'No one in the UK wants him back': British critics launch counter-petition to make sure Piers Morgan stays in the U.S.
- A petition to have the journalist deported after he criticised pro gun campaigners has attracted 71,000 signatures
- Now a second petition saying he must stay because the British do not want him also has around 1,100 votes of support
More than 71,000 Americans have so far signed a petition calling for the British journalist’s deportation after he criticised pro-gun campaigners on his chat show.
But a second petition on the White House website now insists he must stay in the US, not only because he has a constitutional right to free speech but also - 'more important' - because 'no one in the UK wants him back'.
A campaign to have Piers Morgan deported from
America faced a new hurdle yesterday as critics of the television
presenter launched a counter bid to keep him where he is
So far, around 1,100 people have signed the petition, so it has some way to go before it reaches the statutory 25,000 signatures which guarantees a response from the US government.
It was proposed by Janusz Jasinski, a Birmingham-based website designer.
To add to the former Daily Mirror editor’s embarrassment, a third petition has appeared on the internet, this time calling on Home Secretary Theresa May to stop him from returning to Britain.
This short missive on the US-based social action website Change.org has so far attracted more than 100 signatures. It writes: 'We got rid of him once and why should we have to suffer again. The Americans wanted him so they should put up with him.'
More than 71,000 Americans have already signed
an initial petition calling for the British journalists deportation
after he criticised pro-gun campaigners on his chat show
Now a second petition on the White House website
now insists he must stay in the US, not only because he has a
constitutional right to free speech but also 'more important' because
'no one in the UK wants him back'
The row over 47-year-old Morgan blew up last week after he repeatedly attacked pro-gun guests on his nightly CNN show after the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre, in which 20 children and six staff were shot dead.
In a heated exchanged with Larry Pratt, executive director of Gun Owners for America, Morgan called him an ‘idiot’, ‘dangerous’ and an ‘unbelievably stupid man’ after he argued that more guns would actually cut crime.
In another debate on gun controls, an exasperated Mr Morgan shouted down economist John Lott, author of More Guns, Less Crime and branded him a 'liar' for claiming gun crime trends in countries such as Britain supported his thesis.
With CNN reportedly about to overhaul its prime time lineup and possibly move Morgan to a later time slot, the normally combative presenter has not commented on the controversy since Christmas Day, when he tweeted 'Merry Christmas! Even to those who want me deported.'
He has stood by what he said, insisting that banning assault weapons and high-capacity gun magazines is no attack on the US Constitution but simple commonsense.
The petition on the White House website calling for his deportation accuses him of conducting a 'hostile attack' against the US Constitution and 'exploiting' his position as a TV host to try to undermine the rights of American citizens.
Last night it had attracted over 72,000 signatures.
US commentators have pointed out that pro-gun advocates might not have reacted so badly to Morgan’s comments if he hadn’t been a foreigner.
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