On Thursday's Wolf program, CNN's Fareed Zakaria touted "the extraordinary ease with which people can obtain these extraordinarily destructive weapons — weapons that you can fire hundreds of rounds — thousands of rounds of ammunition." Zakaria played up that "these stories of gun violence really do...alarm the rest of the world....With gun violence, the United States is essentially alone in the world. There is no other country that has anything remotely approaching the kind of violence we do. The only country that comes even close is Yemen — which is, essentially, a war zone." [video below]
The CNN personality, who was suspended in 2012 for admitted plagiarism, first boosted the gun control cause on Wednesday evening post on Twitter — mere hours after the mass shooting in San Bernardino, California. Zakaria wrote, "Honor the victims of San Bernardino by doing something to stop this kind of tragedy," and linked to a July 2015 Washington Post item that he wrote, titled, "Change your gun laws, America."
The liberal pundit bemoaned in that article that the Supreme Court, in the 2008 Heller case, supposedly "broke with 200 years of precedent and...created an individual right to gun ownership that has made common-sense regulation of guns much harder." He also promoted former Justice John Paul Stevens's "powerful dissent," which attacked Justice Antonin Scalia's opinion in the case as "an act of extreme judicial activism."
The following afternoon, host Wolf Blitzer turned to Zakaria for his take on the mass shooting. Blitzer led into the segment by playing a clip from BBC News, which hyped, "Just another day in the United States of America — another day of gunfire, panic, and fear." The anchor first asked, "What kind of message does that send around the world — because you do a lot of traveling out there. It reinforces this impression of what?"
The Obama supporter replied with his analysis about the level of gun violence in the U.S.:
FAREED ZAKARIA: Well, look, some of this — in this particular case, there is a terrorism angle that you've been exploring. But in general, these stories of gun violence really do startle — alarm the rest of the world, in a way that's difficult to completely explain. It's more than anything else. The rest of the world looks at this as the one element of America that they find truly baffling.
...With gun violence, the United States is essentially alone in the world. There is no other country that has anything remotely approaching the kind of violence we do. The only country that comes even close is Yemen — which is, essentially, a war zone. So, they look at this, and they really can't understand it; and they don't understand how we put up with it.
Blitzer followed up by underlining how the gunman was radicalized, which "may diminish this notion that people are just running wild here in the United States with guns or whatever." However, Zakaria doubled-down with his "extraordinary ease" term:
BLITZER: But in this particular case, as you correctly point out, Syed Rizwan Farook — the shooter who's now dead — together with his wife, Tashfeen Malik — they apparently were radicalized, if you will. We don't know exactly how. We don't know by whom. They apparently had some international contacts, if you will, with suspected terrorist sources out there. That may diminish this notion that people are just running wild here in the United States with guns or whatever.
ZAKARIA: Well, you're exactly right. This — this one may be an unusual case. But as you point out, Wolf, it may be mixed motives, as has been the case in the past....in each of these cases, there are different motives — this one: there does seem a terror angle. The abortion one — I don't know how you'd categorize it. Some people call it 'domestic terrorism.' There are other ones that are purely mental health.
What they all have in common is the extraordinary ease with which people can obtain these extraordinarily destructive weapons — weapons that you can fire hundreds of rounds — thousands of rounds of ammunition. That sets America apart.
The CNN host added that "people may have said...look at France, despite having tough gun control laws, it wasn't able to avoid a terrorism attack. No...there was one terrorism attack that happened in Paris. But the levels of violence in Paris on any given month, or any given day, or any given year, is 1/20 that of the United States."
Blitzer corrected his colleague by pointing out the Charlie Hebdo massacre earlier in 2015. But here replied by repeating his final point: "But you put it all together...European countries have, roughly speaking, 1/20 to 1/25 the amount of violence."
The transcript of the relevant portion of the Fareed Zakaria segment from the December 3, 2015 edition of CNN's Wolf program:
UNIDENTIFIED MALE JOURNALIST (voice-over, from BBC News broadcast): Just another day in the United States of America — another day of gunfire, panic, and fear.
[CNN Graphic: "BBC On Shootings: 'Just Another Day In The U.S.'"]
WOLF BLITZER: A BBC report on the San Bernardino shootings here in the United States is just one example of how the U.S. is being portrayed in international news around the world. Another: former deputy prime minister in Australia says his country needs to warn travelers about gun violence in the United States.
Fareed Zakaria is the host of CNN's 'Fareed Zakaria GPS.' He's here with me in Washington right now. A story like this, Fareed — horrible mass murder, if you will, in San Bernardino. What kind of message does that send around the world — because you do a lot of traveling out there. It reinforces this impression of what?
[CNN Graphic: "Sources: Male Shooter Apparently Radicalized"]
FAREED ZAKARIA: Well, look, some of this — in this particular case, there is a terrorism angle that you've been exploring. But in general, these stories of gun violence really do startle — alarm the rest of the world, in a way that's difficult to completely explain. It's more than anything else. The rest of the world looks at this as the one element of America that they find truly baffling.
Because, you know, there are other elements. We're more religious than other industrialized countries. But that, they understand. They used to be more religious themselves. There are other countries that are more religious. With gun violence, the United States is essentially alone in the world. There is no other country that has anything remotely approaching the kind of violence we do. The only country that comes even close is Yemen — which is, essentially, a war zone. So, they look at this, and they really can't understand it; and they don't understand how we put up with it.
BLITZER: But in this particular case, as you correctly point out, Syed Rizwan Farook — the shooter who's now dead — together with his wife, Tashfeen Malik — they apparently were radicalized, if you will. We don't know exactly how. We don't know by whom. They apparently had some international contacts, if you will, with suspected terrorist sources out there. That may — that may diminish this notion that people are just running wild here in the United States with guns or whatever.
[CNN Graphic: "Sources: Male Shooter In Touch With Intl. Terror Subjects; Sources: Male Shooter Traveled To Saudi Arabia In 2013"]
ZAKARIA: Well, you're exactly right. This — this one may be an unusual case. But as you point out, Wolf, it may be mixed motives, as has been the case in the past. I think Paul [Cruickshank] mentioned that as well.
What — in each of these cases, there are different motives — this one: there does seem a terror angle. The abortion one — I don't know how you'd categorize it. Some people call it 'domestic terrorism.' There are other ones that are purely mental health.
What they all have in common is the extraordinary ease with which people can obtain these extraordinarily destructive weapons — weapons that you can fire hundreds of rounds — thousands of rounds of ammunition. That sets America apart.
So, people may have said — you know, well, look at France, despite having tough gun control laws, it wasn't able to avoid a terrorism attack. No. They did — there was one terrorism attack that happened in Paris. But the levels of violence in Paris on any given month, or any given day, or any given year, is 1/20 that of the United States.
[CNN Graphic: "Police: 'We Have Not Ruled Out Terrorism'; Motive Unclear In San Bernardino Shooting"]
BLITZER: Well, that — there were — these were terrorist attacks, whether — Paris a couple, three weeks ago; or the Charlie Hebdo magazine—
ZAKARA: Right; right—
BLITZER: That was a terror attack as well—
ZAKARIA: But you put it all together, and—
BLITZER: Yes—
ZAKARIA: European countries have, roughly speaking, 1/20 to 1/25 the amount of violence.
