NRA Says Money Problems May Render It ‘Unable to Exist’

The National Rifle Association is having serious financial issues that may render it “unable to exist… or pursue its advocacy mission,” according to a legal complaint filed by the gun-rights behemoth against New York state. In documents obtained by Rolling Stone, the NRA claims the state of New York subjected it to a “blacklisting campaign” that resulted in “tens of millions of dollars in damages” because it has lost insurance coverage, which it needs to “maintain its physical premises, convene off-site meetings and events, operate educational programs,” and “hold rallies, conventions, and assemblies.” Its inability to receive media liability insurance also jeopardizes the NRA’s TV programs and magazines, the gun group states in the complaint. In May, New York financial regulators determined that the NRA was illegally selling insurance policies to gun owners that protected them from court costs after they fired weapons in acts of “intentional wrongdoing.” The NRA claims that after this, New York went on to try to separate it from business partners. Gov. Andrew Cuomo has previously said the NRA’s case was “a futile and desperate attempt to advance its dangerous agenda to sell more guns.” An NRA financial disclosure from 2016 shows the association overspent by almost $46 million.