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THE NRA                                                  APRIL 23, 2019

                                                       IN CRISIS
The NRA        As the National Rifle Association prepares to meet for its 2019 annual convention
               in Indianapolis, the NRA’s senior leadership and board of directors are confronted
is becoming
               with numerous questions about the organization’s recent management practices
more fringe    and its financial future. In the past 18 months, a spate of investigative news reports
and more       and governmental investigations have shown the NRA to be in a state of crisis with
toxic to the   the result being diminished influence in the legislative, political, and public arenas.
Americans      Day by day, the NRA is becoming more fringe and more toxic to the Americans it
it has long    has long claimed to represent.
claimed to     Indeed, contrary to the NRA’s self-proclaimed image as an all-American organization
represent.     for hunters and sportsmen, the organization is entangled in scandals.

               THE NRA IN CRISIS                                        everytownresearch.org/nra-in-crisis
IN CRISIS - EverytownResearch.org
Secrecy, Self-Dealing,
       and Greed at the N.R.A.
                                            The New Yorker

      The questions and allegations about the NRA include:
    • The apparent collapse of the NRA’s relationship with its most significant
      business partner, Ackerman McQueen, including a recently filed NRA lawsuit
      that seeks information about potentially improper billing practices by Ackerman,
      and Ackerman’s response that the NRA was acting with “malicious intent”;

    • Payments and other financial arrangements with executives and insiders
      at the NRA that resulted in millions of proceeds going to these executives and
      insiders;

    • The NRA’s murky business and election campaign practices;

    • The NRA’s ties to Russia and admitted Kremlin agent Maria Butina;

    • Defections from the business community because of the growing realization
      that the NRA is an extremist organization;

    • Filings reporting weak financials and deficits in the last two reporting years,
      including the startling admission that regulatory oversight in New York State
      “threatens the financial growth and overall trajectory of the organization”; and

    • Evidence it was outspent by gun safety groups in the 2018 midterm elections.

      Perhaps then, it’s no wonder that as its brand becomes increasingly toxic,
      the NRA’s favorability ratings are underwater for the first time in nearly
      20 years.1 This report details serious questions about the NRA’s leadership
      and the organization’s financial health heading into the critical 2020
      presidential election.
      As he takes the stage in Indianapolis, the NRA’s executive vice president Wayne
      LaPierre will no doubt extol the NRA’s strength. Here are the NRA stories that you
      won’t hear from the convention floor this weekend, ones that point to potential
      trouble for LaPierre and the NRA.

2     THE NRA IN CRISIS                                       everytownresearch.org/nra-in-crisis
IN CRISIS - EverytownResearch.org
THE COLLAPSE OF THE NRA’S
      RELATIONSHIP WITH LONGTIME
      PARTNER ACKERMAN McQUEEN
      The NRA has long worked with the public relations firm Ackerman McQueen to
      shape and brand the organization’s image. Indeed, Ackerman was reportedly vital
      to securing NRA executive vice president Wayne LaPierre’s leadership position
      within the NRA and reportedly serves as trusted counsel to LaPierre.2
      Among other work, Ackerman has crafted public messaging for the NRA and helped
      create and produce NRATV3, and its predecessor NRA News.4 In 2017, the NRA’s
      aggregate payments to Ackerman McQueen, and its subsidiary the Mercury Group,
      totaled nearly $40 million alone 5 (12 percent of the NRA’s overall expenses),6 and
      financial reports indicate Ackerman McQueen has netted well-over $100 million in
      payments since 2012.7 However, over the past year, as the NRA’s crises deepened,
      there have been several points of contention between Ackerman and the NRA.
      Most notably, the NRA this month filed a lawsuit against Ackerman in Circuit Court
      in Alexandria, Virginia, seeking to compel Ackerman to provide records that justify
      its billings to the NRA.8 In reporting on the lawsuit, the Wall Street Journal indicated
      that “[t]he NRA is concerned the ad firm may be overcharging for certain items”,
      including salaries for Ackerman employees.9 Ackerman responded to the lawsuit
      saying the NRA acted with “malicious intent” and further raised questions about
      whether the NRA’s lawyer, William Brewer, was ethically conflicted due to familial
      ties to Ackerman leadership.10

3   THE NRA IN CRISIS                                          everytownresearch.org/nra-in-crisis
“NRA pays overbilled, deceptive, vague invoices
    to ‘preferred’ vendors and contractors”

              Per reporting in The New Yorker, the NRA Board of Directors Audit Committee held
              an “emergency meeting” in July 2018 to discuss “whistleblowing reports” relating
              to vendor arrangements. The same report indicates that documentation was
              prepared ahead of that meeting listing concerns such as “NRA pays overbilled,
              deceptive, vague invoices to ‘preferred’ vendors and contractors” and “decisions
              are made in the best interests of vendors,” not the organization. The New Yorker
              also reported that internally prepared documents indicated that “about a quarter
              of the organization’s staff is now managed by former employees of Ackerman
              who have been hired by the NRA” and that this situation created “financial
              conflicts of interest.” 11
              Reports indicate that current NRA president Oliver North has a contract with
              Ackerman.12 The exact details of this contract have not been publicly disclosed,
              although The New Yorker recently reported the contract was worth “roughly a
              million dollars” annually.13 When the NRA reportedly attempted to obtain detailed
              information about this contract from Ackerman, North reportedly refused to
              provide documents about the compensation without Ackerman’s approval.14

              Marc Owens, who for ten years headed the IRS division overseeing
              tax-exempt enterprises, said, “[t]he litany of red flags is just extraordinary …
              The materials reflect one of the broadest arrays of likely transgressions that I’ve
              ever seen. There is a tremendous range of what appears to be the misuse of
              assets for the benefit of certain venders and people in control ... Those facts, if
              confirmed, could lead to the revocation of the NRA’s tax-exempt status."

