Lou Dobbs doubles down on gun paranoia by claiming Sunstein will be 'gun czar'
By David Neiwert Tuesday Sep 29, 2009 4:00pm
From the very moment he was elected, right-wingers have been waiting, hoping, and watching anxiously for President Obama to take some kind of action -- any kind of action -- relating to guns. Just so they can start screaming, "He's trying to take away our guns!!!! Lock and load!!! Molon labe!!!"
Of course, he's done nothing. Nada. Zippo.
Which means they're now forced to just make stuff up.
This is never a problem for the paranoid, gun-toting right anyway. It's what they do.
Lou Dobbs was out leading the parade last night:
DOBBS: A record 1 million background checks on gun sales were completed by the FBI in the month of August alone. Those numbers show that gun owners are increasingly concerned that the Obama administration is on a mission to restrict Second Amendment rights in this country.
Supporters of those rights gathered in St. Louis over this weekend to fight attempts to strip Americans of their right to keep and to bear arms. Bill Tucker with our report.
And what exactly is the source of that fear? Um, well ...
TUCKER: Ask them why, and they recall the words of Attorney General Eric Holder on the need to ban assault weapons to help reduce drug violence in Mexico.
They point to the president's regulatory czar, Cass Sunstein, who personally is not just opposed to hunting, but said back in 2007 it should be banned. Or they will point to the president's consistent voting record for gun control, both in the Senate and back in Illinois.
Nor do these gun rights enthusiasts trust the newest Supreme Court justice, who in her only ruling on gun rights said the Second Amendment could only be applied to the federal government.
Hmmm. This sounds like almost exactly the same charges the NRA has been peddling since January, and yet the Obama administration has not acted on guns in any fashion.
The only new thing is the bit about Cass Sunstein, the demonization of whom began with Glenn Beck and has now spread to Dobbs' show. Dobbs and Tucker delve this in more detail:
TUCKER: All of them, of course, united under the banner of securing their Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms. For his part, the president does say he respects the constitutional right and promised that he will "protect the rights of hunters and other law- abiding Americans to purchase, own, and transport, and use guns."
But gun activists remain skeptical -- Lou?
DOBBS: I mean, the attorney general, Eric Holder, has said "They just want to do a few things with the Second Amendment." And the czar here, Cass Sunstein -- I mean, what's his deal?
TUCKER: He's a vegetarian, and he believes that hunting ought to be banned.
DOBBS: So, he's not big on hunting.
TUCKER: He's not big on hunting at all. But he has openly supported the right of animals to sue. He believes animals ought to have rights...
DOBBS: I'm sorry, repeat that again?
TUCKER: He believes animals should have rights, which would include the right to sue if they have been mistreated.
DOBBS: If they were hunted.
TUCKER: Or I guess hunted.
DOBBS: If they were hunted -- really?
TUCKER: I can't explain it, Lou, I'm just telling you.
DOBBS: I just think we should let this sort of percolate, because, presumably, the president knows this man, knows who he put there...
TUCKER: Yes.
DOBBS: ... as the regulatory czar over guns. That's truly, truly interesting.
Thank you very much, Bill Tucker.
TUCKER: You're welcome.
Cass Sunstein, the regulatory czar over guns? Not exactly. And by "not exactly," we mean, "not even remotely related to the truth."
Sunstein has been nominated to head up the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, whose role it is to review draft regulations under Executive Order 12866; additionally, "OIRA reviews collections of information under the Paperwork Reduction Act, and also develops and oversees the implementation of government-wide policies in the areas of information technology, information policy, privacy, and statistical policy."
Guns are nowhere near this picture, except hypothetically (it would be possible, as a matter of conjecture, that Sunstein's office would review the efficacy of proposed gun regs coming out of the ATF). And that's it. That's the entire "connection" here.
But hey, don't worry, Lou. When the next Richard Poplawski kills three cops because he was afraid Obama was gonna take his guns away, we'll know who to thank.
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STFU!!!!
obama voted yes on the vitter amendment. check it out.
As a senator, he voted on something. Part of the job. (Even if I don't necessarily agree with some of his votes.) He's done absolutely nothing as president to further any plan to "take away our guns." And hasn't even hinted that he has any such plans, for that matter. But that doesn't stop teh crazy from running amuck.
on dope, too?
absolutely!
