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Letter To NRA BOD Apr 28 2019
Letter To NRA BOD Apr 28 2019
My name is Tiffany Johnson. I am a Benefactor Life Member of the National Rifle Association. I’m
an NRA Training Counselor, a Regional Counselor for the NRA’s Refuse to Be a Victim® program,
and an NRA Chief Range Safety Officer. I teach NRA firearms safety classes to the public several
times a month. I’m also a lawyer and a legal studies instructor at my local university.
I attended the NRA Annual Meeting of Members on Saturday morning, and I am writing about a
contentious resolution that came to the floor. The resolution decried recent reports of fiscal
mismanagement centered around one of the NRA’s primary vendors, Ackerman McQueen.
Among other things, the resolution called for the resignation of members of the Audit Committee
as well as the NRA’s Executive Vice President, Mr. Wayne LaPierre. In light of the pending
litigation between Ackerman McQueen and the NRA, Secretary Frazer successfully moved that the
resolution be referred to the Board of Directors for consideration in consultation with legal
counsel.
As a practicing attorney, I fully understand the NRA’s interest in limiting public discussion of
sensitive matters that are currently being litigated. I agree that the Association is best served by
addressing the resolution internally rather than in the public sphere. However, I also understand
the arguments raised against referring the motion to the Board. The resolution cited allegations
of financial misconduct, self-dealing, and conflicts of interest within the Board of Directors, the
Audit Committee, and other parts of the NRA’s leadership team, based on their alleged
mishandling of vendor contracts and other business relationships with Ackerman McQueen. In
other words, referring the resolution to the Board would be, in effect, asking the Board to
adjudicate allegations against itself.
I want the National Rifle Association to succeed. At Saturday morning’s meeting, Mr. LaPierre
himself warned of the mounting existential threats we now face, both in the courtroom and in the
court of public opinion. Given the intensified scrutiny facing the Association right now, I fear that
yet another maneuver of impropriety (whether real or perceived) could be a proverbial death
knell. It would serve as perfect fodder for the media to publish yet another scathing exposé that
paints the NRA as roiled in unsavory scandal. It would also incite even more resentment from
within the organization and sow more division among our ranks. Although Mr. Frazer’s motion to
refer the resolution did ultimately succeed, the fierce opposition voiced by many in attendance
shows that members want this issue to be addressed in a more transparent fashion.
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Letter to NRA Board
April 28, 2019
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I have a humble suggestion to help avoid public airing of private business while also quelling
further cries of impropriety. When the Board addresses this resolution, I request that any Board
member, officer, or staff member who has a personal, financial, or fiduciary interest in, or
fidelity to, Ackerman McQueen (or its subsidiary and affiliate companies) — as an employee,
contractor, paid consultant, vendor, client, etc. — be required to recuse himself/herself from
discussing and voting on this resolution. That way, regardless of how the Board ultimately
disposes of the resolution, at least the result will be less vulnerable to accusations of ethically
dubious entanglements.
I ask that you please present this letter to the members of the Board of Directors before they
consider the resolution. I write this letter as a friend to the NRA and a genuine supporter. I hope it
is received in the manner it was intended, and I thank you in advance for your consideration. I am
the only signatory to this letter, but I have also included the names of fellow NRA members who
support my request. We have placed our trust in you as the elected leaders of this Association,
and we all send our best wishes for a productive Board meeting on Monday.
Sincerely,