Immediately after the press conference, former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele said on MSNBC about the press conference "It was a missed opportunity”.
Mr. Lapierre made several ill advised points. He claims that violent games and movies are responsible for violent behavior. He went out of his way to point out the game Kindergarten Killers to deflect from the gun issues.
Mr. Lapierre later implies that the President is protected by guns, that Congress is protected by guns, that banks & other thing deemed precious are protected by guns, and as such it is inconceivable that if one loves their children they would not be protected by guns. He then suggested that every school have armed protection.
Mr. Lapierre said the following
The NRA is going to bring all of its knowledge, dedication and resources to develop a model National School Shield Emergency Response Program for every school that wants it. From armed security to building design and access control to information technology to student and teacher training, this multi-faceted program will be developed by the very best experts in their fields.
Former Congressman Asa Hutchinson will lead this effort as National Director of the National School Shield Program, with a budget provided by the NRA of whatever scope the task requires. His experience as a U.S. Attorney, Director of the Drug Enforcement Agency and Undersecretary of the Department of Homeland Security will give him the knowledge and expertise to hire the most knowledgeable and credentialed experts available anywhere, to get this program up and running from the first day forward.
If we truly cherish our kids more than our money or our celebrities, we must give them the greatest level of protection possible and the security that is only available with a properly trained — armed — good guy.
Powerful. If we cherish our kids more than we cherish our money, give the NRA supported industries your money and they will protect your kids.
The cynic in me believes that Mr. Lapierre’s speech is intended to stoke a subliminal message in the psyche of the American citizenry, to further create armed regions, schools, hospitals, grocery stores, etc., and with that increase the gun business at large. In effect, use this tragedy to plant messages that if it pays off, will payoff big with a frightened population looking for protection at all financial or social cost.