              The New York Times reported that some NRA board members are openly
              questioning the utility of NRATV to the organization.15 This comes after, among
              other incidents, an NRATV program that drew widespread condemnation for
              depicting the children’s character Thomas the Tank Engine wearing a KKK hood.16
              The NRA’s lawsuit against Ackerman references this directly, saying “certain NRA
              stakeholders were also concerned that NRATV’s messaging—on topics far afield of
              the Second Amendment—deviated from the NRA’s core mission and values.” 17

              NRA board member Joel Friedman was quoted questioning Ackerman’s role as
              the organization’s top vendor, especially in light of Ackerman’s refusal to provide
              financial documents. “It leaves you questioning, and you can come up with
              all these potential different scenarios as to why, but none of them are good,”
              Friedman said to the New York Times. “My mind goes to: Are they overcharging
              us? That’s one,” he added. “Two, are there things charged to us that were not part
              of the contract? Then, No. 3, has there been a misallocation of personnel?”18

4             THE NRA IN CRISIS                                        everytownresearch.org/nra-in-crisis
QUESTIONABLE FINANCIAL
             ARRANGEMENTS AND PAYMENTS
             TO NRA INSIDERS
             Over the past year, there have been several revelations of NRA executives and
             insiders involved in questionable financial transactions and/or potential financial
             improprieties. These issues involve millions in organizational funds and include:
           • A former NRA managing director, Michael Marcellin, was paid $978,179 by an
             insurance company, Lockton Affinity, that conducted business with the NRA from
             2016-2017.19 These payments occurred in the same years Marcellin was a highly
             compensated NRA executive, earning $645,899 in 2016 20 and $713,975 in 201721
             (according to NRA regulatory filings). The NRA revealed this arrangement for the
             first time this year, saying the details were “inadvertently excluded” from past
             financial disclosures.22 However, recent reporting indicates that the NRA Board of
             Directors was not aware that Marcellin was receiving income from both the NRA
             and Lockton Affinity.23

           • Since 2010, the NRA has reportedly paid media production company, “Under
             Wild Skies,” $18 million,24 including $2,635,000 in 2017 alone.25 Under Wild Skies’
             former-treasurer is the NRA’s executive director at the Office of Advancement,
             Tyler Schropp. Schropp took home a robust $622,280 salary from the NRA
             in 2017.26 According to reporting from the New York Times, Schropp had a stake in
             Under Wild Skies “until at least 2017.” 27

           • Between 201628 and 2017,29 the NRA paid $1,395,000 to HWS Consulting Inc., a firm
             whose owner, Wayne Sheets, is the NRA Foundation’s longtime executive director.30
             The NRA admitted that the NRA Foundation had “inadvertently omitted” Mr. Sheets
             as an executive officer from its previous regulatory filings.31 Reporting from The
             New Yorker indicates that HWS Consulting's contract stipulated a “base monthly
             consulting fee” to be paid “regardless of the number of consulting hours provided
             by the Consultant” and that Mr. Sheets received an additional two hundred and
             forty thousand dollars in expense reimbursements.32

    NRA Awarded Contracts to Firms with
          Ties to Top Officials
                                              The Wall Street Journal

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Gun Control Group Files Complaint
    Over the NRA's Tax-Exempt Status
                                                                           The Hill

         • In 2017, the NRA Foundation paid $3,065,031 to Crow Shooting Supply, a company
           owned by former NRA president Pete Brownell.33 The Foundation has reportedly
           been paying Crow Shooting Supply since 2008 (Brownell has owned the company
           since 2011).34

         • In 2016, the NRA hired Josh Powell as chief of staff, an executive position that
           paid him total compensation in 2017 of $779,066.35 Mr. Powell was previously
           business partners with Pete Brownell,36 who was in line to become the NRA
           president. After investigative reporting in 2018 revealed Powell’s history of financial
           mismanagement in the jobs he held before joining the NRA37 and that the NRA was
           reimbursing him for over $100,000 per year in personal expenses,38 Mr. Powell
           was reportedly reassigned within the NRA.39 According to reporting from The New
           Yorker, Mr. Powell’s wife worked on the NRA’s account as an outside consultant at
           McKenna & Associates.40

         • Reports indicate that current NRA president Oliver North has a lucrative contract
           with the NRA’s longtime media consultants Ackerman McQueen.41 In addition,
           public reporting indicates that NRATV personalities Dana Loesch and Colion Noir
           also have contracts with Ackerman as well.42

         • Revelations in The New Yorker that NRA executive vice president Wayne LaPierre
           has an arrangement that “provides for consulting services and personal
           appearances upon the end of his employment, at an annual rate that starts
           at his currently contracted final base salary and is later reduced” —effectively
           serving as a salary for life.43

           The New York Times reported that the NRA has 41 employees, contractors, vendors
           or consultants that have family relationships to others connected to the NRA.
           Due to these and other financial arrangements that would seem at odds
           with the NRA's status as a non-profit charitable organization, Everytown
           for Gun Safety filed a complaint with the Internal Revenue Service calling for
           an investigation of the NRA.
           You can read Everytown’s IRS complaint at every.tw/tax-exempt-complaint.

