I have dubbed the NRA’s renewal as “NRA 2.0.” This isn’t a focus-group-tested slogan—we don’t spend your dues on things like that. I’m using this slogan because, when I’m asked about the recent changes, I want everyone to know right away that the NRA is under new management and that, with your help, we are moving resolutely forward to defend your liberty.
I want it to be very clear that we are dedicated to transparency. We use professional outside auditors and have strict financial guidelines for all our departments to ensure fiscal responsibility. You can find all the details at nra.org.
It is critical that we get this message out, as, without your trust, this association of freedom-loving Americans could still fade away. If we allow that to happen, more than our critical Second Amendment rights would be in jeopardy, because the right to keep and bear arms is literally the right each individual needs to protect their life.
President Joe Biden (D) and all of those with his blame-the-good-citizens-for-crime politics know the Second Amendment stands in the way of their ambition to completely control the American citizenry. This is why they have been trying so hard to marginalize, even to terminate, this association.
They don’t care that so-called “gun-free zones” make us less safe. To see how little they care, just look at the cities run by politicians with Biden’s politics, especially the ones with George Soros-funded district attorneys in them who are choosing to let violent criminals right back onto the streets again and again. If these officials really cared about law-abiding citizens, they’d change their policies; instead of doing this, they blame good citizens and our freedom for the actions of criminals that they, in many cases, released back into society.
The NRA is a family. We stand together in defense of our fundamental rights.
This can’t be allowed to continue. So, to stay in this struggle to keep and—where necessary—win back our freedom, we need your support and we need every American who cherishes their freedom to join in this fight. Everyone needs to know that the NRA is unflinching in its focus on winning the legislative battles, the court cases related to your Second Amendment freedom and the elections in which this freedom is effectively on the ballot. And the larger this association is, the stronger it is.
The NRA is a family. We get together to celebrate at events throughout the year. We have a shared ethos. We stand together in defense of our fundamental rights.
This is what I’ve been telling radio, television and print reporters, as well as all the gatherings of members I can speak with; indeed, when I step in front of people, I’m always delighted by the bright expectation in the faces looking back at me. This wasn’t always the case over the past five years. But it is now. All of us can feel the importance of this moment. We know and can feel that America needs a strong NRA.
When you speak to others, let them know that the NRA has never been what many in the mainstream media portray us to be. The NRA is an association of citizens gathered together to defend and to celebrate American values. The essence of the NRA is akin to the National Anthem, Independence Day and the U.S. Constitution. We are patriotic Americans who cherish our freedom. We are willing to advocate for our natural right to defend our lives with modern tools built for that purpose.
As such, the NRA is, and has always been, open to all who respect life, individual dignity and the equal rights of those around them; indeed, gun ranges are run like this—after all, if someone shows they respect their life and the lives around them by handling firearms responsibly, as the NRA rules of gun safety dictate, then they are welcome at the range. If, however, someone refuses to take the great responsibility of their freedom seriously, then they are a danger to themselves and to others; if that is the case, they will not be welcome at any gun range.
That’s a truism that is just as valid on our streets, in our parks and downtowns. The NRA represents a mature respect for this fundamental freedom. We are the good citizens standing together in defense of each other. We, and the freedom we carry, are not, as Joe Biden and those with his politics claim, a problem. We are the backbone of American freedom.
So, be proud to be a member of this association. Tell others who love their freedom they need to join us. Tell them that NRA 2.0 is everything it should be. Tell them we are the good citizens and that, if enough of us stand together, we will win.
