Chicago Mayor Shifts Blame to Republicans After Another Weekend of Bloodshed
So there are killers in Chicago, but it’s Indiana’s fault.
That’s the takeaway from a Twitter spat between Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Texas Republican Ted Cruz after Cruz posted a comment about the Windy City’s holiday weekend shootings.
Naturally, Lightfoot’s response was a masterpiece of liberal illogic.
It started on Monday afternoon, when Cruz took to Twitter to point out that Chicago is one of the country’s toughest cities when it comes to gun control, but has still managed to become a byword for murderous shootings.
And Labor Day weekend, which saw seven people dead and 34 wounded by gunfire, according to ABC7, was just the latest example.
Cruz’s tweet was just a statement of common sense.
“Gun control doesn’t work. Look at Chicago. Disarming law-abiding citizens isn’t the answer,” he wrote.
“Stopping violent criminals — prosecuting & getting them off the street — BEFORE they commit more violent crimes is the most effective way to reduce murder rates. Let’s protect our citizens.”
Gun control doesn’t work. Look at Chicago. Disarming law-abiding citizens isn’t the answer. Stopping violent criminals—prosecuting & getting them off the street—BEFORE they commit more violent crimes is the most effective way to reduce murder rates. Let’s protect our citizens. https://t.co/znHO31gDH2
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) September 2, 2019
Pretty radical thinking, talking about stopping violent criminals before they commit crimes.
Too radical for Lightfoot, obviously, who responded with the bizarre claim that the killings weren’t the fault of Chicago residents at all.
For Lightfoot, it’s Republicans like Cruz who are clearly to blame. A Texas senator and lawmakers in other states apparently have more control over Chicago residents than their mayor and police officers.
“60% of illegal firearms recovered in Chicago come from outside IL — mostly from states dominated by coward Republicans like you who refuse to enact commonsense gun legislation,” Lightfoot wrote in a Twitter post with an accompanying graphic. “Keep our name out of your mouth.”
60% of illegal firearms recovered in Chicago come from outside IL—mostly from states dominated by coward Republicans like you who refuse to enact commonsense gun legislation. Keep our name out of your mouth. https://t.co/yVM4JHL3xy pic.twitter.com/pr613A3dpf
— Lori Lightfoot (@LightfootForChi) September 3, 2019
For that bit of reasoning, she was endlessly applauded on social media by liberal users who apparently thought she’d given Cruz an argument that would shut up Second Amendments activists forever.
But here’s the problem with that line of thinking:
If guns are coming from elsewhere, yet it’s the city of Chicago that is the slaughterhouse, then clearly the problem is not the guns — the problem is the city of Chicago and its residents.
It’s a hoary old saying but it’s still true: Guns don’t kill people, people kill people.
But blaming criminals for crimes is not a statement any Democratic politician can make comfortably these days — especially one in the city that made a second-tier actor like Jussie Smollett a household name in the United States.
Fortunately, there were some social media users who saw Lightfoot’s reply for the nonsense it is.
Yet, these states where criminals get their guns from, that, according to you, don’t legislate “common sense” gun laws, aren’t shooting and slaughtering each other by the dozens every week, as they are in YOUR city. How do you explain that? ?
— Jewhadi™ (@JewhadiTM) September 3, 2019
This response doesn’t make sense to me. Even if the guns come from outside Chicago, the ppl who illegally use them CHOSE to GO get them from outside. Criminals will obtain weapons anyway they can. Stats on where they come from doesn’t negate they ARE being sought/illegally used
— Eagle Flight (@EagleFlight9) September 3, 2019
So the solution to criminals ignoring Chicago gun laws is to pass MORE gun laws for criminals to ignore?
— Schwalbe:The Me-262 (@MikeTInnes) September 3, 2019
And this last one is classic:
We all have both a 1st and 2nd Amendment so we can SAY ‘Chicago’ as much as we want and NO you can’t have our guns.
— Zhivago of Tookland (@raywatts) September 3, 2019
Democrats would love to be able to forbid Americans some speech, just like they’d love to be able to forbid Americans their God-given, Second Amendment-protected right to self-defense.
And to make their case, they’re willing to utter complete nonsense — and know that there are literally millions of Americans who will believe them, or pretend to believe them.
Nonsense like: There are killers in Chicago, but it’s Indiana’s fault.
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