Ahead of Verdict in New York Trial, Everytown Releases Memo on the State of the NRA
2.16.2024
Today, ahead of a verdict in the Attorney General of The State of New York v. NRA trial, Everytown for Gun Safety is releasing a new memo highlighting key moments from the trial and the current state of the NRA.
“No matter the outcome of this trial, it’s clear that the NRA is no longer invincible — and now, it is flirting with being irrelevant,” said Nick Suplina, SVP of Law & Policy at Everytown for Gun Safety. “The bottom line is that the evidence revealed in this trial has caused irreparable damage to the NRA’s brand. As it continues to self-destruct heading into the 2024 elections, the gun safety movement is only growing stronger — and we’re more than ready to defeat the NRA and gun extremists up and down the ballot in November.”
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To: Interested Parties
From: Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund
Subject: What You Need to Know About the State of the NRA Ahead of a Verdict in New York Trial
Date: February 16, 2024
Today, the jury will begin deliberations in the Attorney General of The State of New York v. NRA trial, which centers on allegations by New York Attorney General Letitia James that NRA leaders, including CEO Wayne LaPierre, improperly diverted millions of dollars from the non-profit to benefit NRA executives — including private charter flights and multi-million dollar retirement packages.
While we don’t know the outcome yet, one thing is clear: The NRA is in crisis.
Key Moments from the Trial
- NRA Whistleblowers Spill the Tea: The NYAG’s case started with ousted NRA board members and executives testifying how they were forced out after they tried to blow the whistle about the NRA’s problems. The lead witnesses to the State’s case were adamant Second Amendment supporters. This culminated with the testimony of conservative stalwart Oliver North, the former NRA board president, became the third LaPierre associate to claim under oath that LaPierre had told them that the head of the Brewer firm was the only person who could keep LaPierre out of jail and an “orange jumpsuit.” Furthermore, former longtime NRA chief lobbyist Chris Cox also testified against LaPierre and bore witnesses to the financial mismanagement at the organization.
- Wayne LaPierre Resigns and Admits Mistakes: On the eve of trial, and after three decades leading the NRA, LaPierre resigned. Thus, in many respects, the NYAG had won this trial before it even began. But this foreshadowed LaPierre largely falling on the proverbial sword during trial, admitting receiving improper benefits. At one point, he walked through the eight checks he wrote the NRA between 2020 and 2023 in an attempt to “square things up,” testifying “I couldn’t believe it, but when you add it all up, it’s over $1 million.” The NYAG alleges the scope of the misconduct is much greater, but even so, this admission really raises doubt whether LaPierre is putting on any real substantive defense at all.
- NRA Points the Finger: From the opening statement when they said “the NRA is not this man,” it was clear the NRA wanted to put daylight between itself and longtime CEO Wayne LaPierre. Counsel for the NRA said, of LaPierre, that he was “not always a meticulous corporate executive.” In its questioning of LaPierre, the NRA often treated LaPierre as a hostile witness. In this manner, the NRA appears to be hanging its hat on the jury making a distinction between the NRA and LaPierre in its deliberations, which seems like a tricky notion when, as its current CFO has testified, LaPierre really was the NRA for nearly three decades. Testimony has all borne out a “Wayne says” culture at the NRA where his word was the final word. As for the other shady business dealings? The NRA had someone else to blame for each one from longtime public relations firm Ackerman McQueen to the travel agent that booked the NRA’s private charter flights to the vendor whose stakeholder provided free vacations on a yacht to LaPierre and his family.
- AG’s Evidence of Financial Mismanagement Largely Goes Unchallenged: With witness testimony and documents, the NYAG has substantiated the vast majority of shady financial transactions raised in the complaint, including (1) LaPierre’s various trips on the yachts owned by a stakeholder in multiple key NRA vendors, (2) extensive private charter flight travel for the LaPierre’s totaling over $10 million, including for flights that Wayne LaPierre wasn’t even on, (3) a variety of NRA contractual relationships with NRA board members that were not approved by the board ahead of time, (4) lavish spending on things like gifts, makeup, hair cuts, suits, and black car service, (5) multi-million dollar post-contract golden parachute arrangements for LaPierre and former CFO Woody Phillips, and (6) the contemplated purchase of a Dallas mansion for LaPierre.
