The immediate reaction from Republican staffers on Capitol Hill suggests the National Rifle Association might have jumped the shark Friday.
After Wayne LaPierre, the executive vice president of the NRA, blamed mass school shootings on “gun-free school zones,” suggested there should be a national mental health registry, blamed the media’s coverage of violence, pointed fingers at video games and old films and introduced the “National School Shield Program,” wherein the NRA would train armed school personnel and volunteers, it was just too much for some Republicans.
“100 percent true,” one GOP staffer said when asked if the NRA had jumped the shark Friday.
“True,” replied another. “But only after they set themselves on fire first. That was BRUTAL.”
A GOP lobbyist simply snarked: “If you don’t have something smart to say, don’t say anything at all.”
“Jump the shark” means the point where something popular becomes decidedly out of touch. It stems from an episode of “Happy Days” where Arthur “The Fonz” Fonzarelli (Henry Winkler) jumped a shark while water skiing. The show never recovered.
