Roughly halfway through the second hour of CNN’s Tuesday night Democratic presidential debate, moderator Anderson Cooper dove into the obligatory questions about enacting strict and intrusive gun control measures. This time, nearly all the questions pertained to probing the candidates on their support for mandatory gun confiscation. And if not, why not?
Cooper began his line of questioning by pushing former Congressman Robert O’Rourke (TX) on how he would implement the so-called “mandatory buyback” program he proposed during the last debate:
Congressman O’Rourke, in the last debate, you said, quote, “hell yes we're going to take your AR-15, your AK-47,” but when you were asked how you’d enforce a mandatory buyback you said police wouldn't be going door to door. So, how exactly are you going to force people to give up their weapons, you don't even know who has those weapons?
O’Rourke danced around the issue because, in reality, trying to confiscate all of the roughly 16 million sporting rifles in America would be nearly impossible and would likely start a civil war. But Cooper still pressed him to elaborate:
Congressman [crosstalk] just to follow up, your expectations aside, your web site says you will fine people who don't give up their weapons. That doesn't take those weapons off the street. So, to be clear, exactly how are you going to take away weapons from people who do not want to give them up and you don't know where they are?
Over the next few questions, Cooper grilled the candidates who acknowledged that what O’Rourke wanted was actually confiscation, and those who opposed “mandatory buybacks”:
COOPER: Mayor Buttigieg, just yesterday, you referred to mandatory buybacks as confiscation and said that Congressman O’Rourke has been picking a fight to try to say relevant. Your response on guns.
(…)
COOPER: Senator Klobuchar, Senator Warren supports a voluntary -- excuse me, Senator Klobuchar, you support a voluntary buyback, if I'm correct.
SEN. AMY KLOBUCHAR: That is correct.
COOPER: Right. What is wrong with a mandatory buyback? Your response?
(…)
COOPER: Senator Warren, you support a voluntary gun buyback of assault-style weapons as well. Why not a mandatory one?
Cooper’s tone lightened up when he finally got to radical California Senator Kamala Harris, asking: “Senator Harris, you disagree with Senator Warren. You think the buyback should be mandatory. Please respond.”
The transcript is below, click "expand" to read:
CNN Democratic Debate
October 15, 2019
9:30:24 p.m. Eastern(…)
ANDERSON COOPER: We want to turn back to domestic issues and the epidemic of gun violence in this country. We're less than 100 miles from Dayton, Ohio where two months ago a gunman killed nine people using an AR-15-style weapon with a high capacity magazine. Congressman O’Rourke, in the last debate, you said, quote, “hell yes we're going to take your AR-15, your AK-47,” but when you were asked how you’d enforce a mandatory buyback you said police wouldn't be going door to door.
So, how exactly are you going to force people to give up their weapons, you don't even know who has those weapons?
(…)
9:32:23 p.m. Eastern
COOPER: Congressman [crosstalk] just to follow up, your expectations aside, your web site says you will fine people who don't give up their weapons. That doesn't take those weapons off the street. So, to be clear, exactly how are you going to take away weapons from people who do not want to give them up and you don't know where they are?
(…)
9:33:09 p.m. Eastern
COOPER: Mayor Buttigieg, just yesterday, you referred to mandatory buybacks as confiscation and said that Congressman O’Rourke has been picking a fight to try to say relevant. Your response on guns.
(…)
9:38:05 p.m. Eastern
COOPER: Senator Klobuchar, Senator Warren supports a voluntary -- excuse me, Senator Klobuchar, you support a voluntary buyback, if I'm correct.
SEN. AMY KLOBUCHAR: That is correct.
COOPER: Right. What is wrong with a mandatory buyback? Your response?
(…)
9:39:14 p.m. Eastern
COOPER: Senator Warren, you support a voluntary gun buyback of assault-style weapons as well. Why not a mandatory one?
(…)
9:40:37 p.m. Eastern
COOPER: Senator Harris, you disagree with Senator Warren. You think the buyback should be mandatory. Please respond.
(…)
9:41:49 p.m. Eastern
COOPER: Vice President Biden, your response.
(…)
9:42:48 p.m. Eastern
COOPER: Secretary Castro, the vast majority of homicides committed with a gun in this country are from handguns, not assault-style weapons. What's your plan to prevent those deaths?
(…)