6          THE NRA IN CRISIS                                        everytownresearch.org/nra-in-crisis
INVESTIGATIONS OF NRA
                BUSINESS/CAMPAIGN PRACTICES
                In addition to the Russia-related inquiries, the NRA is facing scrutiny over business
                practices and campaign spending during both the 2016 presidential campaign and
                multiple congressional campaigns:
                NRA’s “Carry Guard” Insurance Program: The NRA’s “Carry Guard” Insurance
                program, which promised to cover an individual’s legal expenses if they shoot
                someone and claim self-defense, was unveiled at the 2016 NRA convention
                with much fanfare but has subsequently become a regulatory debacle.
                Public reporting indicates that the NRA has been entangled in various state
At least five   regulatory inquiries about the legality of the Carry Guard insurance product that
complaints      it promotes.
have been       The inquiries are reportedly focused on whether the Carry Guard product, which
filed with      provides gun owner-liability insurance, violates state insurance laws by insuring
the Federal     criminal conduct; and whether entities promoting Carry Guard improperly solicited
Election        insurance sales under state law.44
Commission      The NRA’s attorney was quoted saying that regulatory oversight in New York State
against the     regarding the Carry Guard product “threatens the financial growth and overall
NRA alleging    trajectory of the organization”;45
improper        Some of the NRA’s partners in this venture, Lockton Affinity, Illinois Union, and
coordination    Lloyd’s of London have already settled with regulators in New York State and/or
of campaign     Washington State for more than an aggregate of $13 million.46
spending.       NRA’s Campaign Spending: At least five complaints have been filed with the
                Federal Election Commission against the NRA alleging improper coordination of
                campaign spending.47 These complaints focus on spending in the 2016 Presidential
                election and various U.S. Senate races in 2014,48 2016, and 2018, and build upon
                investigative journalism that revealed media buyers for the NRA’s purportedly
                independent expenditures were simultaneously doing similar work on behalf
                of the campaigns they were supporting, including President Trump’s campaign.49
                Federal election law bars campaigns and independent groups from coordinating
                their spending.
                In February 2019, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse and Rep. Jamie Raskin announced
                they are seeking information from various media companies associated with the
                NRA’s advertising in these races to determine if any illegalities occurred.50

7               THE NRA IN CRISIS                                       everytownresearch.org/nra-in-crisis
INVESTIGATIONS OF NRA
                    TIES TO RUSSIA
                    Since early 2017, the NRA has been plagued by questions about its relationships
                    with figures close to the Russian government.51 Indeed, dating back nearly a
                    decade, Russian politician and central banker Alexander Torshin and Russian gun
                    rights activist Maria Butina cultivated relationships within the highest ranks of the
                    NRA, including trips to consecutive NRA conventions and working directly with NRA
                    officials to coordinate an NRA delegation trip to Russia in 2015.52
                    The NRA’s explanations of its Russian connections have been publicly
                    contradicted on multiple occasions. For one, the NRA’s answers on questions
                    of Russian donations to the organization have been inconsistent, although the NRA
                    ultimately admitted “two dozen additional contributions from Russian donors.” 53
                    What’s more, while the NRA has claimed that executive vice president Wayne
                    LaPierre disapproved of the NRA’s 2015 delegation trip to Russia, internal emails
                    from NRA officials seem to contradict that stance. Specifically, emails reportedly
                    have shown that NRA staff helped plan the trip54 (while Mother Jones reports “[a]
                    source close to [former NRA president Pete] Brownell maintains that at the time
                    of the Moscow trip, Brownell did not hear that LaPierre opposed the visit. ‘It was
                    presented as an NRA-related trip,’ the source said, adding that ‘NRA staff was
                    involved in the planning’ of the travel.’”).55
                    These and other unanswered questions have been a focus of multiple ongoing
In December 2018,   investigations, including in the House of Representatives and Senate.56
Maria Butina        Criminal investigations
pled guilty to      In January 2018, McClatchy reported that the Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s
conspiracy          office was investigating whether then-deputy governor of Russia’s central bank
                    Alexander Torshin funneled money to the NRA to help the Trump campaign.57
to act as an        A year later, it was reported that the Special Counsel’s office had been asking
unregistered        about the NRA’s relationship with the Trump campaign as recently as late-2018.58
foreign agent       It is unclear whether this inquiry has been referred to the U.S. Attorney’s Office
for Russia.         for additional investigation.
                    In December 2018, Maria Butina pled guilty to conspiracy to act as an unregistered
                    foreign agent for Russia. Her plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for
                    the District of Columbia details how she cultivated her relationship with a “Gun
                    Rights Organization,” widely reported to be the NRA, as a key component of her
                    campaign to influence American politics.59 Butina is slated to be sentenced on April
                    26, 2019,60 the opening day of the NRA’s 2019 annual convention.
                    In September 2018, Paul Erickson (Butina’s longtime boyfriend and
                    a conservative activist linked to the NRA) reportedly received a target letter
                    from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia informing him that
                    prosecutors were considering indicting him for acting an unregistered foreign
                    agent.61 Erickson has since been indicted in an unrelated fraud case by the U.S.
                    Attorney in South Dakota.62

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Congressional investigations
      Starting in February 2018, Senator Ron Wyden, the ranking member on the
      Senate Finance Committee, sent a series of letters to the NRA regarding the
      organization’s ties to Russia.63 After publicly disclosing seemingly contradictory
      information, the NRA admitted to accepting more than two dozen contributions
      totaling $2,512.51 from people associated with Russian addresses.64 The NRA
      ended the months-long correspondence declaring it would “respectfully decline
      to engage” further.65
      In November 2018, the Daily Beast reported that the Senate Intelligence
      Committee requested documents from the NRA regarding its connections to
      Russia, including its 2015 delegation trip to Moscow.66 A witness reportedly
      interviewed by the committee told NBC News that he was asked questions about
      the NRA’s relationship with Russia as recently as January 2019.67
      In January 2019, the House Oversight Committee reportedly requested
      documents from the NRA and the White House regarding National Security Advisor
      John Bolton, who previously served as chair of the NRA’s International Affairs
      Subcommittee.68 The House committee renewed 69 an August 2018 request 70 to
      the White House for documents to determine whether Bolton’s appearance in a
      video for Butina’s gun rights group (and any other work he may have done with her)
      was disclosed as part of his vetting for a security clearance. The committee also
      reportedly asked the NRA for more information about Bolton’s foreign contacts
      and the NRA International Affairs Subcommittee.71
      In February 2019, House Reps. Ted Lieu and Kathleen Rice sent a letter to NRA
      executive vice president Wayne LaPierre requesting information regarding the
      NRA’s relationship with Torshin and Butina and the 2015 delegation trip to Russia.72

    NRA 2015 delegation trip to Russia                         Facebook/ Alexander Kudryashov

