2022 NRA - Always determined, stronger than ever, more influential than ever

The National Rifle Association, founded in 1871 following the Civil War to improve the firing capabilities of soldiers, has become one of the most powerful, rich and political lobby groups in the United States - with millions of members willing to defend the right to bear arms, despite standing firefighting victims On their way

Tali Goldstein

27/05/2022

Friday, 27 May 2022, 20:00 Updated: 22:30

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1968 was a historic year.

A year of groundbreaking changes in countries around the world.

A year of social, economic and political unrest, which called for economic, civic and class equality and rejected the language, values, culture and ideology of the bourgeoisie.

The events of May 1968 took place in France, which some call the "most important revolutionary event of the 20th century".

Protests against Vietnam raged in the United States, President Lyndon Johnson announced his resignation, the leader of the struggle for black rights Martin Luther King was shot to death, as well as the presidential candidate Bobby Kennedy.

The "second wave" of radical feminism is underway.

In Mexico, a student demonstration in Mexico City ended in a violent dispersal and police firing, ten days before the Olympics.

In Italy and Germany, students and workers collaborated to bring about social change.

In Belgium, students from the Flemish University in the city of Luban protested the command of the French language at the university, in Northern Ireland there were extensive demonstrations for civil rights, in Poland and Yugoslavia students protested against communist rule, and in Czechoslovakia a period of liberalization also came to fruition. , In the invasion of the Soviet Union and its allies in the "Warsaw Pact".

Another thing happened in 1968 - the US Congress imposed new restrictions on arms sales through the "Arms Control Act".

The bill came as a result of the assassination of US President John F. Kennedy in Dallas, Texas in November 1963. The president was shot by a rifle purchased and ordered through the mail, after the shooter inquired about his purchase following an advertisement in the American Rifleman.

Lee Oswald, the shooter of President John F. Kennedy (Photo: AP)

During congressional hearings before the law was passed, then-Vice President (NRA) Vice President Franklin Orth supported a ban on the sale and purchase of weapons by mail order service and stated: "We do not think any sane American who calls himself an American can oppose the inclusion of the tool that killed The President of the United States in this bill. "

surprising?

Not so.

Although the organization that supports the constitutional right to bear arms did not oppose sections of the law that restricted purchase by mail, demanded that all weapons have a serial number and restricted criminals, drug addicts and the mentally handicapped from buying weapons, but vehemently opposed the establishment of a national weapons database or license for all weapons.

The resistance was so fierce that it angered then-President Lyndon Johnson, who called the organization a "powerful lobby, a weapons lobby."

President Ronald Reagan in 1984 (Photo: AP)

Since then, the NRA has become increasingly the extremist, conservative, rich and influential organization that is recognized today.

The organization's agenda has become so extreme that this weekend, May 27-29, it is holding its 151st annual convention in Houston, Texas - the state in which 19 children and two teachers were killed in a shooting spree on Tuesday. 18 who purchased weapons via the Internet.

The event, described on the organization's website as "one of the most politically influential and popular events in the country," is particularly festive this year, as in 2020 and 2021 it was canceled due to corona restrictions.

This year, too, some well-known figures in the conservative Republican camp will participate in the forum, including former President Donald Trump, who is speaking for the fifth year in a row, Sen. Ted Cruz and Congressman Dan Crenshaw, both Republicans from Texas, South Dakota Governor and North Gov.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott was scheduled to speak, but because of the shooting in the town of Obleda this week, he decided to cancel his participation, despite his identification with the organization.

The only ones who may have canceled their participation are three musicians who were scheduled to sing at the event: Don Maclean, Larry Gatlin and Larry Stewart.

"I do not think it's the right thing to do right now," Gatlin told CNN.

"Although it would be a classic move on the part of the NRA, which now needs good public relations, if the event were canceled and instead a statement was published in the style, 'We will enter the hall and pray for the people, or hold a minute of silence, and the conference will be held at another time'" - but Forum organizers apparently disagreed with his recommendation.

How did an organization founded in 1871 to improve the shooting performance of United States military soldiers become a power that includes about 5 million members and one of the most influential and fear-provoking lobbying groups in Washington, D.C. and the other 50 capitals?

President Donald Trump at the 2018 NRA Conference (Photo: Reuters)

Today, the power of the NRA is legendary, especially the certificates the organization publishes that give AF scores to lawmakers in the United States.

Some believe that the credentials are responsible for the selection (or defeat) of many political candidates, including those currently in office.

Even half-grades can determine the fate of candidates, especially in the Republican primary, which is currently in full swing ahead of the midterm elections in November.

However, the organization's first major political achievement was the victory of Ronald Reagan, an NRA supporter, in the 1980 presidential election.

NRA spokeswoman discusses fire at NRA conference in 2018 (Photo: Reuters)

The organization's website states that "the organization is now recognized as one of the most significant political forces and the first defender of the Second Amendment to the Constitution. The NRA since its inception has been the leading educational organization when it comes to weapons around the world."

The NRA was founded out of a desire to improve the shooting capabilities of soldiers in the United States Civil War.

