美国国家公共电台 NPR NRA Rallies Members In Dallas, Facing New Pressure And Anger

 

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

Both President Trump¹ and Vice² President Mike Pence will go to Dallas on Friday for the NRA's annual convention. On one hand, the president's presence shows that the NRA has staying power. But the organization has also faced fresh anger after the Parkland high school shooting in Florida and the student-led protests that followed that. North Country Public Radio's Brian Mann reports on how the NRA is responding to this moment.

BRIAN MANN, BYLINE³: In the months before Parkland, the NRA sounded confident, even fierce, blasting critics who want some firearms restricted or even banned.

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DANA LOESCH: They use their media to assassinate⁴ real news. They use their schools to teach children that their president is another Hitler.

MANN: NRA spokeswoman Dana Loesch appeared in a controversial ad that went viral accusing the NRA's opponents of spreading chaos⁵ and lies.

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LOESCH: The only way we stop this, the only way we save our country and our freedom is to fight this violence of lies with the clenched⁶ fist of truth.

MANN: With the NRA's Republican allies controlling Congress and many state legislatures, gun control was off the table. Then came Parkland. Fred Guttenberg lost his daughter, Jamie.

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FRED GUTTENBERG: I sent her to school yesterday. She was supposed to be safe. What is unfathomable is Jamie took a bullet and is dead.

MANN: A gunman used a semi-automatic rifle to murder 17 people, wounding many more. The NRA faced a wave of criticism from charismatic students, survivors⁷ of the attack, including Emma Gonzalez.

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EMMA GONZALEZ: To every politician who is taking donations from the NRA, shame on you.

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MANN: Suddenly, even President Trump, a close NRA ally, was publicly challenging the organization. In a White House meeting with members of Congress, he accused lawmakers of being afraid of the NRA.

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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: They do have great power. I agree with it. They have great power over you people. They have less power over me.

MANN: Trump called for a comprehensive bill tightening⁸ gun laws, but the NRA flexed⁹ its power. After a private meeting with NRA leaders, Trump pulled back. And since then, Congress hasn't acted. But at the state level, it's a different story.

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RICK SCOTT: The hardest thing I've ever had to do as governor is try to find the words to console a parent who lost their child.

MANN: Florida Republican Governor Rick Scott normally sees eye to eye with the NRA. In March, he and the Republican-controlled Legislature defied the organization, approving tough new gun measures. Despite NRA opposition¹⁰, at least seven states, including Oregon and Vermont, passed new gun laws after Parkland, often with support from Republican leaders.

KRIS BROWN: I think that is a really important shift.

MANN: Kris Brown is co-president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, a group that supports tighter gun laws. She says the NRA lost ground after Parkland, fumbling¹¹ control of the conversation, failing to adapt to a new national mood.

BROWN: The NRA has come out of Parkland - and indeed, when we look at the last year with three of the deadliest mass shootings in American history, the NRA has been tone-deaf.

MANN: Brown points to surveys showing that most gun owners and many NRA members support creating a stronger system of background checks for gun buyers. But NRA board member Tom King from New York disagrees. He says even after Parkland, the NRA stands by its argument that guns aren't the real issue. He believes the focus now should be on other things, including more security in schools.

TOM KING: Until we talk about the core issues - getting people jobs, getting the criminals off the streets, stopping the drug trade - we are going to be a dangerous country.

MANN: The NRA remains¹² a dominant¹³ force politically. And donations to the organization from members actually surged after Parkland. But speaking with NPR, King acknowledged there was a shift after Parkland in the way the country is talking about firearms.

KING: Of course. It has increased the probability in some states of legislators passing more meaningless legislation. That's going to happen. It already has happened, OK? But has it eroded¹⁴ the NRA's position? I don't think so.

MANN: A big question in Dallas is how the NRA leadership navigates¹⁵ this moment, this less-certain climate. Will the group find new ways to tell its story to a country shaken by Parkland? Will there be a different conversation among rank-and-file gun owners about firearm safety? Protesters, including student activists¹⁶, are expected to make their voices heard outside. Brian Mann, NPR News.

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1 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

2 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 assassinate   

vt.暗杀，行刺，中伤

参考例句：

• The police exposed a criminal plot to assassinate the president.警方侦破了一个行刺总统的阴谋。
• A plot to assassinate the banker has been uncovered by the police.暗杀银行家的密谋被警方侦破了。

5 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

6 clenched   

v.紧握，抓紧，咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He clenched his fists in anger. 他愤怒地攥紧了拳头。
• She clenched her hands in her lap to hide their trembling. 她攥紧双手放在腿上，以掩饰其颤抖。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

8 tightening   

上紧，固定，紧密

参考例句：

• Make sure the washer is firmly seated before tightening the pipe. 旋紧水管之前，检查一下洗衣机是否已牢牢地固定在底座上了。
• It needs tightening up a little. 它还需要再收紧些。

9 flexed   

adj.[医]曲折的，屈曲v.屈曲( flex的过去式和过去分词 )；弯曲；（为准备大干而）显示实力；摩拳擦掌

参考例句：

• He stretched and flexed his knees to relax himself. 他伸屈膝关节使自己放松一下。 来自辞典例句
• He flexed his long stringy muscles manfully. 他孔武有力地弯起膀子，显露出细长条的肌肉。 来自辞典例句

10 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

11 fumbling   

n. 摸索,漏接 v. 摸索,摸弄,笨拙的处理

参考例句：

• If he actually managed to the ball instead of fumbling it with an off-balance shot. 如果他实际上设法拿好球而不是fumbling它。50-balance射击笨拙地和迅速地会开始他的岗位移动，经常这样结束。
• If he actually managed to secure the ball instead of fumbling it awkwardly an off-balance shot. 如果他实际上设法拿好球而不是fumbling它。50-50提议有时。他从off-balance射击笨拙地和迅速地会开始他的岗位移动，经常这样结束。

12 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

13 dominant   

adj.支配的，统治的；占优势的；显性的；n.主因，要素，主要的人(或物)；显性基因

参考例句：

• The British were formerly dominant in India.英国人从前统治印度。
• She was a dominant figure in the French film industry.她在法国电影界是个举足轻重的人物。

14 eroded   

adj. 被侵蚀的，有蚀痕的 动词erode的过去式和过去分词形式

参考例句：

• The cliff face has been steadily eroded by the sea. 峭壁表面逐渐被海水侵蚀。
• The stream eroded a channel in the solid rock. 小溪在硬石中侵蚀成一条水道。

15 navigates   

v.给（船舶、飞机等）引航，导航( navigate的第三人称单数 )；（从海上、空中等）横越；横渡；飞跃

参考例句：

• Dolpins also navigates by some kind of echo system. 原来海豚也是借助某种回声系统寻向的。 来自辞典例句
• Navigates in menus, lists, choice screens and into edited texts. 可以操纵菜单、列表、屏幕选项和进入编辑文本。 来自互联网

16 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》