Today's Situation Room:
Wolf Blitzer delivers the most important breaking news and political, international, and national security stories of the day. Tune to The Situation Room weekdays 5-7pm ET on CNN.
Gun rights activist dismisses polls
(CNN) – The chief of a power gun owners group said Wednesday he doesn't trust the methodology of polls showing an overwhelming number of Americans favoring universal background checks on gun sales.
"I'm not sure I believe any polls at this time. I don't think they know how to ask the right questions," Larry Pratt, executive director of Gun Owners of America, told CNN's Wolf Blitzer during a contentious interview on "The Situation Room." When Blitzer asked if that included Fox News' survey, Pratt said it did.
Pratt also said he wants Republican Sen. Pat Toomey out of office for his gun bill.(VIDEO)
About this Show
The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer is the command center for breaking news, politics and extraordinary reports from around the world. Tune in weeknights from 5-7pm ET on CNN.
On Twitter
Pratt's a paid lackey of the gun lobby. He knows he just has to turn up and vocalise the same old platitudes, and the pro-gun followers will blithely recite the same old chestnuts. What does he care he earns 100x as much as they do, and he has armed guards. His family aren't at risk, just like La Pierre's, and he sure as hell isn't going to retire anywhere unsafe!!
Might want to back off that green koolaid you're drinking Paul
Pratt's just another gun nut shill.
Maybe when the polls say 99.9% of the people want their government to keep databases on their guns they can bring Larry back on to explain to the lawmakers and media that America is a Republic and not a Democracy. In a Republic, the government is responsible for protecting the rights of the MINORITY, not the majority. There are just some fundamental rights that are not open to mob rule not matter how bad the mob really, really, really wants to.
"Dredd Scott" Perfectly said. Or perhaps innocent Americans being put in concentration camps in the 1940's is an even more apt argument. How was the US government able to determine which Americans were of Japanese descent in order to deprive them of their civil liberties? Oh yes, they simply consulted their illegally expanded federal registry (ie, the Census). Any serious gun owner who actually follows politics is NOT a member of the NRA or the compromises the NRA has made. From my experience most NRA members think they know what the NRA stands for, but upon further discussion its obvious the NRA is not defending their inalienable god\natural given rights (which have been re-iterated in the Bill of Rights). Gunowners of America has really got their act together. Pennsylvania is surrounded by gun-grabbing states but has always done a decent job to protect it citizens rights. Toomey has been a real disappointment both fiscally and fundamentally understanding his oath of office.
Those who favour gun control and back ground checks etc, really favour the complete elimination of all guns from all citizens. That is their end game and their goal. All of these supposedly benign polls and and moves are just a smoke screen and a ploy. Death by a thousand cuts.
The polls can be manipulated by asking broad rhetorical questions that leaves out important facts or manuevers people towards a goal. The Liberal media is very clever with words, that is their business.
If for example, they went to a church and stood outside and asked all the people coming out if they were Christians, they would proclaim that most people were Christians. But of course that would not be accurate. Or they could say things like"are you in favour of background checks" and ask only people they knew were in favour. Or if they asked everyone everywhere, they could ask the same question but leave out things like" are you in favour of background checks even if background checks are only done on honest, non violent people" or " are you in favour of spending millions of dollars on background checks or using that same money to give grants to gun owners for heavy duty gun safes and free trigger locks?"
Polls can be manipulated and people coerced.
What we need to be talking about are the psychotropic drugs that were taken by Lanza/Holmes//Harris-Klebold. Can't understand why CNN doesn't emphasize on that.
You want a real poll? Take a look at the 15,000 law enforcement officials polled at policeone – 88% Feel Dems Gun Control Legislation Will Have No Effect, 92% Say “Assault Weapons” Ban Will Do Nothing To Lower Violent Crime
These polls cited by fox and cnn are fishy at best.
April 4, 2013 – Background Checks Could Lead To Gun Confiscation, Many Voters Tell Quinnipiac University National Poll; But 91 Percent Want Universal Gun Checks
The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public opinion surveys in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio, Virginia and the nation as a public service and for research.
From March 26 – April 1, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,711 registered voters with a margin of error of +/- 2.4 percentage points. Live interviewers call land lines and cell phones.
SOURCE URL: http://www.quinnipiac.edu/institutes–centers/polling-institute/national/release-detail?ReleaseID=1877
My Comment: With all respect Mr. Blitzer, the above data of the polling you insinuated during this interview as “accurate” and “reliable” is misleading and disrespectful to your audience. As the source of the Quinnipiac University polling you cited during your program shows only a 1,711 registered voters were polled within a majority of democrat leaning states (PA, NY, NJ, CT, FL, OH, and VA). 1,711 registered voters do not represent 300,000,000 plus Americans, which you reported to be the majority of Americans supporting gun control legislation by this particular polls result. Please provide citations, footnotes, or sourcing of these polls, so that Americans can verify the data your network is using that could potentially lead to legislation that could drastically affect their lives.
What is the big shot government going to do about KNIVES now since the attempted killing of 14 people in Houston yesterday?The government is communistic,socialistic scumbags and they want control of all the people in the USA.Lets put the blame on the parents of the crazy's where it belongs.ON THE PARENTS and GOVERNMENT for not having places for proper care of these people.They want our guns then they have total control over the USA.You freeloaders who voted obummer in deserve what you are going to get but nobody else does.Jim Thomas Phx.Az.
I completely agree. I watched his interview with Larry Pratt. It reminfrf me of several interviews between Pierce Morgan and several Pro-Gun activists. Wolf conducted the interview along the same lines as pierce did, asked a question then raised his voice and talked so Larry couldn't answer the question without being interupted. I used to like Wolf's interviews until today, now I will no longer watch any of his programs and I will recommend to everyone I know to do the same. That is the best way I know of to get him off the air. The same thing should be done with Pierce Morgaan. If enought people boycott their shows they will be taken off-air.
I am against the expansion of background checks. Criminals don't use regestered guns. Most times they are guns bought after they have been stolen by other criminals. Only the dumb ones would use anything that can be traced.
And most Armed Robbers are so intelligent??