Does he have Beck envy?
of sorts w/dobs and faux for getting another obama administrator (jones) or support (acorn) under bus?
--or a medication error?
Cannon ball envy? Call it the ball envy that you will.
... even hints of gun control he better take all the troops from Iraq and Afganny and relocate them in Texas, Arizona, Oklahoma, Nevada, South Carolina, Missouri, Kansas, Wyoming... etc etc.
Nothing will start the shooting as fast as the perception of taken the guns away.
He has stated and it was posted on the white house website that he is for permanently reinstating the '94 assault weapon ban. He also said he was for Sifta and wanted it ratified by the Senate.
ETA That is not including the various anti-gun bills that have been introduced since he took office.
He's in favor of reinstating that assault weapons ban, and in favor of SIFTA. Gee, he has opinions.
What he hasn't done is take any action to turn his opinions into law. And what most people seem to deliberately refuse to admit is that as President, there's actually very little that he CAN do.
He can ask for legislation, he can approve or veto it, but he can't make a magic wand and make it happen.
there hasn't been a massive effort, yet. As Pelosi said the time is not right, I'll pick my own time. I don't expect to see any real push until after the 2010 election, and possible not until after the 2012.
But he has not just stated that he was in favor of them, he has stated he will push for them, important difference.
And I do understand what his powers are, I also unfortunately understand how D.C. works to a degree.
...launch a preemptive nuke attack on those states? It would be no great loss to the nation.
I live in Oklahoma City. We're not all like that. I hate guns. I watched my fiance get his brains blown out right in front of me when I was 20 years old and I can't even look at a gun 25 years later. As a result, I never make jokes about killing people because I've seen death real fucking close up. Looks like just because you don't live in one of those states, you get to decide who lives and dies? Fuck you. Oh, and I'm vegan too. I despise humanity for the most part, mostly because of what we do animals. But I never lower myself to calling for them to be "nuked." That sounds like what someone from Texas would say.
is a racist and a bigot. or is that the same thing? hey, Lou, why do you hate people of other cultures? i'm gonna take a guess, piano key mouth, that your ancestry had something to do with immigration too, didn't it, fat boy? so i guess you hate yourself and your ancestors.
How does one get rid of this dingleberry?
No shit.
Lou Dobbs is a stupid Mother F*cker.
... give the tree a hard shake and the rotten fruit will drop off.
But, of late, we've been shaking the tree and all sorts of nuts have been dropping out.
Lou Dobbs ,like many other public people,thinks that that the public is stupid dumb,and gullible.
....can kiss my black ass!
kiss my pale scrawny Irish arse.
Hey! If we can get shadow and chicano to join in -
Dobbs could kiss our multicultural asses!
his name when scrambled is sometimes dul boobs.
Blood Bus
Blob Do Us
Bulb Do So
Are also up there...
Old Sobb U
"A record 1 million background checks on gun sales were completed by the FBI in the month of August alone. Those numbers show that gun owners are increasingly concerned that the Obama administration is on a mission to restrict Second Amendment rights in this country."
Well, no they don't, Lou. Those numbers show that the FBI is doing its job of checking up on gun purchasers to make sure they're not felons and that lots of Americans are (still) purchasing guns. The numbers have no connection to gun owners' paranoia except in your rabble-rousing, corporate bought-and-sold mind and those of your producers and writers.
Anything for a little excitement, right, Lou?
I'm one of those 1 million Americans who purchased a gun in August and I am pissed that nut jobs on the far right think that fear was my motivation. There were no political motivations in my decision, I purchased a gun in August because I wanted it and I got a good deal......case closed....f$#k you Lou Dobbs you lying sack of guano.
I will NEVER be a member of the NRA.
Like you said I got a great deal on used gun because Bush screwed the economy so bad and the guy needed money for his mortgage payment. I was in the NRA one year back in the 90's and that was enough to show me they're not about Second Amendment rights but all about a far right wing agenda.
that people are having to sell out of desperation because of how badly the Rethugs screwed the economy!
Lou Dobbs just loves scaring people and giving them someone to blame.
but in answer to one question below...
http://www.dropdobbs.com/take-action/
... it's a public service.
