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U.S. NEWS Monday 26 February 2018
NRA spokeswoman becomes new

face of gun rights movement

By TAMMY WEBBER speaking to a far friendlier
CHICAGO (AP) — Dana audience at the Conserva-
Loesch is the new public tive Political Action Con-
face of the National Rifle ference near Washington.
Association, an organiza- Loesch defiantly defended
tion long associated with NRA's 5 million members,
older white men. who she said "will not be
At 39, she's poised, photo- gaslighted into thinking
genic and a skilled public that we're responsible for a
speaker, yet she's not soft- tragedy that we had noth-
ening the message of the ing to do with."
NRA as it becomes an in- And, her voice dripping
creasingly active voice in with condescension, she
the nation's culture wars, addressed journalists from
with positions on everything the mainstream media,
from immigration to the who she said "love mass In this Feb. 22, 2018, photo, Dana Loesch, spokeswoman for the
media. shootings" because "cry- National Rifle Association, speaks at the Conservative Political
Action Conference (CPAC), at National Harbor, Md.
In the aftermath of the ing white mothers are rat- Associated Press
shooting deaths of 17 ings gold." Her criticism
people, mostly students, of the media recalled an Loesch was back on tele- in Parkland, Florida, said
at a Florida high school, it's NRA video last summer in vision Sunday, defending students were focused on
Loesch who has been the which she attacked The NRA members and arguing countering Loesch as they
NRA's main messenger. New York Times in a way against calls to ban semi- campaign for tighter gun
The NRA dispatched that some on the right and automatic weapons like laws.
Loesch last week to a CNN the left feared could in- the one used in the Florida “If you listen to her speak,
town hall, where she was cite violence. In the video, school shooting. “This is not she’s not really saying any-
questioned by students Loesch said NRA members the fault, nor are 5 million in- thing. She’s sounding posi-
and parents from Marjory have "had it" with the news- nocent law-abiding Ameri- tive and confident and
Stoneman Douglas High paper's "fake news" and cans culpable for this,” she that’s what she wants the
School, the site of the Val- warned: "Consider this the said on ABC’s “This Week.” people in the NRA to be-
entine's Day shooting. Of- shot across your prover- In response, David Hogg, lieve, her 5 million plus
ten brash and combative, bial bow. ... In short? We're a senior at Marjory Stone- members,” Hogg said on
Loesch was measured and coming for you." man Douglas High School CNN. q
even-tempered, though
she was booed when she
left the stage.
Charlie Sykes, a longtime
conservative radio host
who has been critical of
the NRA, said Loesch's skill
is communicating with a
broad range of Americans
while retaining the ultra-
conservative base built by
Wayne LaPierre, the NRA's
executive vice president
and CEO since 1991.
"Imagine Wayne LaPierre
sitting in that seat and you
realize the significance of
Dana," Sykes said. "She can
bring the hot sauce without
having that persona" of an
angry white man.
Even before taking over
as NRA spokeswoman last
year, Loesch had a robust
conservative following, cul-
tivated on social media
— she has 765,000 Twitter
followers — and through
years of television and ra-
dio appearances, includ-
ing on her own radio pro-
gram, "The Dana Show."
The day after the televised
town hall, she was back in
her more familiar mode,