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COMPANIES SEVER TIES
        WITH THE NRA AND TAKE ACTION
        ON GUN VIOLENCE PREVENTION
        In the face of the NRA’s growing toxicity, businesses nationwide have severed
        ties with the NRA and many companies like Citigroup,73 Levi Strauss & Co,74 and
        Dick’s Sporting Goods,75 among others, announced they would take action on gun
        violence prevention.
        In 2018, in the face of public pressure, more than two dozen companies cut
        business ties with the NRA, including: First National Bank of Omaha; FedEx;76 Delta
        Air Lines; United Airlines; Allied Van Lines; North American Van Lines; Avis Budget
        Group; Hertz; Alamo Car Rental; Enterprise Car Rental; National Car Rental; Starkey
        Hearing Technologies; MetLife Insurance; Chubb Insurance; TrueCar; SimpliSafe;
        Symantec;77 Norton; Securian; Lockton Affinity; Paramount Rx; Wild Apricot;
        LifeLock; Teladoc;78 Wyndham Hotels.79

     Dozens Of Companies Cut Ties
            With The NRA
                                                 National Public Radio

10      THE NRA IN CRISIS                                      everytownresearch.org/nra-in-crisis
WEAKENING FINANCIALS AT THE NRA
                     At a time when the NRA continues to generously compensate its senior executives,
                     any number of proof points from recent financial reporting indicate that the NRA’s
                     financial health is in decline, including:
                   • Contributions to the NRA are down more than $26 million from 2016 to 2017 (the
                     most recent data reported), or 21 percent.80

                   • Membership dues paid to the NRA over the same period are down more than $35
                     million, or 22 percent.81

                   • The NRA has run deficits of $14.8 million and $31.8 million, respectively, in the last
                     two reporting cycles (2016 – 2017).82
Contributions
to the NRA are     • The NRA’s 501(c)(3) sister charitable organization – the NRA Foundation –
                     transferred $19.2 million and $18.8 million in tax deductible donations to
down more than
                     the NRA (a 501(c)(4) organization that engages in political activity) in 201683
$26 million from     and 2017,84 respectively.
2016 to 2017.
                   • On top of that, the NRA’s most recent public disclosures, for 2017, revealed the
                     NRA Foundation gave a $5 million loan to the NRA.85

                   • The NRA reportedly laid off several employees, including some associated with
                     its NRATV product.86 The New York Times reported that some NRA board members are
                     openly questioning the utility of NRATV to the organization.87 It has also
                     been reported that the NRA even discontinued office perks like free coffee
                     to save money.88

                   • The New Yorker reported that a financial “audit from 2017 revealed that
                     [the NRA] had nearly reached the limit of a twenty-five-million-dollar line
                     of credit” and the NRA was forced to “borrow almost four million from its officers’
                     life insurance policies….” 89

                     Former NRA fundraiser Aaron Davis went on record criticizing the NRA in fairly
                     stark terms, including describing lavish dinners “where wine was pouring freely,
                     and [he was] going to dinners with other NRA executives where the bill would be
                     a thousand dollars.” Davis added “I just thought, if the typical NRA member
        NRA          knew that this is how the organization really works, then there’s just no way
     Foundation      they would give money.”90
      501(c)(3)

                     The NRA’s most recent public disclosures,
                     for 2017, revealed the NRA Foundation gave
                     a $5 million loan to the NRA and in the past
                     two reporting cycles the Foundation has
                     sent $38 million to the NRA.

11                   THE NRA IN CRISIS                                         everytownresearch.org/nra-in-crisis
THE NRA’S DISAPPEARING
                 ACT DURING THE 2018
                 MIDTERM ELECTIONS
                 The NRA’s crises aren’t confined to investigations; as the organization becomes
                 increasingly fringe and toxic, its political influence and engagement has fallen
                 dramatically. After years of being perceived as a political powerhouse, the NRA was
                 unable to successfully pass its top legislative priorities, concealed carry reciprocity
                 and deregulating silencers, during the first two years of the Trump presidency,
                 while unsuccessfully opposing the ATF’s rule banning bumpstocks.91 Then it pulled
                 a disappearing act leading up to the 2018 midterm elections, in which its
                 Republican allies lost control of the House of Representatives.
                • The NRA was reportedly outspent by gun violence prevention groups during the
                  2018 midterm elections, during which its allies lost control of the U.S. House
                  of Representatives.92

                 • In 2016, the NRA spent a record amount — nearly $55 million — on federal
                   elections, including more than $30 million to elect President Donald Trump.93
                   According to one news report, its spending may have exceeded $70 million.94

                 • Just two years later, however, in the 2018 election, the NRA was reportedly
                   outspent by its political opponents.95 Its spending during the most recent
                   midterm election was reportedly 64 percent lower than in the previous midterm
                   election and a fraction of what it spent in 2016.96

                • In advance of the 2018 midterms, the NRA took down its database of candidate
                  grades. According to the Washington Post, one NRA employee, “offered a possible
                  rationale. ‘I think our enemies were using that,’ he said.” 97

                • Members of Congress returned or donated away NRA contributions before
                  the midterms.98

The NRA was reportedly outspent by gun violence prevention
groups during the 2018 midterm elections.

