First, here is a report that on Wednesday Brewer indeed demanded $20 million, right now! from NRA. NRA didn’t have it. So the “leadership” paid him as many millions as they could spare. NRA treasurer Sonya Rowling refused, this was insanity, but interim EVP Andrew Arulanandam gave her a written order and she wired the money to Brewer.
Plus, a report from one of the reforming directors (who now is allowed to see the secret books): NRA sold off $40 million of its investments earlier this year. Its 2022 IRS 990 (the latest available) indicated it had $69 million in publicly traded securities, which likely shrank over the next 18 months, so it must have liquidated almost all of its remaining stocks and bonds. This is evidence of financial desperation. Despite this liquidation, NRA had only $6.5 in cash remaining. We’ve heard rumors that the stocks liquidation was necessary to stave off foreclosure on the headquarters.
NRA has reached the end of its rope, and its condition is worsening. In 2023, membership revenue fell another $21 million, and donations dropped another $16 million. As we’ve noted here, 2024 so far has seen a continuation of this trend.
Frankly, it’s now a toss-up whether reform could save the organization, unless membership and donations responded very quickly (as they might). If there is no reform, Cotton will be the last president of the NRA and the present board the last board for the 153-year old organization, “our oldest civil rights organization.” Every board member might think about whether they want to associate their name with the distinction of being on the NRA’s last board. An organization that survived so much over the years, press defamation and legislative hostility, the legacy of men like Harlon and Neal, done in by corruption, luxury, and the indifference or cowardice of its governors.
If you want a piece of this . . . . The choice is yours. At least try to get a ride on the corporate jets before it can’t pay the bill.
NRA in Danger 
I will open up my checkbook of there are meaningful reform measures passed by the board. Probably need to see some replacement of the current management, starting with Cotton.
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The majority of the board allowed this to happen, on any day that could have fired Wayne and anyone else with a called special executive session!
Similarly, the board could fire Cotton, EVP Andrew, Brewer, Brewer’s law firm on any given day!!!
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Even with the reformers they are essentially powerless again Cotton, Brewer et al, and the inept board. The best thing for the survivor of the NRA is probably bankruptcy where a receiver will guarantee to be appointed by the federal judge. The receiver will have final say and has the power to restructure the NRA. Unfortunately, Judge Cohen has reservations about appointing such a person.
‘Rest assure the NRA will continue to exist!
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The past is fixed, and what the BOD does now should be firm and backed by a plan. Fire Cotton today, his behavior at the meeting was disqualifying. Fire Brewer? I would have been on board with that years ago. Today, with the pending trial that is more directly on point is a significant risk. You would want a new firm to already be chosen and have confidence they will represent the organization as well or better. There is a play to be made here, but the wrong steps and taken without others could put us in a worse position.
While I agree the NRA will survive, that is only certain in a literal sense. Will it be the organization it once was? Perhaps never again. And that would be a shame, and a loss for all of us who care about the very special rights we hold in this country. It’s possible the NRA will be great once again, but it is going to take time, significant effort and a lot of money to make that happen.
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I still believe the best thing to do is fire Brewer and sue Brewer for $25 million for entering into bankruptcy with false pretenses. Brewer’s rates are astronomical and at this point the trail is over. What do you need Brewer for? To argue to the judge that the NRA has already “self corrected” and put in “new policies” to prevent this from happen? We all know nothing has changed in reforming the NRA. The benefits of have of a new law firm are several such as it won’t cost millions more in preparing for July 15, can reach out to the prosecution and impress them the NRA is serious about reform, will show Judge Cohen that that there was some logical and tough decisions made by removing Brewer.
Judge Cohen isn’t stupid and he knows to have paid Brewer over $200 million was not smart by the Board, and that is even crystallized to him by all of the literally frivolous motions that Brew filed in which over 90% were rejected.
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To Charles, I agree with Mr. Dell’Aquila, I can’t fathom how you can argue Brewer should stay on board. That is totally insane. If a fox gets in the hen house… Do you let him stay there? Or do you eliminate him? You need to grow up. Brewer’s the equivalent of that fox in the hen house, he’s an outlaw and it’s about time he and the BOD who’s been tossing him millions of dollars a year get treated as such.
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Who is this person in the “report” and what gives her credibility?
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Alice Marie Beard, the person who tweeted, is the wife of former longtime NRA general counsel Bob Dowlut (aka not some rando). Not sure who her “reliable source” is but at this point it could be any number of the NRA Financial Services staff who are witnessing the bank accounts dry up and know that in the very near future they won’t get paid on payday.
