Met with cheers and a standing ovation as he took the stage, National Rifle Association Wayne LaPierre quickly silenced the CPAC crowd with a foreboding message that underscores the importance of the “fight for freedom” in upcoming elections.
LaPierre repeatedly railed against “the political and media elites,” and accused them each of “lying to us” on every issue from guns, the NRA, Obamacare, the NSA, the IRS, Benghazi, among other controversies that have plagued the current administration.
“One of America’s greatest threats is a national media that fails to provide a level playing field for the truth,” he said. Yet, despite those efforts, he remained confident that Americans will overcome the “webs of deceit.”
For example, he pointed to states, communities, and schools that have adopted his suggestion to have armed guards in schools. Even with gun-control activists’ efforts to dismiss his idea in the wake of the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting, he said the public’s interest in providing the best protection for students prevailed. “We trust what we know in our hearts to be right,” he said.
But Democrats and the media won’t back down, LaPierre cautioned. He urged the audience prepare for the “bareknuckle street fight” that will be the 2014 and 2016 elections as Democrats look to win back the House and keep the Senate and White House “with another Clinton.”