White House reminds gun-lovers of freedom of speech in 'deport Piers Morgan' petition response

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Published time: January 09, 2013 23:58
Edited time: January 10, 2013 05:10

CNN host Piers Morgan (Reuters / Fred Prouser)

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Internet, Law, Mass media, USA, Violence

With over 100,000 signatures, an online petition calling for talk show host Piers Morgan to be deported has received an official response from the White House. The petition's organizers saw Morgan's views on guns as an attack on Americans' rights.

The American guns debate took a turn for the weird on Tuesday when radio host Alex Jones went into an animated rant on Morgan's CNN talk show, screaming at the top of his lungs about the potential consequences of a government move to "take away" firearms.

Jones had been asked to speak on Morgan's show to discuss his support of a petition entitled 'Deport British Citizen Piers Morgan for Attacking 2nd Amendment,' which quickly gained the 25,000 signatures required for an official response from the White House. The petition's title refers to the section of the US Constitution treating gun ownership.

Morgan has called aggressively for stricter gun control laws stateside following the December massacre at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut that left 26 people dead, most of them small children.

Press Secretary Jay Carney's response, entitled 'When Discussing the Second Amendment, Keep the First in Mind Too,' was posted to the White House's website Wednesday. In it, Carney reminded Americans favoring Morgan's deportation that the Second Amendment, which guarantees "well-regulated militias" the right to bear arms, does not override the First Amendment, which guarantees the freedom of speech on American soil.

"Americans may disagree on matters of public policy and express those disagreements vigorously, but no one should be punished by the government simply because he or she expressed a view on the Second Amendment – or any other matter of public concern," the statement reads.

The statement includes a video of President Barack Obama speaking following the massacre in Newtown, and assures readers that "President Obama believes that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual right to bear arms."

Screenshot from petitions.whitehouse.gov

Comments (56)

sixshots (unregistered) 16.01.2013 18:19

Brian Flowers (unregistered) wrote in #1
You're a bit off on your interpretation of the First Amendment. The government response is spot on, but this article is wrong. Specifically, you state the First Amendment guarantees the right to free speech on American soil. That is incorrect. The First Amendment states that the US government cannot restrict the right of the people to free speech. It is not limited to American citizens, and it is not limited to US soil. Our government is constitutionally prohibited from taking any action that would infringe upon the free speech of ANY persons of ANY nationality...be they in the US, in Europe, or even on Mars. It's far too common for people to insert their own limitations on these rights that do not actually exist, and that's a dangerous thing to do. Despite what Bush and Obama and others have said about places like Guantanamo Bay, the US Constitution _does_ still apply to any and all US agents there, even if it is not US soil, even if it was not a US base.
Why do idiots always try to say that the constitution protects the "rights" of foreign nationals?If this were the case, the founding fathers would have written the constitution from ENGLAND!!!Their use of the words "the people" were indicative of meaning "citizens".They were writing protections for American citizens.Why does this confuse the bile and vomit of the world?It's really not that complicated.It has been taught for DECADES in public schools and colleges.Does the Russian constitution make it necessary for French citizens to be conscripted into the Russian military?Does the U.K. constitution provide for Bolivian children to have mandatory tea breaks throughout their schoolday?NO!! And that is the same insanity being applied to the interpretation of the American constitution.

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sixshots (unregistered) 16.01.2013 17:53

Obama, the liar who says he is a constitutional scholar, either forgets that the constitution protects the speech of AMERICANS, or else Obama never knew that the constitution DOES NOT protect the rights of foreign nationals in the first place.
Obama is a communi66er, he has a kill-list with American citizens names on it.
NEVER let a "blick" lead your country.
They are gangreen to every nation they invade.
political correctness = mental illness

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ss1980 14.01.2013 20:10

So what's the purpose of petitioning then if none of the petitions are met?Pierce stays, then The Death Star is not built. What the heck?!

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