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I am the person who posted that, on my “X” account. I am 73 years old, a member of the D.C. Bar and the Supreme Court Bar. I have written and had published three law review articles on the 2nd Amendment. I organized two moot courts to prep the lawyer who took the Heller case to the U.S. Supreme Court. I have been an NRA life member for many years. My grandfather was an NRA member. As a young woman, I was trained as a journalist. Before law school, I did grad school in journalism. I understand the rule about verifying sources. In this situation, I have heard the same story from TWO unrelated individuals, neither who is in contact with the other. I am a Catholic woman who goes to Mass twice every Sunday. My reputation is solid, and I do not spread lies. This information needs to get out to any and all as fast as possible.
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I would like to say, that I do believe that the information is accurate. Employees will stand up and reveal many things you thought they didn’t know. When a loyal employee is faced with the inevitable employment line as in this situation, it can be very enlightening. Would you rather believe Cotton and the rest of the crooked portion of the Board? Look where that got us. I thank you for the info ma’am.
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At this point, the best/most that any NRA member who is not a board member can do is to try to lean on any board member that you do know. If you personally know any board member, now’s the time to try to get him/her to behave absolutely honestly and in the best interest of the NRA. If you have email addresses, or phone numbers, or contact via facebook or X/Twitter, make contact with board members. The only hope at this time is if there are one-over-half who are as honest as their mommas trained them to be. At this point, it’s all up to the directors on the board.
I will at this time spare the director who, at the annual meeting in 2019 in Indianapolis, leaned down to me as we stood waiting for an elevator and spoke into my ear, “EVERYTHING in the stories in the news is true.” In that moment, he conveyed shock at the revelations that came out in 2019. Since then, he has fallen into line with all of the ghastly stuff that has happened. Why? I do not know. My guess is that when he whispered those words into my ear, his guess what that things would come out differently. As soon as that did not happen, he immediately took the other side and has spouted it ever since.
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We all thank you very much and you are a patriot!
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Thank you for responding. What you have presented here speaks to your character, but not to any reason you should have knowledge of the assertions. What else I see in response to your post, however, lends credence. Thank you.
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Not clear to me who you are referring to, but if it Sonya she has always been part of the problem and had no problem taking orders from Brewer in the past.
All of the sudden, Porter, Sonya et all now have a conscious but they are just corrupt cronies!
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1 – If some gun-control activists wanted to destroy the NRA, I can’t see how they could have possible done a better job the the NRA’s own board of directors and the “leadership” they have put in place.
2 – To me, all the signs are there to indicate that some people closely tied to NRA leadership will personally make a lot of money from the move to Texas. That money will be made both in Virginia and Texas.
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You are correct on both points!
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I will NOT give the NRA another dime (including annual dues) until Cotton and the board of thieves have been replaced. If that means the end of our once-proud organization, so be it. I’m tired of my dues and donations going to line the pockets of these grifters. The only thing I’ll really miss is the “American Rifleman” magazine.
I know many others have said it before (& better): there is NO sane reason why we need 75(?) members on the BOD. Not when you consider that Apple has EIGHT, Boeing has 13, Walmart has 16-for multi-billion dollar companies!
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First, you are correct not to give any money to the NRA until it is totally reformed!
Second, you are correct that such a large board was intentional and allowed Wayne to get his cronies elected.
The NRA will survive and live on, obviously it will be reformed more quickly in bankruptcy, but over time more reformers will be elected and eventually the NRA will be reformed.
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Say it like a curse, Gotterdammerung.
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Thank you for bringing this to light!
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You are welcome. And, as you see, I am using my own name and have absolutely zero to gain by sharing information that should be known to NRA members.
I may lose “friends” over this. So be it. To any “friend” who will scratch me over this, it says more about you than it says about me. Sit back and examine your own conscience.
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Once again, you are a patriot!
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Everything that has a beginning, also has an ending.
The NRA is corrupt and broken. I doubt that it can be fixed and even if it were, I doubt that there’s any way to restore trust quickly enough to prevent complete bankruptcy.
The only reason I’m still a member is because I bought a life membership years ago, when I took advantage of a discount offered to active duty military. The closest I’ve come to donating any money is every three years when I renew my instructor quals.
Honestly, the NRA has been of limited usefulness from the standpoint of protecting the Second Amendment for a long time. Too willing to compromise.
The Second Amendment won’t die with the NRA and the hundreds of millions of gun owners in the US won’t suddenly lose their voice. It will be a blow for sure, but not a deadly one.