12               THE NRA IN CRISIS                                         everytownresearch.org/nra-in-crisis
1. Todd C, Murray M, Dann C. Trump, master of the political insult, declines to       20. National Rifle Association. 2016 IRS Form 990, Schedule J.
   chide Putin. NBC News, March 21, 2018. https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/               September 18, 2017. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/
   first-read/trump-master-political-insult-declines-chide-putin-n858621.                 organizations/530116130/201722619349300507/IRS990ScheduleJ.
2. Finn P, Horwitz, S. Ackerman McQueen PR Firm Has Been Behind NRA’s                 21. National Rifle Association. 2017 IRS Form 990, Schedule J. November 5, 2018.
   Provocative Ads for Decades. Washington Post, February 13, 2013. https://              https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5300476-NRA-2017-990.html.
   www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/ackerman-mcqueen-
                                                                                      22. Spies M, Cook J. NRA Pays Lavish Executive Perks Even as It Cuts Costs. The
   pr-firm-has-been-behind-nras-provocative-ads-for-decades/2013/02/13/
                                                                                          Trace, November 28, 2018. https://www.thetrace.org/2018/11/nra-josh-
   fedb70b4-7155-11e2-ac36-3d8d9dcaa2e2_story.html.
                                                                                          powell-housing-allowance/.
3. NRA News. Ackerman McQueen. Accessed on April 16, 2019. https://www.
                                                                                      23. Spies M. Secrecy, Self-Dealing, and Greed at the NRA. The New Yorker, April 17,
   am.com/projects/nra-news-project/.
                                                                                          2019. https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/secrecy-self-dealing-and-
4. NRA v. Ackerman McQueen. Civil Complaint, filed April 15, 2019, paras. 9 and           greed-at-the-nra.
   13. https://www.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/NRAlawsuit041519.
                                                                                      24. Hakim, D. Incendiary N.R.A. Videos Find New Critics: N.R.A. Leaders. New York
   pdf.
                                                                                          Times, March 11, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/us/nra-video-
5.   Ibid.                                                                                streaming-nratv.html.
6. Spies M. Secrecy, Self-Dealing, and Greed at the NRA. The New Yorker, April 17,    25. Spies, M, Cook J. NRA Pays Lavish Executive Perks Even as It Cuts Costs.
   2019. https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/secrecy-self-dealing-and-               The Trace, November 28, 2018.
   greed-at-the-nra.
                                                                                      26. National Rifle Association. 2017 Form 990, Section A, Part VII.
7. National Rifle Association. 2017 IRS Form 990. November 5, 2018. https://              November 5, 2018. https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5300476-
   www.documentcloud.org/documents/5300476-NRA-2017-990.html; National                    NRA-2017-990.html.
   Rifle Association. 2016 IRS Form 990. September 18, 2017. https://projects.
                                                                                      27. Hakim, D. Incendiary N.R.A. Videos Find New Critics: N.R.A. Leaders. New York
   propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/530116130/201722619349300507/
                                                                                          Times, March 11, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/us/nra-video-
   IRS990.; National Rifle Association. 2015 IRS Form 990. November 10, 2016.
                                                                                          streaming-nratv.html.
   https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/display_990/530116130/2017_02_
   EO%2F53-0116130_990O_201512; National Rifle Association. 2014 IRS                  28. National Rifle Association. 2016 IRS Form 990, Schedule G, Part I.
   Form 990. September 18, 2015. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/              September 18, 2017. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/
   organizations/530116130/201532599349300503/IRS990; National Rifle                      organizations/530116130/201722619349300507/IRS990ScheduleG
   Association. 2013 IRS Form 990. November 5, 2014. https://projects.
                                                                                      29. National Rifle Association. 2017 IRS Form 990, Schedule G, Part I.
   propublica.org/nonprofits/display_990/530116130/2014_11_EO%2F53-
                                                                                          November 5, 2018. https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5300476-
   0116130_990O_201312.; National Rifle Association. 2012 IRS Form
                                                                                          NRA-2017-990.html.
   990. September 16, 2013. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/
   display_990/530116130/2013_12_EO%2F53-0116130_990O_201212.                         30. Steven E. Nelson Sportsman of the Year. Mzuri Wildlife Foundation, Accessed
                                                                                          on April 19, 2019. https://mzuri.org/wayne-sheets/.
8. Maremont M. NRA Files Suit Against Ad Agency in Rift with Key Partner. Wall
   Street Journal, April 15, 2019. https://www.wsj.com/articles/nra-files-suit-       31. Maremont M. “NRA Awarded Contracts to Firms with Ties to Top Officials”,
   against-ad-agency-in-rift-with-key-partner-11555320601.                                Wall Street Journal, November 30, 2018. https://www.wsj.com/articles/nra-
                                                                                          awarded-contracts-to-firms-with-ties-to-top-officials-1543590697.
9. Ibid.
                                                                                      32. Spies M. Secrecy, Self-Dealing, and Greed at the NRA. The New Yorker, April 17,
10. Metzer, S. OKC Ad Agency Ackerman McQueen Sued by the NRA. The
                                                                                          2019. https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/secrecy-self-dealing-and-
    Journal Record (Oklahoma City), April 15, 2019. https://journalrecord.
                                                                                          greed-at-the-nra.
    com/2019/04/15/okc-ad-agency-ackerman-mcqueen-sued-by-nra/.
                                                                                      33. NRA Foundation, 2017 IRS Form 990, Part IV, Schedule L,
11. Spies M. Secrecy, Self-Dealing, and Greed at the NRA. The New Yorker, April 17,
                                                                                          November 5, 2018. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/
    2019. https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/secrecy-self-dealing-and-
                                                                                          organizations/521710886/201833129349300408/IRS990ScheduleL.
    greed-at-the-nra.
                                                                                      34. Maremont M. “NRA Awarded Contracts to Firms with Ties to Top Officials”,
12. Hakim, D. Incendiary NRA Videos Find New Critics: NRA Leaders. New York
                                                                                          Wall Street Journal, November 30, 2018. https://www.wsj.com/articles/nra-
    Times, Mar 11, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/us/nra-video-
                                                                                          awarded-contracts-to-firms-with-ties-to-top-officials-1543590697.
    streaming-nratv.html.
                                                                                      35. National Rifle Association, 2017 IRS Form 990, Section A, Part VII. November 5,
13. Spies M. Secrecy, Self-Dealing, and Greed at the NRA. The New Yorker, April 17,
                                                                                          2018. https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5300476-NRA-2017-990.
    2019. https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/secrecy-self-dealing-and-
                                                                                          html.
    greed-at-the-nra.
                                                                                      36. Spies, M, Cook J. “A Top NRA Executive’s Trail of Business Flops and Unpaid
14. Maremont M. NRA Files Suit Against Ad Agency in Rift with Key Partner.Wall
                                                                                          Debt”, The Trace, October 1, 2018. https://www.thetrace.org/2018/10/nra-
    Street Journal, April 15, 2019. https://www.wsj.com/articles/nra-files-suit-
                                                                                          josh-powell/.
    against-ad-agency-in-rift-with-key-partner-11555320601; NRA v. Ackerman
    McQueen. Civil Complaint, filed April 15, 2019, paras. 24-28. https://www.wsj.    37. Ibid.
    com/public/resources/documents/NRAlawsuit041519.pdf.
                                                                                      38. Spies, M, Cook J. NRA Pays Lavish Executive Perks Even as It Cuts Costs.
15. Hakim, D. Incendiary N.R.A. Videos Find New Critics: N.R.A. Leaders. New York         The Trace, November 28, 2018. https://www.thetrace.org/2018/11/nra-josh-
    Times, March 11, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/us/nra-video-               powell-housing-allowance/.
    streaming-nratv.html.
                                                                                      39. Spies M. “NRA Sidelines Executive After Revelations of Insider Deals and
16. Melas, C. NRA TV depicts 'Thomas & Friends' characters in KKK hoods, CNN,             Lavish Expenses”, The Trace, December 3, 2018. https://www.thetrace.org/
    September 14, 2018. https://www.cnn.com/2018/09/13/entertainment/                     rounds/nra-josh-powell-sidelined/.
    thomas-the-tank-engine-nra-kkk-trnd/index.html.
                                                                                      40. Spies M. Secrecy, Self-Dealing, and Greed at the NRA. The New Yorker, April 17,
17. NRA v. Ackerman McQueen. Civil Complaint, filed April 15, 2019, footnote 2.           2019. https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/secrecy-self-dealing-and-
    https://www.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/NRAlawsuit041519.pdf.                  greed-at-the-nra.
18. Hakim, D. NRA Sues Contractor Behind NRATV. New York Times, April 15, 2019.       41. Hakim, D. Incendiary NRA Videos Find New Critics: NRA Leaders. New York
    https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/15/business/nra-nratv-lawsuit.html.                   Times, March 11, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/us/nra-video-
                                                                                          streaming-nratv.html.
19. National Rifle Association. 2017 IRS Form 990, Schedule O.
    November 5, 2018. https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5300476-
    NRA-2017-990.html.

