Five people were killed and 46 others were injured in Chicago violence last weekend, according to ABC 7, as widespread looting continued in the downtown area. Included in the injured were 6 teenagers and a 12 year old boy who is the son of a Chicago firefighter.
In an interview on MSNBC this week to talk about the rampant violence in her city, Mayor Lori Lightfoot sought to cast blame elsewhere.
“Sixty percent of the illegal guns that come into Chicago every year are from out of state, from Indiana, from Mississippi, from other states that have lax gun laws,” she stated.
Y’all Politics asked Governor Tate Reeves (R) for his response to Chicago Mayor Lightfoot’s comments.
“This ridiculous conspiracy theory from the Chicago mayor—that Mississippians are to blame for the violence in her own city—is bizarre and pathetic,” Governor Reeves said. “No serious person could think that murders are out of control and people are burning police cars in Chicago because of Mississippi’s commitment to the constitution.”
The Chicago Tribune is reporting that 107 people were killed in July in the Windy City, more than double the same month last year. “That’s the most homicides the city has seen since in a single month since September of 1992, when 109 were recorded,” the Tribune reported, adding, “At least 570 people were shot during the month, about 250 more than July of last year…”
To date, the Tribune is reporting on its running tally that 464 people have been killed in Chicago this year – 135 more than 2019. And there have been over 2,200 people shot.
Lightfoot in her interview went on to say federal leadership was needed to clamp down on “military grade weapons,” advocating for increased gun control from Congress and saying President Donald Trump “refuses to engage” on these issues.
Chicago Mayor @LoriLightfoot blames Indiana and Mississippi for the spate of shootings in the city. pic.twitter.com/2C1iBvyB0L
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) August 18, 2020
It’s not the first time she’s made such accusations. That narrative has become part of her ongoing rhetoric when appearing on national TV. Lightfoot made similar remarks in July on CNN.
In the CNN interview, Lightfoot claimed, “We are being inundated with guns from states that have virtually no gun control, no background checks, no ban on assault weapons — that is hurting cities like Chicago.”
Chicago Mayor Lightfoot: "We are being inundated with guns from states that have virtually no gun control, no background checks, no ban on assault weapons — that is hurting cities like Chicago." pic.twitter.com/vGLKClYHYW
— The Hill (@thehill) July 26, 2020
David Harsanyi, a senior writer for National Review and author of ‘First Freedom: A Ride through America’s Enduring History with the Gun,’ outlined why Mayor Lightfoot’s assertions were blatantly false.
“The only reason, it seems, criminals take the drive to Indiana is because local gun shops are tapped out,” Hansanyi writes. “There is a tremendous demand for weapons in Chicago. That’s not Mississippi’s fault. And Lightfoot’s contention only proves that criminals in her city can get their hands on guns rather easily, while most law-abiding citizens have no way to defend themselves.”
As Hansanyi points out, there is no state in the nation with “virtually no gun control” or “no background checks.”
“Every time anyone in the United States purchases a gun from a federal firearms licensee (FFL) — a gun store, a gun show, it doesn’t matter — the seller runs a background check on the buyer through the NICS (National Instant Criminal Background Check System) database,” he reminds readers.
Are Red State Gun Laws The Problem?
Mississippi is routinely ranked as a very pro-gun, pro-Second Amendment state where hunting is valued and the right to bear arms is seen as fundamental. In the face of national calls for stricter gun laws, citizen advocates and lawmakers in Mississippi have worked to ensure that the state is a constitutional carry state, meaning it is legal to carry a firearm, either openly or concealed, without a license or permit.
No city in Mississippi has seen the violence, looting and murders associated with the Black Lives Matter riots in the wake of the death of George Floyd. Peaceful protests have been held around the state without incident.
There are other major urban centers in blue states that are surrounded by red states with a strong pro-Second Amendment culture. California is bordered by states like Arizona and nearby Utah, but there is not an equivalent amount of violence in Los Angeles or San Francisco as there is in Chicago.
President Trump, for his part, has not held his tongue on the violence in America’s cities. He asserts that the inability Democrat-ran city leaders have shown in controlling the violence amid protests, riots, vicious attacks and murders is a national travesty. Many of these Democratic mayors have rejected federal assistance to tamp down the violence, while allowing criminals to run rampant.
In a speech in Minnesota this week, President Trump said “criminals are terrorizing civilians in Chicago, Portland and now New York City.”
“If left-wing Democrats can’t run a city,” Trump added, “why on earth would you let them run your country?”
President @realDonaldTrump: "If Leftwing Democrats can’t run a city, why on earth would you let them run your country?" pic.twitter.com/48vE0wCBSr
— Team Trump (Text TRUMP to 88022) (@TeamTrump) August 17, 2020
Frank Corder
