun owners, like me. I'll say it again, law-abiding gun owners. They blamed Republicans because Republicans represent a sizable constituency of gun owners who already comply with thousands of Byzantine gun laws that criminals don't follow. And so, Republican lawmakers who do their jobs in representing those constituents are the problem.
Republicans are also, these journalists will tell you, too afraid of the NRA to stand up to them. They’ll courageously take to Twitter to link GOP lawmakers with the money they’ve received from the NRA. What they never say is at the NRA is why we have a background check system in the first place. And it's the gun lobby fighting for it to be enforced.
They, in fact, blame you. Because without a law degree you couldn’t possibly understand the constitution. No, it's your ill-conceived notions of what the Second Amendment means that’s the problem because you’re too stupid to interpret it correctly. You know, the way they do.
Then they put a Democratic lawmaker on or a former Republican lawmaker who shares their point of view to complain that Republicans will never do anything about guns. They never, these journalists, ask those lawmakers what Democrats did about gun control when they had the White House, the House, and the Senate for two years under Barack Obama. Because the answer is nothing.
These journalists never say where was Democrats courage? Were Democrats too afraid to lose their seats like they did in 1994 to pass another assault weapons ban when they could? Instead, they shake their head, wag their fingers, look at the camera and tell us to shut up because journalism.
If they spend an hour blaming Republican lawmakers for the deaths of school children and calling their constituents too stupid to understand their own rights, don’t be surprised when they don’t want to come on. Maybe if they stop disguising activism as journalism, they would. Maybe if they could have these conversations without offending half the country, they would. No no no, let's keep having the same one-sided conversations on the news and then pound our fists that nothing ever changes. That makes way more sense.
Look, this issue is hard, it's emotional, it's important. I want to change this as much as anybody. But we will never get change as long as these people are leading the discussion. More on the tragedy in Florida after the break.
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