An exasperated Sen. Chris Murphy (D., Conn.) lamented over the NRA's successful pushback against new federal gun control initiatives Friday on MSNBC.
Host Chris Hayes posited gun manufacturers' business model is predicated on selling more guns to fewer people, thus supposedly explaining the NRA's stance on the issue. However, while gun ownership has declined in recent years, 2013 ownership stats actually show a 12.5 percent increase since 2000.
Murphy then went on to describe his shocked reaction to Wayne LaPierre's post Newtown speech in which the NRA executive vice president advocated for increasing armed police presence in schools to help prevent another tragedy.
Even more shocking, Murphy admitted, was the NRA's defense of the 2nd Amendment in Congress "actually worked":
CHRIS HAYES: I think we all were shocked. We all watched that Wayne LaPierre press conference and really couldn't believe what we were watching. But it only makes sense when you understand two facts about gun ownership. The percentage of households with guns is declining and the number of guns in the country is going up. More guns in fewer hands.
CHRIS MURPHY: What's more shocking though, is that it worked. Right, I mean because we all watched that and --
HAYES: That's a great point, we all thought this a huge political mistake, what a disaster.
MURPHY: "What a mistake, how can he say this, everybody understands this isn't the way to go" and yet, over time, the operation they've built is significant and unfortunately, amongst some of my colleagues on the Democratic side and certainly amongst Republicans, that NRA stamp of approval has become some sort of strange proxy for conservative values […].
Public support for gun control has wained in recent months. The NRA successfully recalled the Colorado Senate president and one another lawmaker last September over their roles in passing stringent state gun control measures.