13                                           THE NRA IN CRISIS                                                                everytownresearch.org/nra-in-crisis
42. Spies M. Secrecy, Self-Dealing, and Greed at the NRA. The New Yorker, April 17,   56. Nass D. A Guide to Every Known Investigation of the NRA. The Trace, February
    2019. https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/secrecy-self-dealing-and-              27, 2019. https://www.thetrace.org/2019/02/nra-investigations-russia-
    greed-at-the-nra.                                                                     campaign-finance/.
43. Ibid.                                                                             57. Stone P, Gordon G. FBI investigating whether Russian money went to NRA to
                                                                                          help Trump. McClatchy DC, January 18, 2018. https://www.mcclatchydc.com/
44. Palmer E. Is the NRA Going Bankrupt? Groups Claims It Will Soon Be Unable
                                                                                          news/nation-world/national/article195231139.html.
    to Exist Due to Financial Difficulties. Newsweek, August 4, 2018. https://www.
    newsweek.com/nra-going-bankrupt-group-claim-it-will-soon-be-unable-exist-         58. Murray S. Mueller wants to know about 2016 Trump campaign's ties to NRA.
    due-financial-1057187; Kohrman M, NRA’s Carry Guard Insurance Violates                CNN, January 22, 2019. https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/22/politics/mueller-
    New York Law; Broker Agrees to $7 Million Fine. The Trace, May 2, 2018.               nunberg-trump-campaign-nra/index.html.
    https://www.thetrace.org/rounds/nra-carry-guard-insurance-violates-new-
                                                                                      59. United States v. Maria Butina, Plea Agreement, US Department of Justice,
    york-law/.
                                                                                          December 6, 2018. https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5626096-
45. Jacey Fortin, “NRA Suit Claims Cuomo’s ‘Blacklisting’ Has Cost It Millions            US-v-Butina-Plea-Agreement-and-SOF-EXECUTED.html#document/p2.
    of Dollars,” New York Times, August 4, 2018. https://www.nytimes.
                                                                                      60. Harris AM. Maria Butina, Unregistered Russian Agent, to Be Sentenced
    com/2018/08/04/nyregion/nra-broke-financial-lawsuit.html.
                                                                                          April 26. Bloomberg, March 28, 2019. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/
46. Blosfield E. “Lloyd’s Underwriters Agree to Settle Charges Related to NRA-            articles/2019-03-28/butina-unregistered-russian-agent-to-be-sentenced-on-
    Branded Insurance”, Insurance Journal, December 21, 2018. https://www.                april-26.
    insurancejournal.com/news/east/2018/12/21/512805.htm.
                                                                                      61. Woodruff B, Banco E. Feds Target Butina’s GOP Boyfriend as Foreign Agent.
47. CLC Complaint Against the NRA. Campaign Legal Center, July 16, 2018.                  Daily Beast, December 5, 2018. https://www.thedailybeast.com/feds-target-
    https://campaignlegal.org/document/clc-complaint-against-nra; CLC, Giffords           butinas-gop-boyfriend-as-foreign-agent.
    Call on FEC to Investigate NRA Coordination with Rosendale Campaign.
                                                                                      62. Johnson C, Ewing P. Paul Erickson, Boyfriend Of Russian Agent Maria
    Campaign Legal Center, September 17, 2018. https://campaignlegal.org/
                                                                                          Butina, Charged In Fraud Scheme. NPR, February 6, 2019. https://www.npr.
    press-releases/clc-giffords-call-fec-investigate-nra-coordination-rosendale-
                                                                                          org/2019/02/06/687417296/paul-erickson-boyfriend-of-russian-agent-maria-
    campaign; Bergquist G. Complaint alleges unlawful coordination between
                                                                                          butina-charged-in-fraud-scheme.
    Hawley campaign, NRA PAC. KRCG, October 23, 2018. https://krcgtv.com/
    news/local/complaint-alleges-unlawful-coordination-between-hawley-                63. Letter to NRA Treasurer Wilson H. Phillips, Jr. Senator Ron Wyden, February
    campaign-nra-pac; Allison, B, Mosendz, P. Trump Campaign, NRA Illegally               2, 2018. https://www.finance.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/020218%20NRA%20
    Coordinated Ads, Groups Allege, Bloomberg News, December 7, 2018. https://            Russia%20Letter.pdf.
    www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-12-07/trump-campaign-nra-
                                                                                      64. Madden P, Mosk M. NRA discloses two dozen additional contributions from
    illegally-coordinated-ads-group-tells-fec; Murphy B. Burr’s 2016 campaign
                                                                                          Russian donors. ABC News, April 11, 2018. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/
    coordinated with NRA fund, liberal group contends in complaint. The News
                                                                                          nra-discloses-additional-contributions-russian-donors/story?id=54395292.
    & Observer, January 25, 2019. https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-
    government/article224978205.html.                                                 65. Letter to Senator Ron Wyden. NRA Secretary and General Counsel John C.
                                                                                          Frazer, April 10, 2018. https://www.scribd.com/document/376118036/April-
