Maddow: LaPierre press conference was epic 'Rick-rolling' of the country

On Friday night's edition of "The Rachel Maddow Show," host Rachel Maddow coldly assessed Wayne LaPierre's extravagantly out-of-touch press conference on Friday and deemed it to be the political equivalent of a giant "Rick-rolling" of the American public.

She began the segment by giving a brief rundown of the concept of "Rick-rolling," which she explained as an "Internet, made-you-look" joke, in which one tricks another person into clicking a link to the video for U.K. pop singer Rick Astley's 1987 single "Never Gonna Give You Up."

"And yes, it's weird and yes, it's annoying, but it's annoying on purpose," she said. "It's annoying not just because you didn't get to see the noteworthy thing you were promised, that you were interested enough in to click, but you also get this song stuck in your head and it stays there forever. It's the 'Rick-roll.'"

Earlier this week, the National Rifle Association (NRA) announced that it would be making a "meaningful contribution" to the gun safety debate in the wake of the horrible tragedy in Newtown Connecticut.

This "meaningful contribution" was to be unveiled at NRA chief lobbyist Wayne LaPierre's press conference on Friday, a rambling, disorienting affair in which the aging LaPierre put forth an idea of forming an "armed cordon" around our schools of retired police and fire officials, decommissioned military personnel and other gun-carrying volunteers.

"It's the same old thing and now it's going to be stuck in my head forever!" Maddow wailed, rolling the video of Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up."

"The NRA 'Rick-rolled' the whole country," she said. "They promised us something that sounded new, something that sounded meaningful, maybe something this time that would be a change, that would be worth tuning in for, something you hadn't heard before from this very important group, right?"

Wrong. It's the same old thing. And now it's going to be stuck in our heads forever.

Watch the clip, embedded via MSNBC, below:

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