As their coverage of the tragic shooting in a Uvalde, Texas elementary school progressed into the night Tuesday, things on CNN got downright ghoulish and disgusting as paid analysts and guests were allowed to take things to dark and terrible places. Between former Homeland Security official Juliette Kayyem showing a bizarre satisfaction in talking about the “destroyed” “little bodies” of the 18 students killed in the attack and radical anti-gun Parkland parent Fred Guttenberg calling Republicans “evil,” the network was in a downward spiral.
While speaking with OutFront host Erin Burnett, Guttenberg praised Democratic Senator Chris Murphy (CT) for acting “heroic” today with his screed on the Senate floor. He then attacked Republicans by claiming they don’t love their kids.
“He needs one of these Republicans, it can't be Democrats solving this. These Republicans need to actually love their children as well,” he sneered. “And they need to walk into [Murphy’s] office and they need to grab him by arms and say ‘we’re with you.’ Because if not, we shouldn’t act shocked.”
In the next hour, during AC360, Anderson Cooper brought back Kayyem after her earlier appearance on The Lead where she demanded President Biden suspend immigration enforcement in the border town.
For this go around, Kayyem flaunted a sick satisfaction with talking about the mutilated bodies of the young children. “I think it's important to be graphic. I think the word shooting can sound sanitary since we're dealing with them so often,” she argued as her justification. She even ranted about it on Twitter.
“There were 18 young children killed by a rifle that is meant to destroy, to maim. They are not carrying identification, very likely, at that young of age and they might not be recognizable,” she said to Cooper. Kayyem went on to boast “I'm going to be graphic here” as she described the “18 little bodies that are destroyed by really heavy artillery, and the only person who knows is a parent.”
Claiming they were killed by “heavy artillery” was a gross exaggeration that went unchallenged by Cooper. The school was not shelled from miles away. Reports are conflicting but we believe the shooter had a handgun and a rifle.
Do you know whose schools are getting shelled by artillery and multi-launch rocket systems? Ukraine’s, by Russian invaders. And Cooper should have known better since he’s been there recently.
Guttenberg was called back up during Cooper’s second hour to attack Republicans some more. “I'm going to call them out, it's the Republican Party in the Senate. Maybe that's why the failure to do anything is so despicable, so evil,” he proclaimed because they won’t abolish gun rights.
He added an ominous warning that “the failure to do so only means the next time, there's a really good chance it's going to be someone they love.”
These disgusting comments were made possible because of lucrative sponsorships from Carvana and Sleep Number. Their contact information is linked.
The transcript is below, click “expand” to read:
CNN’s OutFront
May 24, 2022
7:58:00 p.m. Eastern(…)
FRED GUTTENBERG: This is not hard to figure out. Now it's only a question of who’s going to have the courage to say no more. I heard you with Senator Murphy earlier. You has been heroic. He needs one of these Republicans, it can't be Democrats solving this. These Republicans need to actually love their children as well. And they need to walk into his office and they need to grab him by arms and say “we’re with you.” Because if not, we shouldn’t act shocked.
(…)
Anderson Cooper 360
8:20:07 p.m. EasternJULIETTE KAYYEM: I want to just talk about what's going on now, because there's been a sort of lack of information, because I think it's important to be graphic. I think the word shooting can sound sanitary since we're dealing with them so often.
There were 18 young children killed by a rifle that is meant to destroy, to maim. They are not carrying identification, very likely, at that young of age and they might not be recognizable.
(…)
8:22:22 p.m. Eastern
KAYYEM: We have, I think, a teacher already dead so the teacher is not able to identify and that's essentially what's happening right now.
So, I was surprised how little information came out at the press conference earlier. We have the basic numbers. But part of that is, I mean, I'm going to be graphic here. They got 18 little bodies that are destroyed by really heavy artillery, and the only person who knows is a parent. And, you know, that’s today.
(…)
9:33:02 p.m. Eastern
GUTTENBERG: And maybe that's why the failure, and I'm going to call them out, it's the Republican Party in the Senate. Maybe that's why the failure to do anything is so despicable, so evil. Maybe that's why the news that the Texas governor, lieutenant governor, the Texas senators, are all attending the NRA convention this Friday, hurts so much, because they had every opportunity to change direction. They've had every opportunity for years. But they haven't.
And so, listen. I just want to say this. My friend Senator Chris Murphy who has been heroic today, I have hope that someone in the Republican Party or all 50 Democrats will band together and finally do something, because the failure to do so only means the next time, there's a really good chance it's going to be someone they love.
(…)
