Why Is the NRA So Powerful?
And Money Is Not the Answer
The common source of strength of the gun lobby that is repeated often by its detractors is “money”. “The NRA is lining the pockets of Republicans so that they can shut down any research into gun issues and any introduction of gun restricting laws in Congress!”. In fact, that is simply not true; The NRA has only spent a whopping $4.23 million dollars on members of Congress since 1998 (a nearly 20-year period). While not an insignificant sum by any means, by contrast, Alphabet — parent company of Google — has spent over $9 million dollars this year alone lobbying. So, where is the source of the real power of the NRA? Well the power of the NRA is not from money but simply organizing its members.
We must not forget that when it comes down to it if we want real change in our government or in our daily lives we need to be politically active. Which means calling our representatives in Congress, writing letters (if that is still a thing) and emails, and even simply protesting. But ultimately we must show up to vote. By simply not voting or voting third party you instead enable your worst-case scenario. Imagine if we had good voter turnout for once and Republicans wouldn’t have swept the House and Senate?
You can’t just write an article or a comment on a Reddit post or website and bemoan the current state of things. You have to actually organize. And this is the NRA’s greatest strength:
The N.R.A. enlisted the aid of a paid phone-calling organization to mobilize its members by forwarding willing participants directly to their senators’ phones. Regardless of what prompted the calls, what Senate staff members heard was the distinct and fevered outcry of a single-issue constituency with every intention of echoing its wrath at the ballot box. This was the N.R.A.’s base in action.
We have had a consistent barrage of doom and gloom articles coming from the left with no real call to action. As contrasted to those who are pro-gun — usually the right side — there is actual people organizing offline. There can and will continue to be a money in government discussion for a long time, as the NRA still continues to throw money into down-ballot elections across the country, but you cannot deny the effectiveness of a simple tactic like organization. For which the NRA influence is proof of that simple fact.
Some may still feel frustrated at the current state of things and the endless barrage of issues coming from the Republicans. It may suck that we must endure another mass shooting with no real effective gun restrictions following what happened in Las Vegas, but for those who are frustrated and want change for your cause, simply just organize like the NRA.
