New York Attorney General Letitia James announced on Thursday that the state is moving to dissolve the National Rifle Association, charging the gun-rights organization with a string of “fraud and abuse violations.”
This is something James has wanted to do for a long time. She was openly hostile toward the organization during her 2018 campaign and vowed to investigate and break up the gun-rights group, which she called a “terrorist organization.” Sure enough, the promised investigation uncovered troubling finds, including alleged instances of NRA officers using its funds for vacations, private jets, and high-priced meals. In just the past three years, the NRA’s top executives allegedly drained the nonprofit group of $64 million.
But instead of treating the NRA like any other organization charged with fraud and corruption and penalizing the officials involved, James is aggressively pursuing its dissolution. When asked why, James said: “Because the corruption was so broad. And because of the level of waste. And because they have basically destroyed all of the assets of the corporation. It was critically important that one of the causes of actions, and one of the remedies that we are seeking is the dissolution of the NRA.”
If James’s allegations are accurate, the organization’s leaders are clearly greedy, inept, and eager to lead the NRA away from its original purpose in order to line their own pockets. When it was first founded, the NRA pledged to advocate for and defend the Second Amendment rights of gun owners. Expensing millions of dollars worth of personal gifts, memberships at hotels, and golf clubs does not serve that purpose.
But James’s attempt to dissolve the organization entirely should be seen for what it is: a political hit job. The state can certainly punish the NRA for using its charitable funds improperly. The government can also punish the individual officials involved in the alleged fraud. New York could even take away the NRA’s tax-exempt status within the state. But James cannot be allowed to decide that the national organization as a whole must cease to exist.
James has claimed otherwise, citing her previous legal action against the Trump Foundation. But she did not dissolve President Trump’s charity. He did. And it will be up to NRA leadership to follow that course.
At the very least, the NRA needs to conduct an internal review and begin reforming itself to increase transparency and accountability. An organization overrun by rampant corruption and abuse has no business claiming to be on the side of the Constitution. It’s disappointing that it took a politically motivated lawsuit such as this one to make that point.
