Once again, “60 Minutes” has found itself in the spotlight. In an attempt to criticize the United States and shine a positive light on Mexico’s gun control legislation, the CBS News show inadvertently created an exceptional piece of unintentional pro-gun advocacy in the history of media.
Known for its noticeable left-wing bias, “60 Minutes” has consistently been subject to ridicule. Instances like Lesley Stahl’s contentious clash with then-President Donald Trump in 2020 over the validity of Hunter Biden’s laptop, fabricating a story about Publix allegedly bribing Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, and failing to disclose the connections of a supposed “misinformation” expert to the Biden administration have all contributed to the program’s questionable reputation.
Adding to the list of controversies, “60 Minutes” faced criticism prior to the 2024 election for manipulating an interview with Kamala Harris. By splicing together answers to different questions to create a more favorable image of the vice president, the program was accused of deceptive editing practices.
So yeah, “60 Minutes” has had some issues, but that hasn’t stopped them from pursuing their ideological wants. Enter this story on guns and Mexico.Â
There’s only one gun store in Mexico. It’s located on a heavily guarded military base in Mexico City. Before customers can enter, they must show proof of passing psychological tests, drug screenings, and extensive background checks. pic.twitter.com/xbOikjd6LO
— 60 Minutes (@60Minutes) December 23, 2024
REPORTER: Like the US, Mexico’s constitution grants citizens the right to bear arms, but unlike the US, that right comes with a long list of restrictions. There’s only one gun store in Mexico, in the middle of a heavily guarded military base in Mexico City. But before customers can enter, they have to show proof they’ve passed psychological tests, drug screens, and extensive background checks. The store sells around a thousand guns a month. Mostly shotguns, small-caliber rifles, and handguns.Â
What civilians can’t buy here are the weapons the cartel favors. Those are not legally sold anywhere in Mexico.
Well, how’s that working out for them? Mexico currently has a murder rate somewhere near twice that of the United States. It is one of the most corrupt countries in the Western Hemisphere, with politicians controlled by the drug cartels. So how exactly has disarming normal citizens shown itself to be the best option? Because I’m pretty sure leaving everyone defenseless while heavily armed cartels run the show hasn’t helped the situation.Â
Still rolling at this all the nations in the all the world they can praise for good governance and they land on Mexico hahahahahahaha https://t.co/E5AzOBhnPK
— Jarvis (@jarvis_best) December 23, 2024
So little gun violence in Mexico. Whatever they’re doing, it’s working!! pic.twitter.com/qIjh47aLWC
— Fusilli Spock (@awstar11) December 23, 2024
Just how restrictive are Mexico’s gun control laws? While the reporter notes about 1,000 guns a month are sold legally in the country, around 1.3 million are sold a month in the United States. That’s an astronomically higher figure, yet the murder rate in Mexico is well over twice that of the United States.
“60 Minutes” doesn’t care about those numbers, though, because the point of their report is to blame the United States for the flow of guns into Mexico. As their narrative goes, because Mexico has such strict gun laws, it must be America’s fault that the cartels have fully automatic rifles and machine guns. Of course, those two things are largely outlawed within the United States as well, with only heavily vetted individuals allowed to own them. That’s really beside the point, though.
Anyone who believes the cartels would somehow be less violent if America had stricter gun laws is an imbecile. The motivations of the drug trade dictate that they will find a way to murder people. If that means sourcing surplus Russian weaponry from South America, they’ll do it (and they are doing that). The idea that a normal American being able to buy an AR-15 is somehow responsible for deaths in Mexico is moronic. It’s the logic of a child who can’t process nuance.
At the end of the day, nothing is gained by restricting law-abiding citizens from owning firearms. Criminals do not follow gun laws. They don’t kill simply because they have access to certain types of weapons. If it wasn’t an “assault rifle,” it’d be a sawed-off shotgun or a car bomb. The root of the violence in Mexico is not the importation of American-made firearms, however many guns that may add up to. It’s the corruption and fecklessness of the government that has allowed the cartels to flourish.Â
Until that changes, Mexicans and the rest of the world will continue to suffer. If “60 Minutes” weren’t such a joke of a news program, they’d have focused on that instead of trying to blame normal Americans for something they have no part in.
