Gun Owners Alliance ALERTS!

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Dec. 23 Neal Knox Update – Yesterday’s New York Times discussed NRA’s $100 million deficit “net worth,” which was revealed in the Annual Report available to members – and the press – at the Orlando Annual Meetings in April.

They also reported that the NRA pension fund has a $9.9 million deficit, which according to NRA’s tax returns, hadn’t been contributed to for at least three years.  Further, that in 2001 management doubled its line of credit to $12 million, and quickly drew $10 million out.

But not to worry, Treasurer Woody Phillips told the Times, the deficit is due to unfulfilled obligations to provide members with magazines and services, and that the growing deficit is a “sign of strength,” indicating a growing membership.  Such optimism must be why his salary and benefits totaled $349,250 in 2002.

NRA’s response to members about the Times article is that the “deficit talk is just Neal Knox trying to create an issue,” trying to make a mountain out of a molehill.  Even in Washington, $100 million is a pretty good sized molehill.  I didn’t create it.

In 1997, when the Finance Chairman and I, as first vice president, raised the alarm at the Board meeting and Annual Meeting concerning huge expenditures without contracts and other bad business practices, the deficit was about $46 million.

Just for the record:  The New York Times called me, I didn’t call them. They asked for my response to what they had uncovered, which included NRA’s tax returns and other information that isn’t available even to Board members, much less ordinary members like us.

Director (and Vice President in the early ‘90’s) Wayne Ross told the Times he doesn’t mind deficit spending if NRA is “fighting the good fight.”  I agree totally.

And former Second Vice President Al Ross said that the members will always pony up the needed funds when it’s necessary.  Again, I agree.

And I told the Times reporters so.

The Times mainly wanted to know if the deficit meant NRA wouldn’t be able to mount the kind of campaign that helped elect George Bush and Republican Congressional majorities in 2000.

I told them it did not, that NRA could campaign as hard as necessary, for the members would provide the needed funds.  That must have been a disappointment to them.

But NRA is spending far too much on non-essentials – particularly poor quality public relations and excessive fundraising mail, which fattens the treasuries of NRA’s fundraisers, printing and mailing houses, and the U.S. Postal Service while driving away members.

And nothing has made me angrier than the millions of dollars given to the Republican National Committee – for some of that money was used in efforts to elect anti-gun Republicans and defeat pro-gun Democrats.

That wasn’t just unnecessary, that was stupid, and I told the Times so.  (Funny, but the N.Y. Times, which editorially endorsed Wayne LaPierre as NRA E.V.P. when I was challenging him in 1997, didn’t use that quote.)

While Treasurer Woody cavalierly dismisses the deficit, I know a lot of Directors don’t, and that there will be some serious belt-tightening when next year’s budget is presented at the winter Board meeting.

That’s good, for NRA isn’t the U.S. Government.  It can’t just print more money.  And NRA can’t continue deficit spending forever - not if it’s going to be around to fight for our gun rights.

See the NYTimes Article at: http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/nation/2311539