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TOP STORY
NRA Annual Meeting: Amid Palace Intrigue, The President Vows To Be Second Amendment ‘Champion’
The National Rifle Association’s (NRA) 76-member board convenes Monday in Indianapolis, a day after the 148th four-day NRA Annual Meeting concluded Sunday amid palace intrigue within the organization’s leadership, yet still resonating from Friday’s fiery guns-rights speech by President Donald Trump.
NRA officials announced Saturday that Oliver North had stepped down as the organization’s president with a resignation letter that said there is “a clear crisis” in NRA leadership.
A rift inside NRA leadership over allegations of financial misconduct pit NRA Chief Executive Wayne LaPierre against North in a very public feud.
LaPierre claimed in a letter to board members that he was being both pressured to give up his post and extorted by North, named president of the NRA last May.
According to The Wall Street Journal, LaPierre warned in his letter that Ackerman McQueen, the NRA’s largest advertising firm, was prepared to send a document to the group’s board at the direction of North that contained “a devastating account of our financial status, sexual harassment charges against a staff member, accusations of wardrobe expenses and excessive staff travel expenses.”
Despite the high-profile battle between LaPierre and North, which is likely to spill into Monday’s NRA Board meeting, the convention did offer highlights, most notably a fiery Friday speech by President Donald Trump, who vowed to fight for gun rights in addressing the NRA for the third straight year.
Trump said he was a “champion for the Second Amendment” and that gun rights are “under assault” during a speech frequently paused by ovation.
“But not while we’re here,” Trump said to raucous applause. “You better get out there and vote, [the 2020 election] seems like it’s a long ways away. It’s not.”
Trump announced he would withdraw the U.S. from the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty that the NRA and other civil rights groups have opposed since it was proposed under the Obama Administration in 2012, calling it “badly misguided.”
Trump told the NRA convention that he was officially revoking the United Sates’ status as a signatory of the treaty, which regulates international trade in conventional weapons, from small arms to battle tanks, combat aircraft and warships. Obama signed the pact in 2013 but it has never been ratified by Congress.
“Under my administration, we will never surrender American sovereignty to anyone,” Trump said. “We will never allow foreign diplomats to trample on your Second Amendment freedom. I hope you’re happy.”
For more, go to:
— President Trump Announces Decision to Withdraw U.S. from Arms Trade Treaty in NRA Speech
— Trump tells NRA he’ll fight for gun rights
— NRA announces North’s resignation onstage as ‘crisis’ hits gun lobby
— NRA Leadership Meltdown: Cut Out the LaPierre & Ackerman McQueen Cancer
— Sen. Casey pushes to end ‘boyfriend loophole’ in domestic abuse bill over NRA objections
— Democrats’ push for gun limits deepens us divide entering 2020
— AS DEMOCRATS USE SAN DIEGO SYNAGOGUE SHOOTING TO PUSH GUN CONTROL, CONSERVATIVES PUSH BACK
— Kamala Harris’ gun reform plan could be a light lift…and very effective
— At L.A. rally, Beto O’Rourke calls for gun control after Poway synagogue shooting
— Viral Claim Blurs Marijuana, Gun Policies
— Advocate Warns Of ‘Red Flag’ Gun Control Laws
IDAHO #1
Wallethub Study Examines What U.S. States Most Benefit From Firearms Manufacturing
According to the National Shooting Sports Foundation [NSSF], in 2018, the firearms industry contributed more than $52 billion in economic activity to all 50 states and gun manufacturers employed nearly 150,000 people, who paid more than $6.82 billion in taxes.
According to a WalletHub.com report released this month, among all the states, Idaho’s economy is most impacted by the firearms manufacturing industry.
In 2018, the firearms industry contributed to nearly $1.2 billion in economic activity to Idaho, employing more than 3,600 people, according to the report. The state also ranked in the top five in terms of “gun-friendliness” and the prevalence of guns.
Idaho began ramping efforts to attract the firearms industry in 2008 by touting its low wages, gun-friendly culture, and business climate, according to the Idaho Business Review. Employment by the firearms industry in Idaho has grew 40 percent between 2012 and 2017.
The Wallethub.com study—which ranked all 50 states based on how the firearms industry contributed to the economic development of the state from jobs to sales, how prevalent guns were, and how far the state supported gun rights—found that Idaho was the state that was the most dependent on the gun industry.
Alaska came in second place, followed by South Dakota, Wyoming, and Arkansas.
“Most states in the top ten have state law immunity to the gun industry, which means that the state provides immunity from bringing lawsuits against certain gun industry defendants,” WalletHub,com analyst Jill Gonzalez told Yahoo Finance. “They also have more lenient age restrictions to purchase and possess firearms. Senators from the top ten states voted to either loosen gun restrictions or against a measure adding restrictions.”
New Jersey ranked last, followed by Rhode Island, New York, Massachusetts and Delaware.
“Another interesting takeaway from the study,” Yahoo Finance Writer Aarthi Swaminathan writes, “is that while Texas had the highest number of registered firearms at 637,612 in 2018, it was only ranked no. 22 on the list.”
