LITTLE ROCK — Tens of thousands of people have signed a petition calling for British CNNhost Piers Morgan to be deported from the U.S. over his gun-control views. Morgan has taken an aggressive standfor tighter U.S. gun laws in the wake of the Newtown, Conn., school shooting. Last week, he called a gun advocate appearing on his Piers Morgan Tonight show an “unbelievably stupid man.” Now, gun-rights activists are fighting back. A petition created Friday on the White House e-petition website by a user in Texas accuses Morgan of engaging in a “hostile attack against the U.S. Constitution” by targeting the Second Amendment. It demands he be deported immediately for “exploiting his position as a national network television host to stage attacks against the rights of American citizens.” The petition has already hit the 25,000 signature threshold to get a White House response. By Monday afternoon, it had 42,732 signatures. Morgan seemed unfazed - and even amused - by themovement. In a series of Twitter messages, he alternately urged his followers to sign the petition and in response to one article about the petition said “bring it on” as he appeared to track the petition’s progress. “If I do get deported from America for wanting fewer gun murders, are there any other countries that will have me?” he wrote.

Front Section, Pages 2 on 12/25/2012