The Weekly Reload Podcast

This week, we're examining the implications of Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin (R.) vetoing 30 different gun-control bills. Joining us to do that is Cam Edwards of Bearing Arms. He has long been one of the top pro-gun analysts out there. He also happens to live in Virginia, like me. So, he has paid special attention to the fight over guns in Virginia. Not just this year either, but for the last several election cycles. He argued the dynamics at play during this year's legislative session were pretty surprising. Not only did we not know what Youngkin would do with the dozens of gun bills that made it to his desk before he formally announced his vetoes, but the way those proposals got through the legislature was surprising too. Every Democrat in the state house held together to vote for every single proposal, even the more aggressive bans and restrictions. Cam said that was a fascinating development given the large grassroots backlash the party faced after its last attempt to enact sweeping gun reforms in 2020. He also argued the dynamic that has developed in the state's gun politics should be very concerning for gun-rights advocates. Plus, Contributing Writer Jake Fogleman and I discuss President Biden's approval on guns falling below 30 percent.Special Guest: Cam Edwards.

This week, we're looking at another Supreme Court case. This one involves the National Rifle Association, but not the Second Amendment. Instead, NRA v. Vullo is a First Amendment claim. On Monday, the High Court held oral arguments in the case. So, we've got FIRE's Bob Corn-Revere on the show to discuss how those went. He filed a brief in support of the NRA on behalf of the group. But he also has a long history in First Amendment litigation, including at the Supreme Court. He explained the basics of the case. Then he walked through why he believes former New York financial regulator Maria Vullo's efforts to get insurance companies to drop the NRA over its "gun promotion" activities ran afoul of the group's free speech rights. He also reacted to the questions each justice asked during arguments and gave some insight into what they tell us about how the Court is leaning. Plus, Contributing Writer Jake Fogleman and I talk about a report that shows the Maine shooter could have and should have been disarmed.Special Guest: Bob Corn-Revere.

Crime is a significant problem in Hartford, Connecticut, and some residents don't think local politicians and law enforcement are doing enough to combat it. Some of those residents have now decided to do organized armed patrols in Hartford's more dangerous neighborhoods. Cornell Lewis is one of the people doing that organizing. He runs a group called the Self-Defense Brigade, and he joined the show this week to explain his group's tactics and motivations. Lewis said he and the other volunteers who've been patrolling streets are fed up with the violence that has been carried out there. He said they want to show anyone considering committing violent crime that the community is capable of and willing to push back. The group gained local attention for its patrols last year but has gotten much more attention after it decided to step up efforts in the wake of a double homicide in the city last month. Not everyone has welcomed the group's efforts, though. Some local law enforcement, politicians, and community groups have said armed civilian patrols will only cause more problems for Hartford. Lewis responded to those critiques by saying the Self-Defense Brigade has no intention of being a vigilante group and is merely trying to train the community in lawful defensive techniques. Lewis said the group's methods have been effective, there have been no violent incidents associated with their marches, and none of the volunteers have been arrested or done anything illegal. Plus, Contributing Writer Jake Fogleman and I discuss a federal appeals court upholding Rhode Island's magazine ban. And we have a Reload Member on to discuss his experience as a recent convert to gun ownership in Washington, D.C.Special Guest: Cornell Lewis.

This week, we're answering your questions on the show! That's right, it's time for another Q&A episode of the podcast. The questions are submitted by Reload Members, then Contributing Writer Jake Fogleman, and I do our best to answer them. As expected, this episode features a lot of great questions that really stretch our knowledge. We tackled a wide variety of topics. Members asked about everything from permits in permitless carry states to the number of lifetime NRA members to the Supreme Court's view of machine guns. The questions take us all over the place. Plus, I describe how speaking to a group of Columbia University students earlier this week went.