For more, go to:
— These are the U.S. states most and least dependent on the gun industry
— Female gun ownership and the rise of fashionable “carrywear”
— GLOCK Introduces the Modular Optic Ready G45
— Florida rifle manufacturer Adams Arms misfires, heads to auction
— CZ-USA TO BUILD $90 MILLION FACILITY IN LITTLE ROCK
STATE ROUNDUP
Colorado Supreme Court will Hear High-Cap Mag Ban Challenge
The Colorado Supreme Court will hear Rocky Mountain Gun Owners’ and the National Association for Gun Rights’ challenge of the state’s 2013 ban on “high-capacity” magazines in September.
According to Derek Draplin of Colorado Watchdog News, the court announced on Friday that it would hear the lawsuit filed by Rocky Mountain Gun Owners [RMGO] and the National Association for Gun Rights [NAFGR] in Denver County District Court seeking to overturn the law, which bans the sale or transfer of magazines that hold more than 15 rounds.
“There’s no doubt in our minds that the magazine ban is unconstitutional and that’s why we’ve been fighting against the law in the legislature and the courts,” RMGO executive director Dudley Brown said in a statement.
The law was adopted as an alleged anti-crime measure but, Brown said, crime has not gone down since the ban went into effect in 2013.
“We’re glad that the Colorado Supreme Court has decided to hear our case, and we hope that the Court will make the correct decision and overturn the 2013 law which we’ve been fighting against tooth and nail,” he said. “Law-abiding Coloradans deserve to have their rights restored, and the arbitrary ban on standard capacity magazines has done nothing to lower crime rates or keep Coloradans safe.”
For more, go to:
— Pro-gun group’s magazine ban lawsuit headed to Colorado Supreme Court
— With NRA in Indy, Indiana Gov. Holcomb signs bill strengthening ‘stand your ground’ law
— New Mexico: Governor, sheriffs discuss handling of gun control issues
— Oregon: Republicans Join Democrats on Gun Control Bill
— Pennsylvania gun violence activists set sights on new bill
— New Hampshire: Senate Committee to Hear Private Transfer Ban
— Iowa lawmakers seek to permit carrying stun guns on campus
— Colorado AG Weiser confident sheriffs will enforce state’s red flag law
— Rhode Island: Burrillville declares itself ‘sanctuary town’ for gun owners
— Tennessee: Pro-Gun Legislation Advancing in the General Assembly
— Washington: GOV. INSLEE SET TO SIGN 2 CONTROVERSIAL GUN BILLS
— Texas: House Will Vote on Two More NRA-Backed Bills Monday!
— Florida House bill allows guns in religious institutions
— California Assembly passes bill that would ban gun sales at Del Mar Fairgrounds
— Massachusetts: Advocates Search For Common Ground To Improve Gun-Storage Laws
— Alabama bill would take guns away from people deemed dangerous
— N.J. Gov. Phil Murphy Wants To Raise Gun Permit Fees by 2,000 Percent
Read Next: Banks Accused of Discrimination Against Gun Owners
IN THE COURTS
Federal Appeals Court Upholds Massachusetts’ ‘Assault Weapons’ Ban
On April 26, a federal appeals court upheld Massachusetts’ “assault weapons” ban, saying the law’s impact to Second Amendment self-defense rights is “minimal.”
In doing so, the appellate court tossed out a challenge by the Gun Owners Action League of Massachusetts [GOAL-M], which contended that Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey’s 2016 broadened classifications of “assault weapons” banned under 1998 state law to include “copies or duplicates” of AR-15s and other semi-automatic weapons is unconstitutional.
But the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals disagreed.
“This case concerns an issue of paramount importance,” the ruling reads. “In the wake of increasingly frequent acts of mass violence committed with semiautomatic assault weapons and [large-capacity magazines], the interests of state and local governments in regulating the possession and use of such weapons are entitled to great weight.”
GOAL-M and firearms retailers argued in the lawsuit that the AR-15 is not fully automatic, so it should not be classified as a “military-style assault weapon.”
Last year, a federal judge threw out the lawsuit, rejecting claims that it violated Second Amendment rights.
Healey praised the ruling on Twitter, calling it “a victory for families” and “a defeat for the gun lobby.”
Democratic Presidential candidate and Massachusetts U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren praised the ruling and lauded Healey for her “courageous work to stand up to the gun lobby & keep weapons of war off our streets.”
For more, go to:
— Appeals court throws out lawsuit against Massachusetts assault weapons ban
— Judge hears arguments in lawsuit over school safety assistants
— NRA Moves To Stop Los Angeles From Forcing Contractors To Disclose Gun Group Ties
— Los Angeles Vows to Defend NRA Disclosure Law Amid Lawsuit
— Gun control group sues FEC over alleged failure to act against NRA
— UW ATTORNEY’S FILE ARGUMENTS IN WYOMING SUPREME COURT GUN CASE