The post-Parkland Gun Control Children’s Crusade has taken its toll on the NRA. Not on membership. By all accounts, membership’s up bigly. And not on NRA members’ determination to defend their natural, civil and constitutionally protected right to keep and bear arms via the ballot box.
But it has hurt the general public’s perception of the gun rights group. nbc.com shares the results of the recent poll . . .
The NRA’s fav/unfav rating is underwater, with 37 percent viewing the organization positively and with 40 percent seeing it in a negative light (-3). That’s a noticeable shift from April 2017, when it was 45 percent positive, 33 percent negative (+12).
In fact, it’s the first time since before 2000 when the NRA has been viewed more negatively than positively in the NBC/WSJ poll.
The biggest drops for the NRA came from white married women (50 percent positive in April 2017, 35 percent now), urban residents (43 percent positive in April, 28 percent now), white women (47 percent positive in April, 33 percent now) and moderate/soft Republicans (72 percent positive in April, 60 percent now).
And there you have it: the anti-NRA message coming from the mouths of babes and their cheerleaders in the media is gaining ground amongst firearms freedom fence straddlers.
The NRA’s favorables may bounce back. But their surrender on gun violence restraining orders, a bump stock ban and the FixNICs trick — not to mention their newfound love for Loesching gun control advocates — isn’t winning hearts and minds in the court of public opinion.
Alternatively, you could say the NRA’s public rep would be worse if their Oklahoma-based PR agency (Ackerman McQueen) hadn’t steered them in this direction.
Your thoughts?