Just as she predicted in the speech, Loesch’s finger-pointing at the media got most of the coverage. But it was what she said at the beginning of her speech that was the real point of her being on the stage at CPAC.
"I want to make this super obvious point. The government has proven that they cannot keep you safe. And yet, some people want all of us to disarm. You heard that town hall last night. They cheered the confiscation of firearms. And it was over 5,000 people."
That’s the message of the NRA in a nutshell. It’s not just that only more guns in the hands of more people can save you. It’s that without the NRA to protect your guns, all those gun grabbers would take them away.
The NRA doesn’t just want people afraid. They want people afraid for their guns. That’s the job that they do for the gun manufacturers. And it’s a job they can only do when people are actually mourning, upset and asking for a change.
Many people have commented that they thought Loesch was somehow “brave” for showing up at CNN’s townhall, knowing that she would get a bad reception. Those people have it absolutely backward. Nothing—nothing—could excite Loesch and her handlers more than the opportunity to trot her out on stage and have people yell at her about guns.
The whole purpose of Dana Loesch is to make people upset about guns and the NRA. That’s why she makes those videos. That’s why she’s happy to come and scowl at grieving parents and sneer at shell-shocked students. She’s there to get people angry about shootings, because only when people are angry about guns, can the NRA drive up fear that people might do something about guns. That fear increases sales, and manufacturers get a sweet influx of cash.
The NRA gets to prove its worth in two ways: It builds up the fear that someone is coming to snatch away guns, and it makes sure that reasonable conversations about sensible changes to gun laws can’t happen. Because a cut of the resulting improvement in gun manufacturer’s incomes absolutely circulates right back to the NRA—and of course, part of it goes to making sure that Republican politicians stand aside so the NRA can do its thing.
For Dana Loesch and the other NRA staffers whose job it is to keep this cycle going, mass shootings are a critical component. The bloodier the better. They love them. They depend on them.
And they do everything they can to make sure they keep happening.
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