The latest news about the National Rife Association is going to have the Republican Party in a full-blown panic. Rolling Stone has just reported that is having major financial issues and could soon “be unable to exist… or pursue its advocacy mission.”
The NRA filed a lawsuit against the state of New York, complaining that the organization has been subjected to a state-led “blacklisting campaign” that cost the organization “tens of millions of dollars in damages.” The lawsuit stated that the NRA’s finances have been threatened because various institutions like banks and insurers have stopped doing business with them after being influenced by state lawmakers like New York Governor Andrew Cuomo (D). Because it couldn’t POSSIBLY be because of its abysmal response to recent mass shootings or the fact that the organization was reported to have ties to Russia, right?
The NRA said that this so-called “blacklisting campaign” has resulted in “concerted efforts to stifle the NRA’s freedom of speech and to retaliate against the NRA based on its viewpoints causing other insurance, banking, and financial institutions from doing business with the NRA.” The lawsuit also whines that negative influence will make companies “… rethink their mutually beneficial business relationships with the NRA for fear of monetary sanctions or expensive public investigations.”
The situation is actually quite dire for the organization. Because of all the income that’s been lost and due to the hesitance of insurers to do business with them, the NRA claims that “[i]t has not been able to renew its media liability insurance. If the group cannot secure a policy soon, it could be forced to shutter its multimillion-dollar television network, NRA TV, or a number of its print publications.” Wow.
The NRA also reported that if it does not get insurance, it “cannot maintain its physical premises” or “convene off-site meetings and events.”
This news will send Trump and the GOP into a panic for sure. You can read the NRA’s entire complaint here.
Featured image via Democracy Chronicles/Flickr