... needs to broaden. CNN cannot call itself 'the most trusted name in news' when Dobbs hides under its umbrella. We're not even looking at objective views or critical thinking - we're looking at full-blown paranoid racist hate-mongering.
And CNN defends every last second of it. Won't say BOO to Lou Dobbs.
Even CBS canned Dan Rather when he went off the reservation with his story on Bush's National Guard papers.
In other words, CNN itself is now a legitimate target for boycott. If you're going to promote yourself as a news station, we expect that somewhere in the building is someone responsible for editorial judgment. The whole of CNN's broadcast day is news & current events - there are no soap operas, no game shows, no police dramas or shows about cranky, eccentric doctors. But if the crap Lou Dobbs peddles is allowed to stand uncorrected, unchecked ... what does this say about the rest of CNN's programming?
true. We can't have journalists calling out Repugs on their lies.
an old idiot with a massive fat orange-hued head and a bright pink tie.
Why do these gun nuts have such manly issues?
It seems as if Lou is trying to compete with Glenn Beck over who can say the most outrageous bullshit. I mean he is so far out there he's going to need an oxygen tank. Wow he's a crazy old fart.
A four month old boy was killed by gunfire in LA last night.
to be made for some American to enjoy their penile extensions!
that was a snark , its boderline " beyond the pale " ! .
Why is everyone so worried about their guns? Didn't President Clinton already take them away? That's all I heard about for 8 years, so it must have happened.
or the deer and the antelope will start suing!
These people are beyond paranoid.
Oh, give me a home where the buffalo roam
And the deer and the antelope sue
Where seldom is heard, a paranoid word
From that bastard on CNN, Lou
Dobbs, Dobbs down the drain
As the deer and the antelope sue
Oh the courts did us good, when they ripped off Lou's hood
And put his race hatred out in clear view
:D
and groat clusters!
It's a hedge against the gun-toting right.
Why is everyone so worked up about a person they admit they do not like, and rarely listen to? If it bothers you that much, write to CNN, and I mean write (Using actual pen and paper). Also we need to get the message out that Lou Dobbs is shy a full load of bricks, and make it stick.
We'll just ignore him and he'll go away.
Just like cancer. And AIDS. And poverty. And hunger.
I never wrote that. I wrote, "If it bothers you that much, write to CNN, and I mean write (Using actual pen and paper). Also we need to get the message out that Lou Dobbs is shy a full load of bricks, and make it stick." That's what I said. What's this other stuff got to do with Lou Dobbs being his usual blowhard self?
teeth.
He's selling guns like no president in history.
They ought to be kissing his ass.
Rahm Emmanuel?
The reason GOP (and Dobbs) are so adamant we all have guns, while they oppose health care, is to ensure that when poor people get sick and have no insurance, that they have the means to put themselves out of their misery without costing the GOP any money. The BIG question here is, does Dobbs defend the right of unregistered immigrants to own guns and defend themselves?
in masse, the first target should be the NRA for forcing us to do this
owners are the most patriotic and law-abiding citizens around. I guess I missed that poll.
obama voted particularly yes on the vitter amendment to the homeland security funding bill. "no agency that receives federal funding will have the athourity to confiscate guns in the event of a national emergency." the only gun issue obama voted on during his tenure in the senate, he voted with the conservatives and against his party.
HELL, they've been screaming exactly that since BEFORE the election even. And I have to say as a gun owner I feel the most secure in my right to own guns that I have since Jimmy Carter was President! So screw the right wing nut jobs! They don't own the Second Amendment by any stretch of the imagination!
Denying us a public option infringes on our Second Amendment rights!
Re: Supporters of those rights gathered in St. Louis over this weekend to fight attempts to strip Americans of their right to keep and to bear arms.
WTF is he talking about? What attempts to strip Americans of guns?
Damn it! Logic is so missing from the ignorant, idiot Rightwingers' positions.
The f-ing idiots are trying to convince America that Obama wants to ban ALL guns. And most of the morons are actually listening.
There is no logistical way that Obama or any other government entity could take everyone's guns away. Don't these idiots realize that? Apparently not!
