Anderson Cooper made a fool of himself on conspiracies
President Obama did not allow Anderson Cooper to get away with his silly notion of the validity of conspiracy theorists faux concern with the President’s gun policies. Gabby Gifford’s husband, Mark Kelly used his question to the president to pretty much ridicule senators and others who claim to believe that the President would confiscate their weapons. The President attributed many people’s concerns to conspiracy theories and the general suspicious nature of Americans. Anderson Cooper attempted to push back on the President’s statement.
“Let me just jump in,” Anderson Cooper said. “Is it fair to call it a conspiracy? I mean, a lot of people really believe this deeply. They just don’t trust you.”
The President sternly hit back.
“I am sorry Cooper,” President Obama said. “Yes, it is fair to call it a conspiracy. What are you saying. Are you suggesting that the notion that we are creating a plot to take everybody’s guns away so that we can impose martial law is not a conspiracy? Yes. That is a conspiracy. I would hope you would agree with that. Is that controversial? Except on some websites around the country?”
A tone-deaf Cooper kept on.
“There are certainly a lot of people who have a fundamental distrust,” Cooper continued. “that you do not want to go further and further down this road.”
An exasperated and incredulous President responded with a hint of sarcasm.
“I mean, I am only going to be here for another year,” President Obama said. “When would I have started on this enterprise, right?”
The President then pointed out that he came from Illinois, a part closer to Kentucky than Chicago. He also said many of his friends are gun owning hunters. The President then got to the meat of the issue.
“It is a false notion,” President Obama said. “that I believe is circulated for either political reasons or commercial reasons in order to prevent a coming together among people of good will to develop common sense rules that would make us safer while preserving the second amendment.”
I wish the President had gone further. The reason many of the conspiracy theories have taken hold is because ‘journalists’ like Anderson Cooper, instead of pointing out the idiocy of the conspiracy theories before they metastasize in the psyche of those predisposed to believe, gave them plausibility. It’s not the President’s failure. It is the failure of the traditional mainstream media.