NRA Members Meeting, 2024

There were two things that would have made it wilder, but nobody had pitchforks and indoor torches were banned by the Dallas Fire Code. There were by rough guess a thousand members present, a lot better than last year, but below our peaks before that.

NRA president Charles Cotton opened with a nasty move he’s used before on the members. He asked for approval of the agenda, which of course passed (whoever even reads the agenda?) But the agenda provided for adjournment at noon, of a meeting beginning at 10 AM, so now the forces of corruption had two hours of risk, reduced by their filibustering.

Cotton then gave his introduction (which included an exhortation to disbelieve what “gun bloggers” have said, that NRA has been losing legal cases). He claimed attorney Bill Brewer has done a “phenomenal job” of legal defense against NY’s “army of limousine lawyers,” etc. (Actually, NY’s attorneys are agency lawyers, who are unlikely to take limos to the courthouse… or to fly around on private jets, unlike some others we know, including Cotton himself).

He said the New York case had found that NRA was a victim, not a perpetrator, it was a victim of two of its dishonest officials. (What what happens there).

Eventually we got to the members’ proposed resolutions. Things happened there so rapidly that my notes are imperfect, sorry if I omit something or someone.

Fluff resolutions to eat up time, and then a member’s resolution endorsing the board’s proposed move of NRA HQ to Texas. What happened then was unbelievable. The “leadership” had surely counted on this to butter up a Texas audience, and it would have been a good idea 10-20-30 years ago, but would be nonprofit suicide today.

Initially the members seemed to like it, it sounds like a good idea IF NRA’s disastrous financial condition has been hidden from you. But that was about to be revealed and the mood started turning quickly, until the members present were in revolt! By the end, they were all (literally, every single one that I could see) were loudly booing Cotton! I’ve never seen that before, in NRA or anywhere else. A thousand members, booing the chair! But let’s get back to the timeline.

Member Heather Demarest (sp?) questioned, how much will the move to Texas cost? The answers were long and involved, and amounted to “we don’t know,” or more realistically, “we don’t want to tell you members.” Cotton finally said the cost would be “minuscule” — of moving a big building with 500 employees, a museum, a computer arrangement, etc.? Major Texas donors have offered to pay for the museum move in return for naming rights (naming galleries of the museum after them). We’ll just sell the used furniture and buy replacements in Texas. Etc.

A shocking revelation: the interim EVP, Andrew, said the present HQ has “deferred maintenance” (meaning it’s in disrepair, deliberately) that would cost $20-30 million in repairs before NRA could rent out space in it. Cheaper to move. (And try to sell a building in disrepair, to the tune of tens of millions? Is this insane?)

Ron Pincus got up and my notes are too rushed to read, but he articulately disassembled the plan to move. He also got in a solid hit — Cotton said that NRA was the victim and the perps were two officials who embezzled from it. Why didn’t he name the two? Precisely because one was — Wayne LaPierre? (That was probably news to a lot of the members listening). Much applause. He points out we’re told that last night the board gave $20 million to attorney Bill Brewer. How will you fund the move? (more applause).

Pincus was not finished, he kept boring in on another issue — did director David Coy author this “members'” resolution? After much dodging, Coy admitted, yes, most of it, and he asked the two members introducing it, friends of his, to introduce it.

Bill Bachenberg spoke, and did a great job. He’s a businessman who did a solid job of creating his own business, and is running for 2nd VP. Board has been given no info at all, we’ve heard it might cost $80 million, which we don’t have. Donors giving for naming rights? We have no guarantees there. Many of the museum galleries are already named. The American Revolution gallery is named for Bachenberg himself, who paid for it. If you take money from someone else and rename it, there will be a lawsuit! Much applause when he sat down.

Things were getting fiery! Cotton replied with a personal jab, saying that Bachenberg often missed board meetings, so that was why he didn’t know that the board was kept informed. The members didn’t seem to like that reply.

Another member (I missed the name) pressed, how much will the move cost? Cotton said the people who can answer that aren’t here. The member — wait a minute. You’re the president, the interim EVP is sitting there, you’re saying that neither of you is the person who can answer how much this will cost? Andrew said we have to rely on experts, who aren’t here.

Director Maria Heil spoke, and gave logical reasons why the move would be so bad an idea. (It is humanly significant that neither Bachenberg nor Heil are hotheads. These are logical, balanced folks who calmly raised real problems, and got no answers).

Somewhere in there director Jay Printz spoke in defense of the move, but the only memorable part was his calling the opposition “bullshit,” and give no real counter-argument.

The two hours were expiring. Director Amanda Suffecool said she was a structural engineer, and the excuse that we’ve got to move because the present building has “deferred maintenance issues” makes no sense. It’d be like her smashing her car with a sledge hammer and then telling her husband they need a new car because the old one is broken. A lot of laughter. Cotton responded that she is a new director, only a year on the board. . . .

And the room erupted in booing, loud and long. EVERYONE was booing Cotton. I couldn’t see one member not doing it. They were tired of personal attacks and no answers to the issues, tired of seeing the evasion and deflection. A thousand members, united in booing the chair! See below for footage of the event. And someone shouting “how long have YOU been running us into the ground?”

Then, with time running out, Suffecool called the question for a vote. The members raised hands, aye and nay. I’d say it was 60-40 against the move to Texas. Cotton said it was too close for him to call (which drew some laughter), asked secretary John Frazer to estimate, and Frazer said the motion had lost. Then Cotton announced it was noon, the meeting was adjourned (which led to some shouting).

Whew, it was one hell of a meeting! The forces of reform clearly came out ahead. The “leadership” had lost control of the meeting, been booed and laughed at, entirely reasonable and articulate directors had some out in opposition, members had learned things that had been hidden. It was a TOTAL DISASTER for the corruption!

Add Jim Porter, another moderate and reasonable director, ripping Bill Brewer a new orifice in public the night before that and. . . .

Update: here is video of the discussion of the move to Texas resolution. The booing episode comes at 31:27.