NY Attorney General Moves To Dissolve The NRA

[Cthulhu 2020]

I have not said individuals should not be held accountable for breaking the law.

It's the entire organization. Not just individuals. Again, stop defending criminals and criminal organizations just because you're politically bias. You're not for law and order at all. Your posts claiming you are is a joke.

[Kellhound]

republicans are the last people with any credibility about literally anything, but to answer the question, the overwhelming public bipartisan support for it is enough, if they are afraid of further legislation you know they can obstruct those the same as they obstruct nearly everything they are doing now.

They have no desire to see gun control become a boiling frog.

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Yes, they have. https://www.vox.com/2021/3/11/223197...hompson-murphy

They have literally passed it fucking twice.

Sigh..... My statement has two parts, you are only discussing one.

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Unions charge more than administrational costs so that they have a slush-fund they can use to pay their members if they ever need to strike. It's the main idea of a union, to use the capital of the union to support the members if they need to strike but still need to pay for food and rent.
The fact that you might not know this just shows that you are uneducated on how unions work and why they exist.

Unions charge more people than just their members though. I really don't care how much a union charges its members.

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Are you suggesting that GOP political body from the State to the Federal levels would ever sign off on stricter gun control laws of any kind? If you truly believe that then man do I have a bridge to sell you in Brooklyn. Republicans as a whole will never go for any stricter gun control laws and in fact want to abolish already existing gun control laws. Hell Texas is working on and other states have passed unliscensed open carry laws in there states so people can be strapped wherever they go in the state. Any shooting no matter how big or tragic Republicans refuse to budge. Hell after Sandy Hook and an entire First Grade class was murdered by a single guy with a gun Republicans as a whole shrugged their shoulders and proclaimed to the world "We already offered thoughts and prayers, what more could be done?" then went off to wag their fingers in shame at Democrats for "politicizing" the massacre of an entire First Grade Class.

You really think the GOP would not trade universal background checks for a prohibition on any further restrictions on firearms?

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You.... you what mate? You're accusing all unions of being criminal for violating laws that only exist in your head? That isn't how it works. That's not how ANY of this works.

Actually there are laws concerning how much unions can charge non-members.

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It's the entire organization. Not just individuals. Again, stop defending criminals and criminal organizations just because you're politically bias. You're not for law and order at all. Your posts claiming you are is a joke.

If you can prosecute the individuals, there is no need to bother with the organization, as all guilty parties will be dealt with. I don't believe in hiding behind an organization to avoid prosecution.

[Breccia]

NRA head Wayne LaPierre, testifying at corruption trial, confirms details of lavish lifestyle

Wow, this thread has been dormant. Oh well, same case.

Wayne LaPierre, the National Rifle Association’s longtime leader, confirmed under oath in a New York City courtroom Friday that he used the organization’s financial resources on chartered private jets, family trips, black car services and high-end gifts for friends.

LaPierre, 74, other NRA leaders and the organization itself are fending off a lawsuit brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James in 2020 that alleges they violated nonprofit laws and redirected millions of dollars of NRA funds for personal use.

He took the stand Friday morning for the first time, answering most questions with a simple “yes” or “no.” Citing health issues, he has previously said that he intends to resign at the end of the month from the gun rights group, which he has led for more than 30 years as its executive vice president.

LaPierre testified that he had no knowledge of the large sums the NRA was spending on chartered private planes and black car services, though he did not dispute the dollar figures when presented with invoices and receipts.

He confirmed under oath that NRA funds were used to bankroll a flight from the Bahamas to Washington, D.C., in 2017 that cost more than $22,000, for example. He conceded that NRA rules mandate that employees fly coach.

He testified that, on occasion, family members would fly on private planes when he was not present. He authorized a $11,000 flight taken by his niece Colleen Sterner, an NRA employee, and her daughter, for instance.

He testified that he and his family often traveled on a luxury yacht, known as Illusions, owned by David McKenzie, the head of a television production company that had a contract with the NRA. McKenzie and his wife hosted the LaPierres for vacations in the Bahamas and joined them for trips to India and Abu Dhabi.

