The National Rifle Association has announced retired U.S. Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North will be the next president of the NRA. North was a central figure in the Iran-Contra scandal, helping the Reagan administration circumvent Congress to secretly send arms to Iran and use the proceeds to fund the U.S.-backed Contras in Nicaragua. North has also been a Fox News contributor. Back in 2000, Democracy Now! interviewed Oliver North outside the Republican National Convention, after George W. Bush chose Dick Cheney as his running mate.

Amy Goodman: “What do you think of Cheney as the choice for vice president?”

Oliver North: “I think he’s perfect.”

Amy Goodman: “Why do you like him?”

Oliver North: “Well, because he’s going to make a great vice president.”

Amy Goodman: “What do you like most about him?”

Oliver North: “Just exactly that.”

Amy Goodman: “Well, you had dealings with him during Iran-Contra days. He was very much against the ban on funding of the Contras.”

Oliver North: “Yes, he was. Thank God.”

Amy Goodman: “How did he help you?”

Oliver North: “Well, he helped—he helped the cause of democracy by making sure that we ended up with freedom and democracy in Nicaragua. Otherwise, it would still be a communist country.

Amy Goodman: “What about the getting aid to the Contras, even though the Congress had said that it was not legal?”

Oliver North: “Well, that’s not—that’s not what the Congress said at all. The Congress said—”

Amy Goodman: “Well, the Boland Amendment cut off funding for aid.”
That was Oliver North, back in 2000. He has now been named president of the National Rifle Association.