NRA speakers unshaken on gun rights after school massacre
HOUSTON — One by one, they took the stage at the National Rifle Association’s annual convention in Houston and denounced the massacre of 19 students and two teachers at an elementary school across the state. And one by one, they insisted that further restricting access to firearms was not the answer to preventing future tragedies.
“The existence of evil in our world is not a reason to disarm law-abiding citizens,” said former President Donald Trump, who was among the Republicans who lined up to speak before the gun rights lobbying group Friday as thousands of protesters angry about gun violence demonstrated outside.
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“The existence of evil is one of the very best reasons to arm law-abiding citizens,” he said.
The gathering came just three days after the shooting in Uvalde and as the nation grappled with revelations that students trapped inside a classroom with the gunman repeatedly called 911 during the attack — one pleading “Please send the police now” — as officers waited in the hallway for more than 45 minutes.
The NRA had said that convention attendees would “reflect on” the shooting at the event and “pray for the victims, recognize our patriotic members and pledge to redouble our commitment to making our schools secure.”
The meeting was the first for the troubled organization since 2019, following a two-year hiatus because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The organization has been trying to regroup following a period of serious legal and financial turmoil that included a failed bankruptcy effort, a class-action lawsuit and a fraud investigation by New York’s attorney general.
Once among the most powerful political organizations in the country, the NRA has seen its influence wane following a significant drop in political spending.
Wayne LaPierre, the group’s embattled chief executive, opened the program with remarks bemoaning the “21 beautiful lives ruthlessly and indiscriminately extinguished by a criminal monster.”
Still, he said that “restricting the fundamental human rights of law-abiding Americans to defend themselves is not the answer. It never has been.”
Later, several hundred people in the auditorium stood and bowed their heads in a moment of silence for the victims of the shooting. Several thousand people were inside the auditorium during the speeches, which appeared fewer than the number gathered outside. Many seats were empty.
Trump accused Democrats of trying to exploit the tragedy and demonizing gun owners.
“When Joe Biden blamed the gun lobby he was talking about Americans like you,” Trump said, referring to the president’s emotional plea in a national address asking, “When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby?”
