Ken Berwitz

Want to see Ben Shapiro, the brilliant young conservative columnist, commentator and author of "Bullies:  How The Left's Culture Of Fear And Intimidation Silences America", make absolute mincemeat of Piers Morgan, the arrogant, imperious legend in his own mind, whose ability to debate goes bye-bye when challenged by someone who knows what he/she is talking about?

Here, courtesy of breitbart.com, is a video and transcript of Morgan and Shapiro going at it about gun laws last night on CNN.  Click on the link, then sit back and watch the carnage.

You'll find that the difference is striking.  Morgan's idea of a winning argument is to take a few individual examples which, he thinks, support his position, and broaden them to a generalized point about the entire issue.  Shapiro, by contrast, makes his point by looking at the big picture - not just a few specific incidents that might support his position, while ignoring the others.

It's not hard to figure out why Shapiro's presentation winds up making more sense, is it?

A few of my favorite exchanges:

MORGAN: They want to take away assault weapons, which are capable with magazines that we saw in Aurora and Sandy hook, of unleashing a ridiculous amount of --  

SHAPRIO: This is what I wanted to ask you, Piers, because I have seen you talk about assault weapons a lot, and I have seen Mark Kelly talk about assault weapons. The vast majority of murders in this country that are committed with guns are committed with handguns, they are not committed assault weapons. Are you willing to ban handguns in this country, across this country? 

MORGAN: No, that's not what I'm asking for. 

SHAPIRO: Why not? Don't you care about the kids who are being killed in Chicago as much as the kids in Sandy Hook?

MORGAN: Yes, I do. 

SHAPIRO: Then why don't you care about banning the handguns in Chicago? 

MORGAN: We'll come to that... (NOTE:  he never did)

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MORGAN: You don't understand why we want to remove the preferred weapon of choice, these killing machines, from the hands of deranged young men? 

SHAPIRO: All I'm asking is for you to be philosophically consistent. If what you're worried about is the removal of killing machines from the hands for deranged young people then maybe we should talk about a blanket gun ban, and let's get to what the left really wants here.

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MORGAN: When the NRA came out today after the meeting in the White House and just said, "We're just not prepared to entertain any type of new gun restrictions," what did you think about that? 

SHAPIRO: What is astonishing to me is the left's attack on the NRA. Because the NRA -- they don't receive a dime of public dollars, they're an interest group. I don't see any -- it's funny. The left, they like to also talk about violent video games, for example. 

MORGAN: Can you stop framing as left or right? Because I don't have a horse in the race. I don't vote either way, as you know.

SHAPIRO: Oh, come on, Piers, you tend to be more to the left. 

MORGAN: The NRA, as you know, are very active and well funded and powerful body, and what they do -- 

SHAPIRO: -- Why are you asking -- I just want to finish a point. This is very quick, I promise. the point I'm making is this. There's been a lot of talk by a lot of people about video game violence. I haven't seen David Gregory interviewing the head of the ACLU and saying, "It's your broad interpretation of the first amendment that is responsible for this." But people are bringing on the NRA and saying, "It's your broad inturpitation of the second amendment that's responsible for this." They are an interest group. If you want legislation passed, talk to legislators, don't go to the NRA which is representing its membership.