The goal was to teach a new generation of snipers, whether for combat, hunting or sports.

Even in the twentieth century the organization was known as a promoter of safety and proper use of weapons, and occasionally collaborated with the administration.

New York State even helped him acquire the first range.

The organization was based on the idea that the right to purchase, possess and use weapons is an integral part of life in school and rural areas in the United States - a right that is a symbol of freedom and individualism.

But controversy over that right arose after assassins shot at presidents Abraham Lincoln, James Garfield, William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt.

The American people began to discuss the availability of weapons and the need for restrictions.

Until the 1960s the NRA did not oppose certain restrictions on arms.

But at the end of the decade, the skyrocketing crime rate in U.S. cities caused many people to turn to the security of personal weapons.

Many NRA members wanted the organization to lead the trend.

In 1975 he established his first lobby arm, the Institute for Legislative Action (ISA).

It was headed by a Texas lawyer named Harlon Carter, a staunch opponent of immigration and a former Border Police commander.

"You do not stop crime by attacking the weapon, you stop crime by stopping the criminals," was his mantra.

Demonstration against NRA after shooting in Sandy Hawk in 2012 (Photo: GettyImages, By: Chip Somodevilla)

The change in the mission definition of the organization brought with it a new stream of political money.

Decisions of the Federal Election Commission and the Supreme Court have opened the window to unprecedented funding pools.

The NRA soon became a significant force in fundraising and investing in politicians' campaigns, and its support determined the fate of candidates at the federal level as well.

This influence gave the organization the power to pass legislation that supports weapons and at the same time stop attempts to restrict possession of weapons.

Carter said his team would be "so strong and so committed that no politician in America, who cares about his career, will want to challenge his legitimate goals."

The organization continued on this path even after Carter's retirement in 1985.

The NRA grew richer and its membership grew.

And whenever mass shootings happen or a Democratic president tries to win an election, stocks of arms manufacturers skyrocket.

In the 1990s the NRA suffered several defeats, following the assassination attempt on President Reagan in 1981.

In 1993, the "Brady Law" was enacted (named after Reagan spokesman Jim Brady, who was wounded in the assassination), which set a waiting period and other restrictions on weapons with Reagan's support - a devout NRA supporter himself.

The Democratic Congress also passed a ban on assault rifles.

However, the organization managed to freeze the implementation of the law for a decade, and in 2004, at the end of ten years, control of Congress was in the hands of the Republicans, who allowed its dissolution.

Over the years the organization began to be involved in legislation, such as the lawsuit against the ban on personal weapons in the District of Columbia.

The case went to the Supreme Court, which overturned the law in the historic Heller case law in 2008.

With the ruling, the NRA's agenda was also established and the idea that the right to bear arms is directed at the individual as well as the "army".

The judge who authored the ruling was Antonin Scalia, appointed by Reagan, and was the first NRA-backed Supreme Court president.

The weapon the shooter bought from Ovalda, Texas, online on his 18th birthday (Photo: Official Website, Instagram)

Thus the NRA educator became the organization we know today, responding in the same way to any horrific mass shooting incident, at school or not.

First, the organization maintains silence for several days and only offers its condolences.

He then begins to intervene in the hearing, through speakers and police officers.

The excuses are the same each time:

- The second amendment guarantees the right to "keep and carry weapons" and the Supreme Court even upheld the determination that this right applies to the individual and to militia organizations alike.

- The organization blames criminals, Hollywood, computer games and failure to address mental health issues with gun violence.

- He emphasizes that it is impossible to legislate laws that will remove all evil from the world.

- His mantra: "The only thing that can stop a bad man with a weapon is a good man with a weapon."

Families of Victims in Ovalda, Texas, May 25, 2022 (Photo: Reuters)

In 2020, New York State Attorney General Leticia James filed a lawsuit to dissolve the NRA, accusing its leaders of injecting millions of dollars - $ 64 million to be exact - from the organization to fund their extravagant lifestyles.

In early March this year, a federal bankruptcy judge blocked a lawsuit to dissolve the organization.

James expressed her disappointment and said she hopes to continue to expose the "fraud, exploitation, and greed that is flowing in the arteries of the NRA and its senior leadership."

NRA President Charles Cotton issued a statement saying "the message is clear and loud: the NTA is strong and confident in its mission to protect constitutional freedoms."

Steve Skelis, a Republican politician and member of the House of Representatives who serves as the Republican faction's whip and has an A + + rating from the NRA, was seriously injured when an gunman began firing in June at congressional baseball practice.

He recently said that on his desk are several bills that strengthen the rights of gun owners, beyond limiting them.

Skelis, who returned to work recently after a long recovery from his injury, told NBC earlier this month that the right to bear arms is not fundamentally limited:

"Our founding fathers wholeheartedly believed in arms rights for civilians. Do not try to enact new laws that do not solve the problems. It makes it difficult for citizens who obey the law to possess weapons. "

When asked if he thought gun rights were "unlimited," he replied, "Yes, yes. Yes."

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