The NRA has weakened. But gun rights drive the GOP more than ever.

[IronLionZion]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/05/26/nra-uvalde-shooting-trump-cruz-gop/



Nearly a decade ago, the massacre of 20 children and six adults at a Connecticut elementary school threw the politics of gun violence into a state of suspension for a full week, as conservative politicians waited to hear from the powerful gun lobby, the National Rifle Association, before taking a stand.

This week, after another rampage, at a Texas elementary school that left 19 children and two teachers dead, Republican lawmakers didn’t wait for the NRA as they lined up within hours to rebuff any proposed gun-control measures.

That dynamic reflects both the recent decline of the NRA’s power and the logical conclusion of its own increasingly hard-line messaging that guns and liberty are inextricable from patriotism and that all gun control is a plot to seize weapons and leave owners defenseless. The NRA, which will host former president Donald Trump at its annual convention Friday in Houston, has been embroiled in lawsuits and infighting for the last four years, taking a toll on its budget and standing in Washington — and also creating space for more-extreme groups to gain traction.

“The NRA is not doing anything around the country anywhere; all their staff lawyered up and are fighting amongst each other,” said Dudley Brown, a gun rights lobbyist who has long criticized the NRA for being too open to compromise. Brown’s rival group, the National Association for Gun Rights, has grown to 75 staff members and a $15 million budget, he said, up from about $6 million in 2019.

I was hoping they would be bankrupt after losing Russian money.

For folks stuck at the paywall, an A rating is no longer enough for GOP. Politicians are bending over backwards to show their loyalty to the NRA with increasingly idiotic policies. See Greg Abbott loosening already lax gun laws in Texas.

[Lovie777]

1. Until they start killing themselves off . . .

[bucolic_frolic]

2. Bob Costas on CNN

He said something about we have licenses for cars, no one is saying this is the beginning of government regulation and if you let this happen soon we'll all be taking the horse and buggy to grandma's house.

[3Hotdogs]

3. Its the only lobbying "bait" they will have if Roe is overturned.

They won't be able to get campaign money by promising to end Roe.

[Raster]

4. At this point, the NRA is just a CASH MACHINE for the GOP...

...Because of the NRA*s *tax-free* status and because of the laws and court rulings making certain types of campaign funds anonymous --Citizens United-- the NRA infrastructure is a perfect way to funnel all kinds of sketchy political money into the GOP.

The GOP is literally FLOODED with #DirtyRussianMoney.

Just like the #TrumpCrimeSyndicate, most of the #GOP cash now comes from Russian sources.

And to be clear, the NRA* and the GOP* are both beholden and paid for by the #GunIndustry. Of course the GOP gets other funding: #BigPharma, #BigPetroleum, to name a few.

[BumRushDaShow]

5. Here is an example of the M$M's dereliction of duty when they suddenly "dropped" the NY NRA case

out of their news cycle after a NY court refused to break up the NRA when they fled NY to TX after egregious financial violations, despite the fact that the underlying case would proceed, and refused to follow-up on this.

From an article from the beginning of this month -

New York AG Letitia James seeks NRA babysitter

The request comes after the court refused her office’s demand to dismantle the organization for alleged rampant misuse of funds.

By Sara Dorn
Breaking news reporter
May 4, 2022

New York State
Policy

State Attorney General Letitia James is seeking an independent monitor to oversee the finances of the National Rifle Association, according to an amended complaint filed in the Manhattan Supreme Court this week. James’ request comes after New York County Supreme Court Judge Joel Cohen in March rejected James’ attempt to dismantle the organization, but said the overarching lawsuit alleging misuse of funds by NRA leaders could continue. Cohen refused to shut down the NRA on the grounds that doing so would harm its members and the public more than it would benefit them, though he acknowledged troubling financial and leadership patterns.

The initial legal action, filed in August 2020, claims that NRA leader Wayne LaPierre spent tens of millions of dollars of NRA money on his own lifestyle, with the help of three top executives who were also financially enriched by the organization’s alleged misdeeds. “We are considering our legal options with respect to this ruling. We remain committed to enforcing New York law regardless of how powerful any individual or organization may be,” James said in March. Two months later, James’ office is taking additional steps to reign in spending and mismanagement by the gun-rights group.

The amended court documents, filed Monday and first reported by The Trace, outline violations James said the organization made under New York’s Estates Powers & Trusts law, which require nonprofits, such as the NRA, to properly administer the organization’s charitable assets. The NRA failed to supervise or take disciplinary action against its leadership over the allegedly illegal spending, her office wrote in the amended complaint. Court documents also state that the organization lied to the state Attorney General’s office and failed to comply with whistleblower protections and conflict-of-interest laws, among other alleged infractions.

For example, James’ office said LaPierre turned on the NRA president when he began to investigate whistleblower claims related to the questionable finances and structure of the organization. The NRA also allegedly hid reimbursement requests for travel and meal expenses for LaPierre and his former chief of staff Joshua Powell – along with justifications for the reimbursements – to avoid reporting them as part of their taxable income. In the amended complaint filed Monday, James sought injunctive relief from the Supreme Court to appoint an “independent compliance monitor” that would report to her office and the court, along with an independent governance expert to recommend reforms to the organization.

(snip)

https://www.cityandstateny.com/policy/2022/05/new-york-ag-letitia-james-seeks-nra-babysitter/366529/

[Mopar151]

6. Gun Rights White Rights

In my mind, this is all wound up in the belief in ABSOLUTE ownership of property, as in the American South during slavery. The "planters" owned their land, and, any humans or animals upon it. It was the "owner's right" to summarily execute slaves (i.e. hung on the spot for raising a hand to an "overseer&quot whipped for insubordination, running away), or in many cases, to kill whoever displeased them on their property, where they were King!

[slater71]

7. I think they know that they will need the guns to reach their control of everything.

They know they will need the militias to control the streets when they come to that point where they will take over the country and our democracy. If the guns or at least the ARs were taken away from them and all the republicans that own them, they know they could not reach their goal. There have been three retired generals that have expressed their concern that they were not sure that the military would defend the constitution and instead go with Trump or De Santis. And can we count on the police to stop the militias and do they want to? I would not count on it. The bottom line is that QAnon and Trumpers and right supremacists want to have control of the country forever and the democrats and any people that are not white will be destroyed. These are dangerous times. Politics as we knew it is over and will never return. The republicans will not be denied which could lead to a tremendous loss of life. And it is all because of Trump and his worthless piece of shit family.