LaPierre acknowledged that the NRA board did not approve these trips, and he confirmed that various financial disclosure forms he filled out in 2017 and 2018 did not detail his financial entanglements with a “non-NRA entity.”

McKenzie’s company, Associated Television International, produced a program called “Crime Strike,” which LaPierre once hosted. LaPierre was asked whether he knew that the NRA paid Associated Television “millions” for its services. He replied that he did not know the exact figure.

Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Conley showed jurors copies of reimbursement requests for gifts that LaPierre purchased for friends and associates over the years, including $830 candlesticks from Bergdorf Goodman for the McKenzies’ daughter.

Conley showed that LePierre had also submitted reimbursement forms for gifts from Neiman Marcus, Christmas tips for landscapers at his house, membership dues for a golf club in Washington and hotel rooms for Sterner, including a 2017 stay at the Beverly Hills Hotel that cost more than $6,000.

In the morning session Friday, LaPierre — brow furrowed and tone even — rarely elaborated on his answers beyond “yes” or “no.” He appeared most animated when answering questions about why he decided to open bankruptcy proceedings for the NRA, insisting that he did not do so to avoid regulatory scrutiny from New York state.

“I filed for bankruptcy to protect the NRA from dissolution and seizure of its assets by the attorney general, and to put NRA in a sound position for the future in a state where we would have a fair regulatory playing field, which was Texas,” he said.

The other defendants, including the NRA itself, are accused of violating nonprofit laws and internal policies as they enriched themselves, the suit says, contributing to the gun rights group's loss of more than $64 million in three years.

They are Wilson “Woody” Phillips, a former NRA treasurer and chief financial officer, and John Frazer, the corporate secretary and general counsel.

If the jurors find LaPierre, Phillips or Frazer liable, they will recommend the amount of money that each would have to repay the NRA.

State Supreme Court Judge Joel Cohen, who has the final say over monetary damages and remedies, could determine whether the defendants should be permanently barred from serving on the board of any charity in New York and whether an independent monitor should oversee the NRA’s finances

I did find it interesting at first that LaPierre was so forthcoming in, well, everything. Yes, he was under oath, and yes, the evidence against him was objective. I still didn't think he'd outright say "yes, I broke all the rules and took a lot of money, violating nonprofit laws on purpose". And, yet, here we are.

But after thinking about it, I have a guess as to why he didn't just refuse to answer, lie, etc.

LaPierre is retiring. Nothing that happens to the NRA is his problem anymore. He is

If you can prosecute the individuals, there is no need to bother with the organization, as all guilty parties will be dealt with. I don't believe in hiding behind an organization to avoid prosecution.

doing the opposite of this, he's not hiding behind the organization, he's selling them out. LaPierre might have to repay the NRA, he can probably afford to, but the NRA breaking the rules -- even if it was by his direction that they did so -- could get the NRA damaged in ways that simply writing a check won't fix. LaPierre doesn't care if he gets locked out of charity boards. <s> Oh no, he seemed like such a generous, upstanding guy </s> But if the NRA is declared no longer a nonprofit, and if a neutral outsider is put in charge, like bankruptcy, man that's a common topic these days, then the NRA will not function as we've come to know it.

[Breccia]

Former NRA chief Wayne LaPierre misspent gun rights group’s money, owes more than $4M, jury finds

The longtime head of the National Rifle Association, Wayne LaPierre, misspent millions of dollars of the organization’s money, using the funds to pay for an extravagant lifestyle that included exotic getaways and trips on private planes and superyachts, a New York jury determined Friday.

The jury found LaPierre, 74, must repay almost $4.4 million to the powerful gun rights group that he led for three decades, while the NRA’s retired finance chief, Wilson Phillips, owes $2 million. Jurors also found that the NRA failed to properly manage its assets, omitted or misrepresented information in its tax filings and violated whistleblower protections under New York law.

LaPierre, who announced his resignation from the NRA on the eve of the trial, sat stone-faced in the front row of the courtroom as the verdict was read aloud, and did not speak to reporters on the way out.

Well, he gave it his best...(sunglasses)...shot.

[Karreck]

Well, he gave it his best...(sunglasses)...shot.

I couldn't resist. But also, fuck the NRA.