The NRA’s Deepening Doom Spiral
Despite previous claims that they were on track to reach ten million members, NRA membership has reportedly shrunk to four million, and possibly less, and revenue has dropped by more than 50% since 2016. 2022 was the weakest fundraising year since 2008, and with once-loyal members continuing to flee in the wake of disaster after disaster, the NRA is now reportedly “a ghost ship” at “rock bottom” — and that was before CEO Wayne LaPierre’s resignation just before the start of the trial.
LaPierre’s departure was not just a big deal for the NRA, but for the strong majority of Americans who are demanding their elected leaders take action to reduce gun violence. The NRA lost the face of their organization who was also the face of their movement. This is someone who spent 30 years at the helm – he was the number one fundraiser for the number one gun rights organization. LaPierre has singularly come to define the gun lobby, and none of the likely candidates to replace him have the fundraising network, cultural cache, or political capital to match him.
But ultimately, LaPierre’s legacy will be one of corruption, mismanagement, and the untold destruction gun violence has brought to every American community.
Critically though, the NRA’s doom spiral means the industry doesn’t have the sort of protective shield that it’s had for 40 years — protecting it from political and legal accountability. It will be much more difficult for bad actors within the gun industry to hide after a mass shooting, for example, and evade accountability. No longer will the NRA be able to steal the spotlight with its extreme rhetoric or wield the political clout that kept lawmakers who wanted to speak out silent.
For the first time, the gun industry is going to have to carry its own water, and people will realize the “guns everywhere” agenda the NRA has been calling for — like permitless carry and Stand Your Ground laws — has really just been a way for gun makers to line their own pockets.
So as we wait for a verdict, the bottom line is that regardless of the outcome, this trial has caused irreparable damage to the NRA’s brand and the financial impacts will be severe and long-lasting. Going into the 2024 elections, the timing could not be worse for gun extremists.
Faltering Political and Legislative Influence
Ten years ago, the NRA was an invincible political juggernaut that was feared in Washington and across the country — they were the largest outside spender in President Trump’s 2016 campaign and have poured tens of millions into Senate and House races over the years, not to mention state and local races. But now, politicians are seeing association as a liability: That once prized NRA ‘A’ rating is now a scarlet letter. Their spending on political campaigns and lobbying has cratered, and their membership continues to decline. As the NRA has imploded, the gun violence prevention movement has only grown stronger.
Last year’s Virginia elections are a perfect example: Everytown alone outspent the NRA nearly ten to one in their own home state. We invested in gun sense champions at every level of the ballot — and Virginians showed up for gun safety. Nine Moms Demand Action volunteers who ran for the House of Delegates won their races, including Joshua Cole, whose victory in HD-65 helped flip the House. Incredibly, Moms Demand Action volunteers now make up nearly 20% of the Virginia House Democratic caucus.
Post-election polling showed that our message resonated: Democrats led Republicans on crime and safety by four percentage points in battleground districts, and 83% of voters who said gun policy was important to them supported strengthening Virginia’s gun laws or keeping them as they are now.
If you look at the 2022 midterms, Everytown-endorsed candidates faced NRA-endorsed candidates in 56 races up and down the ballot. We won nearly 75% of those races. Everytown helped to flip the state legislatures in Michigan and Minnesota, supporting Moms Demand Action volunteers and gun sense champions who were ready to use their new gun sense majorities to pass multiple foundational gun safety laws.
And we’re not just winning in state legislatures. In 2022, we passed the first federal gun safety bill in 30 years with bipartisan support over the NRA’s objections. Even Senator John Cornyn, the lead Republican negotiator for this bill, dismissed the NRA’s opposition. And the 29 Republicans who crossed party lines to back this life-saving legislation have paid no political price.
So whether it’s in the US House, a state house, or the courthouse, the NRA has never been weaker financially or politically.
With the 2024 elections nine months away, it’s obvious that no matter the outcome of this trial, they will play a greatly diminished role. That’s bad news for Donald Trump and his MAGA allies who are running on the NRA’s “guns everywhere” agenda. The gun violence prevention movement is proving we can win at every level of government — and our grassroots army of volunteers are ready to defeat the NRA and gun extremists in November.