Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire LaPierre gone at the NRA

Should have happened 10 years ago! It's a good start but it won't matter if the next in line is similar to Wayne. A lot of the board needs to go too.

Jeff Knox, son of Neal Knox has written some good historical information about the NRA. They ousted Neal I think in 1977 and put Charlton Heston in his place. like many huge corporate enterprises there is infighting for control and laPierre took advantage of his position to build a coalition but he managed to run the great organization into the ground. Power and money corrupt just about everything and the NRA is no exception.

The Bolsheviks played this one beautifully. They are driving a wedge between gun owners and the most powerful 2a lobby in the US.

https://www.ammoland.com/2024/01/wayne-lapierre-resigning-national-rifle-association-now-what/

Ammoland Inc. Posted on January 5, 2024 by Jeff Knox

With LaPierre’s announced retirement, speculation is leaning toward a possible settlement agreement with NY AG. While that might be someone’s hope, it seems highly unlikely that either the NY AG or the judge would go for a settlement at this stage.

The AG’s office expressed surprise over the move but said they intend to continue pursuing the case as before and that LaPierre’s announced resignation would not impact their prosecution.

AG James hates the NRA as much as she hates Donald Trump and wants to see both buried. Her staff has put together a very solid case that’s cost a lot of time and money. It’s hard to imagine her letting the NRA off the hook at this point. The judge in the case has expressed concern for the NRA members. I don’t think he would allow any settlement that didn’t include substantial reorganization of the Association, including removal of a number of officers and executives and hopefully a total revamp of the NRA Board.

The Board remained in executive Session for several hours after LaPierre’s resignation announcement, presumably being briefed on the Association’s legal strategy going forward and probably being lectured about the importance of staying the course, remaining unified, and keeping Bill Brewer – the $2 million per month attorney that’s been running the show for the past five years – in control of legal strategy.

LaPierre’s resignation has been in the works for at least a month, as that’s when LaPierre fired Joe DeBergalis as Executive Director of General Operations and replaced him with Andrew Arulanandam. That move makes it clear that Arulanandam was hand-picked by LaPierre and Brewer to take over as EVP and CEO, which is a very good reason for NRA members to be very skeptical about him.

It’s also important to note that LaPierre remains in office for now. He could have stepped down effective immediately but instead chose to retain control until the end of the month, which includes most, if not all, of the jury phase of the trial in the NY suit.

The official NRA press release announcing LaPierre’s intention to resign included the announcement that he will be replaced by Andrew Arulanandam.

That’s not the way this is supposed to work. According to the NRA Bylaws, the Executive Director of NRA General Operations is supposed to step up in the case of a vacancy in the office of EVP, but that’s only if the vacancy occurs unexpectedly between Board meetings. It is the responsibility of the NRA Board, not the EVP, to select a replacement for a departing EVP. The press release makes it clear that LaPierre fully expected the Board to rubber-stamp his choice, which they probably did, again demonstrating the ineffectiveness of the 76-member Board.

Where things go from here is anyone’s guess. The trial is scheduled to start on Monday, January 8th, 2024. The NY AG has a rock-solid case. The Manhattan jury is unlikely to be at all sympathetic to the NRA or its “leaders.” The judge appears to be pretty fed-up with Brewer’s round-robin motions and delaying tactics and frustrated with the lack of clear representation for rank-and-file NRA members.

Taking all of that into account, I think it’s likely that the AG’s office will continue to pursue the case diligently, and the jury will “convict” on every complaint and point the AG brings. The judge will insist on a major overhaul of the Association, hopefully including removing all of the officers, if not dissolution of the entire Board, and clawing back LaPierre’s golden parachute. I think all of this will happen regardless of what the NRA does or tries to do. That’s just my best guess, though.

For now, it’s on to New York and the trial.

I'm a life member but haven't given them a dime in many years. This is a good first step to regaining trust, but the board has to go as well.

The following is from the trace - a Bloomberg funded anti rights group so take it for what it's worth...

