Conservative leader Oliver North[1] will serve as the next president of the National Rifle Association[2], the gun rights group said Monday, tapping its highest-profile leader since actor Charlton Heston had the helm in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Mr. North[3], a retired Marine lieutenant colonel who gained national attention as a figure in the Iran-Contra affair, will take the reins in the coming weeks and give up his post as a Fox News host and pundit — though he is likely to be just as visible on the airwaves defending the country’s largest gun rights organization amid the biggest gun control push in years.
The NRA[4] said it was just that environment — spurred by the Valentine’s Day school shooting in Parkland[5], Florida — that pushed them to recruit Mr. North[6] for the job. The organization said it needs his decades of experience communicating conservative and pro-Second Amendment ideas.
Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president and CEO of the NRA[7], said the organization, which already counts Mr. North[8] as a board member, is proud to elevate him to president.
“Oliver North[9] is a legendary warrior for American freedom, a gifted communicator and skilled leader,” Mr. LaPierre said in a statement. “In these times, I can think of no one better suited to serve as our president.”
NRA[10] spokeswoman Dana Loesch said she was thrilled by the move and predicted it would upset gun control activists.
“A total warrior for freedom, this is the last person that anti-gun advocates would want as the new President of the NRA[11] board,” Ms. Loesch tweeted.
Liberal groups did indeed criticize the decision. They