48. Campaign Legal Center, Complaint, Federal Election Commission, July 16,
                                                                                          10-Letter-from-NRA-to-Sen-Ron-Wyden#fullscreen&from_embed.
    2018. https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/4600152-7-16-18-NRA-
    FEC-Complaint-Final-1.html.                                                       66. Woodruff B, Ackerman S. Senate Intelligence Wants Documents on NRA’s
                                                                                          Russia Trip. Daily Beast, November 2, 2018. https://www.thedailybeast.com/
49. Raasch C. New Report Alleges Illegal Ad-Buying Coordination Between NRA
                                                                                          senate-intelligence-wants-documents-on-nras-russia-trip.
    and Hawley Senate Campaign. St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 13, 2019.
    https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/new-report-alleges-         67. Tur K. Senate intel committee grilling ex-Trump campaign members in
    illegal-ad-buying-coordination-between-nra-and/article_da164ac3-ed85-5f16-            Russia probe. NBC News, January 11, 2019. https://www.nbcnews.com/
    8d71-24a8d792fcee.html.                                                               politics/national-security/senate-intel-committee-grilling-ex-trump-campaign-
                                                                                          members-russia-probe-n957906.
50. Spies M. NRA Chief Wayne LaPierre Targeted in Congressional Inquiry Into
    Illegal Campaign Coordination. The Trace, February 7, 2019. See also https://     68. Mak T. House Oversight Panel Launches Inquiry Into White House
    raskin.house.gov/media/press-releases/raskin-whitehouse-demand-answers-               Security Clearances. NPR, January 23, 2019. https://www.npr.
    nra-alleged-campaign-finance-law-violations.                                          org/2019/01/23/687898389/house-oversight-panel-launches-inquiry-into-
                                                                                          white-house-security-clearances.
51. Mak T. “The Kremlin and GOP Have a New Friend—and Boy, Does She Love
    Guns”, Daily Beast, February 23, 2017. https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-         69. Letter to White House Counsel Pat Cipollone. House Committee on Oversight
    kremlin-and-gop-have-a-new-friendand-boy-does-she-love-guns.                          and Reform, January 23, 2019. https://oversight.house.gov/sites/democrats.
                                                                                          oversight.house.gov/files/2019-01-23.EEC%20to%20Cipollone-WH%20re%20
52. Helderman RS, Hamburger T. Guns and religion: How American conservatives
                                                                                          Security%20Clearances.pdf.
    grew closer to Putin’s Russia. Washington Post, April 30, 2017. https://www.
    washingtonpost.com/politics/how-the-republican-right-found-allies-in-             70. Letter to White House Chief of Staff John Kelly, House of Representatives
    russia/2017/04/30/e2d83ff6-29d3-11e7-a616-d7c8a68c1a66_story.html.                    Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, August 20, 2018. https://
                                                                                          oversight.house.gov/sites/democrats.oversight.house.gov/files/2018-08-20.
53. Madden P, Mosk M. NRA discloses two dozen additional contributions from
                                                                                          EEC%20Lynch%20to%20Kelly-WH%20re%20Bolton%20SF86%20
    Russian donors. ABC News, April 11, 2018. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/
                                                                                          Information%20Request.pdf.
    nra-discloses-additional-contributions-russian-donors/story?id=54395292.
                                                                                      71. Mak T. House Oversight Panel Launches Inquiry Into White House
54. Madden P, Mosk M. NRA says 2015 Moscow trip wasn’t ‘official.’ Emails,
                                                                                          Security Clearances”. NPR, January 23, 2019. https://www.npr.
    photos reveal gun group’s role. ABC News, January 30, 2019. https://abcnews.
                                                                                          org/2019/01/23/687898389/house-oversight-panel-launches-inquiry-into-
    go.com/Politics/nra-discloses-additional-contributions-russian-donors/
                                                                                          white-house-security-clearances.
    story?id=54395292.
                                                                                      72. Letter to NRA CEO Wayne LaPierre. Reps. Ted Lieu and Kathleen Rice,
55. Friedman D. Investigators Are Zeroing in on Top NRA Leaders’ Russia Ties—
                                                                                          February 19, 2019. https://lieu.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/reps-
    and Challenging the Gun Group’s Story. Mother Jones, February 1, 2019.
                                                                                          lieu-and-rice-question-nra-connection-2015-moscow-trip.
    https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2019/02/nra-russia-investigations-
    david-keene-pete-brownell/.                                                       73. Kerber R, Henry D. Citi sets restrictions on gun sales by retail clients. Reuters,
                                                                                          March 22, 2018, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-guns-citigroup/citi-
                                                                                          sets-restrictions-on-gun-sales-by-retail-clients-idUSKBN1GY29T.