The worst loss will be to the clubs and ranges that the NRA has supported over the years. The training and education programs. The outreach programs and matches. It will take a while to recover from those losses, but I believe there are lots and lots of dedicated gun owners out there who will eventually fill that void at a local and state level even if an equivalent national organization never replaces the NRA.
It’s a shame that the oldest civil rights organization in the nation has come to this, but any time human beings are in charge of something, the potential for corruption, exploitation and abuse is very real.
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You’re right about everything. But I would add, that the NRA has been caving to the gun grabbers since the FDR administration. He wanted to ban machine guns, suppressors and pistols. The NRA made a deal with him, that if he didn’t try to ban pistols, they wouldn’t voice any opposition. There goes the machine guns and suppressors, and our 2nd Amendment. Only the uber rich could afford the government permission slips.
Also, when LBJ, put through his gun control bill, which haunts us probably more than any other piece of anti gun legislation as it set the ground work for the ATF to create a national gun registry, where was the NRA?
When Reagan put through his anti gun bill, about totally banning machine guns…. Did the NRA do anything?
When Bush Sr., put through his ban on importing certain guns, where was the NRA?
The NRA’s been compromising our rights away since my Grandpa was a newborn.
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You are correct the NRA is corrupt and broken, and for those who didn’t know that EVP Barrett has been a staunch Wayne loyalist forever (hence that is why he was elected). But federal bankruptcy will most likely clean this mess up by a receiver being appointed, certainly faster than our great reformers!
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I think the staff of the NRA who let’s face it have suffered during the Wayne, Cotton, Brewer “debacle” should bring a class action lawsuit in hopes of getting some of the Brewer/LaPierre Millions back and giving staff some money for all the missed COLAS and performance raises that never transpired. Asking for friends.
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I think the problem is that there is no money! With what funds do you imagine the NRA would initiate suite against Brewer – who just took the last of the treasure – or defend against a class-action lawsuit before crossing the line into bankruptcy? Sorry, I get that employees are pissed, but survival is the order of the day. To survive, you need to raise money, not find new ways to lose it.
If the endowment is pooched, the principal gone, only donations can put money back in the coffers. How do you get existing members donating money again, let alone convince the annuals to start paying in again? I can tell you that this “Endowment Member” will not donate a red cent until:
a) sufficient evidence exists that leadership has been brought to heel (I don’t even need them all shitcanned – there are practical realities to deal with).
b) Brewer is out of the picture.
c) NRA has reputable counsel (by that I mean competence + integrity, not private jets).
d) the reformers provide some feedback in unison that they see traction in re-establishing corporate governance and an actionable plan to reduce the board.
Then I’ll get behind that cart and push like a mf’r relative to my means, and I’m sure many others will too. I can even imagine what some of those campaigns for fundraising might look like. I have a strong desire to see the NRA survive and regain function, so much so that I willingly risk being taken for a sucker. But no Cotton, no Brewer, no Frazer, no Aranadamadingdong, and board reduction to say the least. The org needs to get nimble, starting at the top.
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The problem is with part (A). If you don’t punish thieves, and I mean PRISON, and instead if you leave them in charge of any amount of money, what do you think will happen to that money? Providing the NRA still has two cents to rub together?
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To give funds to the NRA is not advised because the current management is corrupt and will misuse the money, that is a guarantee. You don’t necessary need money to hire a law firm to sue Brewer et al. Brewer’s firm is no different than the majority of law firms and probably carries lability insurance and there is a law firm out there that will do it on contingency. The problem is finding that law firm like I did for our class action lawsuit.
Federal bankruptcy will put the NRA on sound financial footing, because a receiver will be appointed as well as a UCC board (which I was member the first time despite two motions by Brewer trying to get court to remove me) and UCC board will be provided at an entire law firm as well as an accounting firm. The first thing that the receiver will do and the UCC board will concur is to drastically cut management’s insane salaries and start formulating a restructuring plan to get the NRA out of bankruptcy and on sound financial footing, hence the need for the law and accounting firms!
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The purpose for our class action lawsuit is to get money back to our NRA members!
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And that is a worthy cause that you are partaking in, which I was ignorant about until about a month ago.
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Thank you for everything that you are doing to help the NRA try to get back on even footing. You are obviously a patriot and of the highest character. I only hope that things work out the way we all wish.
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You are helping to get the word and we thank you very much!
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I’m trying, wish I could do more. Keep givin’ ’em hell!
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You are a patriot that only wants the best for a reformed NRA!
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