The NRA has picked a new president. His name is Oliver North. Obviously, anyone who would agree to lead the NRA is evil incarnate, and it’s the media’s job to inform the public about his past wrongdoings.
Unfortunately for the left, North has a long an exemplary career with the military and politics. That hasn’t stopped them from printing some serious libel.
Iran-Contra Scandal
Do you remember the most infamous scandal of Reagan’s presidency? That’s ok. No one else does either. Mainstream media had to dig deep to find this, and it is virtually all they have to say about Oliver North. So, let’s recap.
What was the scandal? In the 80s, Nicaraguan rebels had a cause that the American administration found sympathetic. They wanted to support the rebels, called Contras, but Congress wasn’t having it. The government was banned from offering direct monetary or military support. You see, in those days, if Congress didn’t approve military action, it didn’t happen. We have Obama to thank for changing those rules.
Well, the CIA was convinced they needed to help the rebels despite what Congress said, so they found a loophole. They were able to redirect weapons sales from an Iranian deal and get it to the Contras via international deals that may or may not have involved Israel. It’s a little murky, but the basic idea is that the money never actually came into American possession, so America wasn’t technically giving the money to the Contras. Again, it was a loophole.
When the scandal broke, people (mostly Congress) were upset. So, there were a bunch of hearings and an official investigation, and the National Security Council decided to pin the whole thing on one man, Oliver North. Not in the mood to be a scapegoat, he agreed to a public hearing in front of Congress. He went through the motions, it was all televised and he was ultimately acquitted of all charges. It was obvious to Congress and the public that he was a scapegoat and couldn’t possibly have been the sole perpetrator of exploiting the entirely legal loophole.
You might be wondering why you’ve never heard about this before. Or, if you do remember the 80s that well, you might be wondering why it hasn’t been discussed for 30 years. The reason is simple: it wasn’t that big a deal. North’s testimony was about as major an event as Mark Zuckerberg’s recent testimony before Congress. Sure, we all tuned in (or at least watched the highlights), but that particular hearing will be largely forgotten in 30 years. It’s the results that matter, and in North’s case, he wasn’t the bad guy.
The whole ordeal was exhaustively investigated, so his acquittal means a lot. That hasn’t stopped the media from trying to spin this into a witch hunt. North’s real crime is being associated with the NRA. To a modern leftist, that’s the unforgivable sin, and you’ll see that even more clearly in a moment.
Military Career
North is a retired Marine. He made it to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel before he was done, and he had a decorated career. That already makes him evil in the eyes of the left.
How could anyone condone serving their country, after all? Even worse, he happened to serve during Vietnam. What a monster!
During that service, North was awarded two Purple Hearts, a Bronze Star, a Silver Star and a Presidential Service Badge. Any sane person realizes that this makes the man an obvious war hero. He served with honor and distinction, but somehow, the left tries to imply that this is a bad service record. It’s asinine.
Public Speaking
The most hilarious article in this entire hit job on North has to be from Time. While they certainly brought up the Contra scandal and tried to demonize North’s military service, their biggest complaint was that he is a good public speaker. We can’t make this up.
In their article, they insinuate that North is an agent of evil because “he is almost dangerously gifted at the persuasive arts.” Their greatest fear is that his magical eloquence will somehow derail the gun control debate. In their complete denial, they’re pretending that the debate hasn’t already derailed (thanks to the public ignorance of the Parkland kids), and that the issue isn’t an absolute death sentence for Democrats in the midterms.
And the mainstream media wonders why we don’t take them seriously.
~ Firearm Daily