14                                            THE NRA IN CRISIS                                                                 everytownresearch.org/nra-in-crisis
74. Bergh C. Levi Strauss CEO: Why Business Leaders Need to Take a Stand on            91. Coatson, J. Why the NRA is struggling. Vox, January 17, 2019, https://www.vox.
    Gun Violence. Fortune, September 4, 2018, http://fortune.com/2018/09/04/               com/policy-and-politics/2019/1/17/18167430/nra-2018-midterms-trump-
    levi-strauss-gun-violence-parkland/.                                                   spending-trouble.
75. Creswell J, Corkery M. Walmart and Dick’s raise minimum age for gun                92. Hakim D, Shorey R. Gun Control Groups Eclipse N.R.A. in Election Spending.
    buyers to 21. New York Times, February 28, 2018, https://www.nytimes.                  New York Times, November 16, 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/16/
    com/2018/02/28/business/walmart-and-dicks-major-gun-retailers-will-                    us/politics/nra-gun-control-fund-raising.html.
    tighten-rules-on-guns-they-sell.html
                                                                                       93. Maguire R. Audit shows NRA spending surged $100 million amidst pro-Trump
76. Anapol A. FedEx cuts ties with NRA. The Hill, October 30, 2018, https://thehill.       push in 2016”. OpenSecrets, November 15, 2017, https://www.opensecrets.
    com/business-a-lobbying/413913-fedex-cuts-ties-with-nra.                               org/news/2017/11/audit-shows-nra-spending-surged-100-million-amidst-pro-
                                                                                           trump-push-in-2016/.
77. Fortin J. A list of the companies cutting ties with the NRA. New York Times,
    February 24, 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/24/business/nra-                94. Stone P, Wieder B. NRA spent more than reported during 2016 election.
    companies-boycott.html.                                                                McClatchy, October 5, 2017, https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-
                                                                                           government/article177312006.html.
78. Lerner K, Israel J. The NRA is being supported by these companies.
    ThinkProgress, February 27, 2018, https://thinkprogress.org/corporations-          95. Hakim D, Shorey R. Gun Control Groups Eclipse N.R.A. in Election Spending.
    nra-f0d8074f2ca7/                                                                      New York Times, November 16, 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/16/
                                                                                           us/politics/nra-gun-control-fund-raising.html.
79. “These are the companies that have cut ties with the NRA”, Associated
    Press, May 2, 2018, https://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nra-            96. Bill Allison, NRA Spent Record Amount Lobbying Congress, With Little to
    companies-boycott-20180224-htmlstory.html                                              Show. Bloomberg News, February 5, 2019. https://www.bloomberg.com/
                                                                                           news/articles/2019-02-05/nra-spent-record-amount-lobbying-congress-with-
80. National Rifle Association. 2017 IRS Form 990, Line 8, Part I, November 5,
                                                                                           little-to-show.
    2018. https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5300476-NRA-2017-990.
    html. ($124,433,466 in 2016 and $98,026,531 in 2017).                              97. Bump P. The NRA appears to pull old lawmaker grades from its website.
                                                                                           Washington Post, June 12, 2018, https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/
81. National Rifle Association. 2016 IRS Form 990, Line 2b, Part VIII.
                                                                                           politics/wp/2018/06/12/the-nra-appears-to-pull-old-legislator-grades-from-
    September 18, 2017. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/
                                                                                           its-website/.
    organizations/530116130/201722619349300507/IRS990; National Rifle
    Association. 2017 IRS Form 990, Line 2b, Part VIII. November 5, 2018.              98. DeBonis M. After Las Vegas, Democratic House members donate their
    https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5300476-NRA-2017-990.html.                     past NRA contributions. Washington Post, October 6, 2017, https://www.
    ($163,517,961 in 2016 and $128,209,303 in 2017).                                       washingtonpost.com/powerpost/after-las-vegas-democratic-house-members-
                                                                                           donate-their-past-nra-contributions/2017/10/06/f8a373bc-aacc-11e7-850e-
82. Anapol A. Audit Shows NRA in the Red for Second Straight Year. The Hill, Sept.
                                                                                           2bdd1236be5d_story.html.
    20, 2018. https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/407590-audit-
    shows-nra-in-the-red-for-second-straight-year.
83. National Rifle Association. 2016 IRS Form 990, Line 2, Part V, Schedule
    R. September 18, 2017. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/
    organizations/530116130/201722619349300507/IRS990ScheduleR.
84. National Rifle Association. 2017 IRS Form 990, Line 2, Part V, Schedule R.
    November 5, 2018. https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5300476-
    NRA-2017-990.html.
85. National Rifle Association. 2017 IRS Form 990, Notes Payable and Credit
    Agreements, Notes to Financial Statements. November 5, 2018. https://www.
    documentcloud.org/documents/5300476-NRA-2017-990.html.
86. Yablon A. NRA’s TV Operation Lays Off Several Employees. The Trace,
    November 28, 2018. https://www.thetrace.org/rounds/nratv-layoffs-
    employees-ackerman-mcqueen/.
87. Hakim, D. Incendiary N.R.A. Videos Find New Critics: N.R.A. Leaders. New York
    Times, March 11, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/11/us/nra-video-
    streaming-nratv.html.
88. Yablon A. NRA’s TV Operation Lays Off Several Employees. The Trace,
    November 28, 2018. https://www.thetrace.org/rounds/nratv-layoffs-
    employees-ackerman-mcqueen/.
89. Spies M. Secrecy, Self-Dealing, and Greed at the NRA. The New Yorker, April 17,
    2019. https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/secrecy-self-dealing-and-
    greed-at-the-nra.
90. Ibid.

                                                                                                                               everytownresearch.org/nra-in-crisis
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