Dear Reader,

It was 2017, and Wayne LaPierre and the National Rifle Association appeared invincible. After spending over $30 million — more than any other outside group — to help secure Donald Trump’s surprise presidential victory, LaPierre, the organization’s longtime chief executive, enjoyed direct access to the White House. But that wasn’t the whole story. Out of view, LaPierre and other NRA insiders were using the organization’s funds to enrich themselves via a web of transactions designed to avoid scrutiny. Their self-dealing was a well-kept secret — until Trace senior writer Mike Spies started digging.

It would take Mike another two years of dogged reporting and scrupulous fact-checking to complete his investigation, which in turn sparked the legal case against LaPierre and the NRA that the State of New York is set to bring to trial on January 8. Whatever happens in the courtroom, the NRA is already a shell of its former self, hemorrhaging members while racking up attorneys’ fees, and its CEO has lost his once-inexorable grip on power. On Friday, the NRA announced that LaPierre is stepping down.

....

https://www.thetrace.org/2019/04/nra-financial-misconduct-ackerman-mcqueen/?utm_source=The+Trace+mailing+list&utm_campaign=1cc893f0ca-trace_nratrial1_jan_06_2024&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-1cc893f0ca-%5BLIST_EMAIL_ID%5D

Same here, NRA required membership if the club was to hold sanctioned matches. No choice was allowed. Was thinking about giving up my membership this year after some 25 years, and another 5 just to get it.

Phil

https://www.thetrace.org/2019/04/nra-financial-misconduct-ackerman-mcqueen/


It's a hit piece, but not a pack of lies.

If it hasn't occurred to anyone until now, if the bloated board isn't replaced with something resembling a truly representative body for the rank and file members, then is Lapierre really gone? As in Biden, WLP can easily pull strings behind the curtain with all this hand picked appointees on this ridiculous board he has set up. If the court doesn't dissolve this board and demand some sort of representative board who answer to the dues paying members, this trial will be a failure and the NRA will be doomed. If they can return to the representative organization with their objectives intact as before this greedy bunch of grifters took over they may have an opportunity to survive and return to being the power they were at one time. In the long run, this lawsuit may be a good thing for the organization as a whole if WLP is duly punished and his legacy of a controlling board entity is dissolved. He should also be liable for huge fines payable to the organization for his disrespect and misuse of funds over the many years, but that may be a pipe dream as any fines the court would decree would be payable to the government and the general membership would need to file a separate case to recover funds that were used for WLP's and the board's lavish lifestyle....

30 million dollars the NRA spent on Donald Trumps 2016 presidential run. For comparison the GOAs total revenue for that year was 2.25 million. The NRA needs an overhaul no doubt. Should they go down, these other 2a groups don't have the financial muscle to fight off anti 2nd A groups. With a 2 million revenue stream, Michael Bloomberg can bankrupt the GOA with his pocket money.

About time.


Crooked SOB.

Lapierre gave them the hammer and provided the wedge.

wayne like those on the fake right are grifters who believe in nothing but money and power like limbaugh hannity levin prager shapiro etc

Then there is you, without money, power or brains…

It's all good. Letitia James will make sure the NRA will never misuse our donations again. lol

Who was that dude from California that was a big time crony of Wayne Lapierre? He was a man of bad reputation and even worse behavior. Had some spousal abuse stuff going on. I Can't remember his name. Wayne's big supporter Todd Rathner from Arizona jumped ship a while back.

No more Pepé Le Pew !!! Yahoo !!!

"30 million dollars the NRA spent on Donald Trumps 2016 presidential run. For comparison the GOAs total revenue for that year was 2.25 million. The NRA needs an overhaul no doubt. Should they go down, these other 2a groups don't have the financial muscle to fight off anti 2nd A groups. With a 2 million revenue stream, Michael Bloomberg can bankrupt the GOA with his pocket money"

Exactly! Where would we be with SCOTUS right now if the NRA hadn't spent $30 on Trump and Hillary appointed liberal antigun SCOTUS justices? We need the NRA; but we need it ran well with the sole purpose of furthering the second amendment rights by education, training, coalition building, lobbying, and etc. Instead of blasting it, we should now be focused on how to build it into the organization we want it to be.