Tens of thousands have signed a petition calling for British national CNN host Piers Morgan (“Piers Morgan Tonight”) to be deported from the U.S. over his gun control views. Morgan has capitalized on the Newtown, CT tragedy to push for tighter gun laws. Last week, he called guest Larry Pratt, the executive director of Guns Owners for America, “dangerous” and “an unbelievably stupid man.” The exchange was heated and it started over Pratt advocating letting teachers carry firearms. Morgan cited there was a major gun problem in the US, creating many gun crimes and murders. More guns is not the answer, he said. Pratt held his own. Morgan got a bit angry at times. The insults got personal. “Disarmament is dangerous, ask Neville Chamberlain, your role model,” Pratt concluded.
See the video here:
Gun rights activists are fighting back. A petition launched 12/21 on the White House e-petition website by a user in Texas accuses Morgan of engaging in a “hostile attack against the U.S. Constitution” by targeting the Second Amendment. It demands he be deported immediately for “exploiting his position as a national network television host to stage attacks against the rights of American citizens.”
The petition has already hit the 25,000 signature threshold to get a White House response. By Monday, it had 31,813 signatures, reported The Poughkeepsite Journal.
In a series of Twitter messages, Morgan urged his followers to sign the petition and in response to one article about the petition said “bring it on” as he appeared to track the petition’s progress.
“If I do get deported from America for wanting fewer gun murders, are there any other countries that will have me?” he wrote.
See the Poughkeepsie Journal story here
RBR-TVBR observation: It the U.K. it is now legal to only own hunting rifles—and via registration. Morgan is a British national and thinks that disallowing citizens to bear arms to protect themselves is just fine over there–there is less gun-related crime. He’s entitled to his opinion, certainly, and controversy gets ratings. We doubt the petition will carry any water with the White House. Bottom line, this is what might be good for CNN under Jeff Zucker’s leadership—more opinion, more controversy, less news reading. Works for Fox News
