Clip from The Blind Side
What is the NRA?
The National Rifle Association (NRA) is the leading supporter of gun rights in the U.S. The organization is particularly stringent on each citizen’s right to bare arms. Founded in 1871, the NRA offers training on firearm safety, marksmanship and hunting. Having just reached 4.5 million members, the NRA holds a lot of power both financially and politically. The organization uses the concept of "gun ownership is a civil right protected by the Second Amendment of the Bill of Rights" as a political-backer. According to the National Rifle Association Headquarters home page (NRAHQ), the NRA's number one goal is to "promote and encourage rifle shooting on a scientific basis."
Current leaders of the NRA include:
Wayne LaPierre - Executive President & Chief Executive Officer
Chris W. Cox - NRA - ILA Executive Director
David Keene - President
Jim Porter - First Vice President
Allan Cors - Second Vice President
Kyle Weaver - Executive Director of General Operations
The NRA is currently working to prevent any form of stricter gun control laws from being passed. NRA grassroots organizer Miranda Bond told a group of young conservatives that, "Encouraging pro-gun friends to register to vote was a good start - and even better would be to discourage 'anti-gunners' from casting ballots" (Dickson).
According to an article written by Pema Levy in the Talking Points Memo, the NRA once supported universal background checks. However, the NRA does not feel the same about background checks now as they did years ago. "When it comes to background checks, let's be honest, background checks will never be universal because criminals will never submit to them," said NRA Vice President, Wayne LaPierre. A few months later LaPierre made a statement about background checks being part of an elaborate plan to confiscate Americans' guns.
"The only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun." - Wayne LaPierre
Crowds have heard this phrase from LaPierre after several previous mass shootings. This time however, he began his announcement only moments after a moment of silence for the 20 children and six adults murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. In his announcement, LaPierre placed the blame on the country's mental health system and described the mentally ill as "monsters walking the streets." He explained in his announcement that the true problem is that criminals and the dangerously ill can get their hands on guns.
The NRA is notorious for representing a very strict conservative view and as a result holds quite a bit of political sway. As the gun control debate heats up, the influence of the NRA is growing and it's statements are under more scrutiny. During moments of stress and anxiety many will use their opinions in place of the facts. As a team we found a few statements made by the NRA and fact checked them to see whether they held any truth or if they were using only their opinions to back their arguments.
Truth or Truthiness?
On Tuesday, September 4th, 2012 the NRA posted on the NRA ILA's website that, “Bill Nelson voted for a ban on millions of commonly owned firearms, which included many popular hunting and target rifles.
Fact Check: Truthiness.
According to PolitiFact, “In 2004, Nelson voted to extend the 1994 assault weapons ban. Yes, some hunters used the types of firearms that were then banned. But the ban applied to newly manufactured weapons, and gun makers quickly found ways to tweak banned guns to create "after ban" guns. Hunters or sportsmen still had plenty of choices -- literally hundreds since the ban explicitly listed more than 600 weapons used for hunting that remained legal. We rate this claim False.”
In an MSNBC interview on Tuesday, January 15th, 2013 Jackie Speier said, "Even members of the NRA, when they were polled recently, were under the impression that everyone has a criminal background check."
Fact Check: Mostly True
According to PolitiFact, "(Speier) relied on a poll conducted last summer by an interest group that broke out results for "current or lapsed" NRA members. It showed a majority of those NRA gun owners believe 'everyone who wants to buy a gun has to pass a background check.' While we didn’t find recent polls asking a similar question, we did find other polls showing that NRA members support background checks for all, including private purchases and purchases at gun shows."
**Update**
New York recently passed a new law called the Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act which bans the possession of any high capacity magazines, regardless of when they were made or sold, requires ammunition dealers to perform background checks, requires the creation of a registry of assault weapons and outlaws people with mental illnesses to own a gun. Andrew Cuomo, Governor of New York was quick to sign the legislation.
Response and Rebuttal:
The NRA's outraged response to the Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act: "While lawmakers could have taken a step toward strengthening mental health reporting and focusing on criminals, they opted for trampling the rights of law-abiding gun owners in New York, and they did it under a veil of secrecy in the dark of night."
Andrew Cuomo's defense: "This legislation is not about hunters, sportsmen, or legal owners who use their guns appropriately. It is about reducing gun violence and making New York a safer place to live."
You go Andrew Cuomo.