But you wait and see. If Obama continues to take no action on this issue, then when he runs for re-election and/or at the end of his second term, when he says that there was no reason for people to be concerned, the ignorant rightwingers will claim victory and say that it was their efforts that had Obama running scared all these years.
I nominate Lou Dobbs for Rubber Room Czar.
Lou Dobbs of CNN is a Birther. Does anyone need say more?
Did i mention that this Birther works for CNN, the once self proclaimed most reliable source for news.
I better not hear CNN make that claim ever again. That's a bell CNN cannot un-ring.
you missed a couple of things.
EO 12866 also gives the OIRA authority over existing regulations. From your link...
"The objectives of this Executive order are to enhance planning and coordination with respect to both new and existing regulations;"
"to ensure that all regulations are consistent with the President's priorities and the principles set forth in this Executive order, within applicable law; and to otherwise improve the effectiveness of existing regulations:"
Also from the wiki link.
"Executive Order 13,422, the Executive Order covers federal agencies' "guidance documents", in addition to regulations. The Order's stated purpose is to ensure that agencies, to the extent permitted by law, comply with the regulatory principles stated in Executive Order 12866 and that the President's policies are reflected in agency rules."
So the agency headed by Sunstein has more power than you state. And has authority over the BATFE regs and "guidance documents". And in theory what is considered a "sporting weapon"(what is allowed to be imported and/or owned without a title 2 or 3 tax stamp) under their regulations, which Holder was pushing to get not too long ago. And the internal guidelines for approving or not the applications and how they are handled. So Dobbs is actually correct.
Sunstein, like all presidential ADVISORS, does not head any agency, cannot issue orders or prescribe regulations, and has no operational authority over any aspect of the executive branch. Besides, no executive order or any agency regulation or order can contravene Federal law which you and Dobbs imply they can, and it is a law Obama voted FOR. You smokin kudzu again?
right I used the wrong term, he heads an office (not agency), if he was simply an adviser he wouldn't need congressional approval.
Read what was posted and the links, PO 12866 and 13422 does give him the authority (in theory).
We are so f*cked up by these cons that corporations....f*cking corporations have the rights of HUMAN citizens in this country. And it's all because of some one little MISTAKE some 80-100 years ago in the back rooms of the courthouse?
Jesus...the legal system can really have it's pants down in certain circumstances. I say let's fix this corporate loop hole. They are NOT citizens that should have the same protection as WE THE PEOPLE.
And we all know that streak as the guns-n-God crowd who comprise the GOP.
...Obama is goin' to force gun owners to turn in their guns an' dare shoes to the gov'mint. An, den he's gonna make dem an' everbudy else eat only fried chicken, chitlins, bean pie and watermelon ever day furebber. An' da kids learn 'bout sex an' evluushun in skuul an' sing Obama praise songs.
Why doesn't CNN fire that senile old fool?
And don't forget about larnin them gazintas.......you know....2 gazinta 4 two times and 4 gazinta 8......
Why do people care what this known lard-Ass liar says anyway?? Boycott CNN and their Beck want to be.
Can a person sink lower than Lou Dobbs? The serial distortist is at it again. If you are ever associated with advocating for anything considered "liberal" you come under Dobbs right-wing attacks. Sunstein has advocated for animal rights in maintaining that animals are NOT property and thus shouldn't be treated as such. With obvious logistical problems in that animals can't fully advocate for themselves, he proposed animals be given legal standing to HELP STOP ABUSE!!!!
Lou Dobbs could care less about the rights of humans, (other than white male's) so it's not hard to imagine what he thinks about animals, especially when he can use them as fodder to advance he elitist faux-populist right wing agenda.
What is more disturbing Lou, giving Corporations the rights of individuals or giving animals legal standing to curb abuse? Which is more sacrosanct to you in your world Lou? Which should we laugh at and mock? Which should we be alarmed might be a tell-tale sign of real fascism (I almost hate to use the word now that clowns like Dobbs have distorted its meaning)?
Position still open? Lou would be perfect.If not, I can think of at least a dozen others who would be outstanding at it.
stay off of the bottle for a few days. Ever hear how he slurs his words?
Lou Dobbs has to completely overhaul his world view. Then maybe he will get by. They rarely do though..
Lou Dobbs has never been too useful to political debate but now he's really quite harmful. CNN should do the right thing.
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