The Two Camps Going Into the NRA Annual Meeting

As we head into the NRA Annual Meeting this week, the two camps are hard at work. On one side you have the reformers who just won a resounding victory in the 2024 Board of Directors election. They took 3 of the Top Five positions and 4 of the Top Ten if you count Buz Mills. Relative unknown Dennis Fusaro also won as did Rick Ector. Facing them are the Old Guard aka the Cabal who are fighting fiercely to keep control of the NRA and to keep their perks rolling in.

The Cabal is desperately trying to make sure that former Congressman Bob Barr and current 1st VP is elected as the next NRA President. From what I have heard, people like Sandy Froman have been calling current Board members “whipping the vote” for Barr. Indeed Barr himself has been making a number of these calls. They are willing to sacrifice David Coy as an officer if it will get Barr elected or so I’ve heard.

Even Bill Brewer is getting into the act. Many members may be unaware that then- Congressman Bob Barr had a negligent discharge while handling a Colt 1908 at a reception back in 2002. The pistol had been handed to him by now current Board member Bruce Widener who then was a lobbyist in Georgia. It is reported that Widener removed the magazine but failed to clear the chamber. Barr obeyed Cooper’s Rule No. 2 and kept the pistol pointed in a safe direction. However, he failed on Rules No. 1 and 3 and thus put a round through a glass door. Brewer, from what I understand, has contacted Widener about this probably to put the best possible spin on it for Barr.

The Cabal has organized a Board members only dinner on Thursday. While it is nice for them all to get together on our dime, you know who isn’t invited to that meeting? That’s right, most of the reformers. Jeff Knox, Phil Journey, Rocky Marshall, and Dennis Fusaro don’t become members of the Board until the adjournment of the Annual Meeting of Members on Saturday. Now I am not saying the purpose of this dinner is to put the arm on those attending to vote for Bill Barr but I’m sure many wavering members will be cornered.

Going into this weekend the reform camp is as organized as I’ve seen it in all the NRA meetings I’ve attended since 2010. They have coalesced to support Jim Wallace as the 76th Director which might surprise some people including me. I had perceived Jim as a go along, get along member under the thumb of Wayne. In 2020, he was the “official candidate” vying for the 76th Director spot against Frank Tait. However, Wayne is gone and I am told Jim has been working with Buz Mills on building support for reform.

Reformers are going into the Annual Meeting of Members loaded for bear. I have seen some of the proposed resolutions and they take no prisoners. One of the targets is Charles Cotton as well it should be given his abdication of doing his proper fiduciary duty while serving as Chair of the Audit Committee. Even now he is flying on Bill Brewer’s private jet which Stephen Gutowski got confirmed by Brewer’s firm. One might say this is somewhat equivalent to Wayne and Susan cruising the Caribbean on a vendor’s yacht. I will admit that I was pitched this story and avoided reporting on it as I felt I was being set up. That was an error on my part for which I have no regret.

While I have no official confirmation on a slate of officers offered up by the reformers or if there is even such a thing, I’d be surprised if there wasn’t one. I can’t imagine that they would willingly step aside and let the Cabal’s slate sail into office. If you look at the current NRA officers, all three are members of the failed Audit Committee. If that doesn’t scream change is needed, what does? Does anyone think Judge Cohen is just going sit back and do nothing if the NRA doesn’t make serious and substantive changes? Even more importantly, do you think the membership decline is going to be reversed without clear and convincing evidence that the NRA has righted the ship, booted the old leadership, puts members first, and is doing its fiduciary duty?

While I have discussed the two opposing camps, there is a third camp that needs to be addressed. The third camp is composed of those Board members that are neither part of the Old Guard nor are recognized as reformers. In the past they have kept quiet mostly out of fear of being ostracized as well as a fear of retribution. They saw the punishment dealt out to people like Tim Knight, Sean Maloney, and Esther Schneider in the form of being removed from committee assignments. More recently, Willes Lee was forced out of the leadership for reasons that have never been made public though it probably had to do with disagreeing with Bill Brewer over legal strategy.

The members of this third camp are going to have to decide where they stand as the time for keeping quiet and doing nothing is over. They can go along with the Cabal in the false hope that “steady as she goes” will be what is needed to right the sinking ship. Marion Hammer called this out as a false hope and has paid the price. She was right. This third camp has the chance to do the right thing supporting true fiduciary responsibility and accountability to members by backing the reformers. Taking this chance will not be easy for many of them but it is the only way forward if the NRA is to survive as both a viable entity and as a strong advocate for our Second Amendment rights. If a Jim Wallace can move from the third camp into the reform camp then so can they.