Sometimes you just have to shake your head at the level of tone deafness of the powers that be at the NRA. Despite being under the microscope by the Attorney General of New York and despite the exposure of Wayne LaPierre’s strategy to stack the vote for the 76th Director, they still persist in pushing an establishment candidate.
When I went to vote this afternoon for the 76th Director, there had to at 10 plus “volunteers” campaigning for Jim Wallace as the 76th Director. They all had Jim Wallace stickers (see pictures) and they were passing out 4-color printed cards with his accomplishments.


I have nothing against Jim Wallace. I think he has done a great job in fighting the good fight in anti-gun Massachusetts. I appreciate that he has appeared and spoken at a number of Gun Rights Policy Conferences. It is just that I don’t think he will do anything to rock the boat at the NRA.
And that boat desperately needs rocking if it is to grow, to remain effective, and to solve its money woes.
The NRA establishment could have picked a far worse candidate to push. The problem is that they shouldn’t be pushing any candidate. It should be a decision of the members and not the leadership who serves as the 76th Director. If any of those who didn’t make it on the board really wanted to serve as the 76th Director, they should have done like Frank Tait and campaigned on their own.
Given the revelations in the Gangster Capitalism expose’, the question needs to be asked if any NRA money is being spent this year on pushing the establishment candidate. If it is all funded with private donations, that is how it should be. If it isn’t, the Board of Directors needs to be asking some hard questions and demanding answers.
UPDATE: It was announced at the Board of Directors meeting yesterday that Jim Wallace had been elected as the 76th Director. I don’t know whether that is a blessing or a curse for Jim given he had just assumed fiduciary duties. The vote totals were not announced. As it was, he was absent from the meeting and the announced reasons were due to health.
With regard to the establishment campaigning, I was told that the man in the gray suit with his back to the camera is Paul Payne who, if you listened to the Gangster Capitalism episode know, reports directly to Wayne LaPierre. Further, I had confirmation from another person that many of the people seen campaigning for Jim Wallace on Friday and Saturday were from the NRA Members Councils of California.
I don’t know who is advising the NRA these days on matters of public relations now that Ack-Mac has been kicked to the curb. Whoever it is should be cringing but I imagine he or she is as tone deaf as the powers that be.