Last week, a jury found the NRA did not safeguard its charitable fund or those who raised concerns about how they were being spent on former CEO Wayne LaPierre's lavish personal expenses. This week, we have one of those whistle-blowers on the show to give his view of the verdict as well as the group's future. Former NRA board member Judge Phillip Journey was among the eight insiders the jury said didn't receive protection when he spoke out about the group's mismanagement. He said the jury came to the correct conclusion. And he argued Judge Joel Cohen should appoint a monitor to make sure corruption is rooted out of the organization for good. Journey said he was sympathetic toward criticism of New York Attorney General Letitia James's (D.) political motivations. But he also said he had no choice in testifying at the trial, and the facts of the case were plainly against the NRA's current and former leadership. He argued drastic change is necessary for the NRA to survive and return to form. He explained the platform he and three other board candidates are running on in the current NRA election. Journey said he hopes the verdict and LaPierre's resignation will convince many current board members to join the reform effort, but acknowledged he hasn't gotten very far to this point and it's likely to remain an uphill internal fight. Plus, Contributing Writer Jake Fogleman and I dissect oral arguments in the Supreme Court's bump stock ban case.Special Guest: Phillip Journey.

On this week's episode, we dive into the details of the verdict in the NRA's corruption case. As Contributing Writer Jake Fogleman and I discuss, the top-line takeaways are not good for the gun-rights group's current and former leadership. The jury determined the NRA failed to properly safeguard its charitable assets or protect numerous whistle-blowers. It also found Wayne LaPierre diverted millions of dollars worth of NRA funds toward his personal expenses, which he will likely be forced to pay back. The ruling leaves the nation's largest gun group facing down the potential that Judge Joel Cohen could appoint financial and compliance overseers. That could wipe out the leadership that's taken the NRA down this road in the first place. For the former leaders, such as LaPierre and once-treasurer Woody Phillips, they face the potential of bankruptcy as the jury found they collectively owe upwards of $6 million to the members they stole from. Plus, lawyer Anna Barvir-Boone explains why a new step in the California gun case she's working on could signal a change of course for the Ninth Circuit. There's reason to think gun-rights cases could face less onerous legal fights on appeal in the future in the nation's most liberal circuit.Special Guest: Anna Barvir-Boone.

This week, Contributing Writer Jake Fogleman interviews me about what it was like in the courtroom as New York's civil trial against the NRA and its leaders reached closing arguments. Thanks to the support of Reload Members, I've been able to cover much of the case from inside the Manhattan court where it's happening. This is vital because there is no live stream of the proceedings and the transcripts aren't made available until well after the events of the day, if at all. So, spending the resources to be up there is vital to understanding what is actually happening in a case that will affect the future of the nation's largest gun-rights group, which has received only modest coverage from major media outlets. Jake asked me about how the closing arguments went. I did my best to summarize what the NRA, Wayne LaPierre, the group's top lawyer, and its former treasurer put up as their defense. And how the office of Attorney General Letitia James tried to rebut those arguments. I did my best to explain, but the answer went on for a while, and I wasn't able to hit every point. I probably could have talked for another several hours on how the case unfolded over the course of six weeks or even just the closing arguments, which went on for eight hours. Jake also asked me to predict the outcome of the case based on everything I saw in court. I don't think it's possible to predict exactly how the jury will rule on the many, many questions they have to resolve. But I did think significant parts of the jury instructions make an overall win for the NRA, LaPierre, and others very difficult to imagine. After going over my time at the NRA trial, we discussed my on-the-ground experience during Donald Trump's speech at the Great American Outdoor Show. The rally took place in Pennsylvania, a key state in what's looking like an inevitable rematch between Trump and President Joe Biden. But it wasn't as newsworthy as I'd expected it to be since the NRA didn't actually announce its endorsement of Trump. Instead, it was much more akin to a normal Trump rally. Trump made some specific promises about gun policy, but none of them were new.  The lack of an endorsement felt especially odd since the political speech was a new component of the event, and no other politician was invited, including Trump's remaining Republican opponent, Nikki Haley. And the speech was run like a rally, with the NRA repeatedly heaping praise on Trump and calling for him to be president again. The rally also featured moments where the crowd was encouraged to yell their shared disdain at the media in the room in what has been a staple of Trump rallies for years but which also fell more ominous after the events of January 6th. The crowd was energetic at points, cheering and laughing at Trump's now-familiar routine. But they also quieted down through long stretches of his stream-of-consciousness asides and the venue that started nearly full of Trump supporters was about half empty by the time he wrapped up an hour and 15 minutes after he'd arrived. Plus, I interviewed Jake about what happened to the rebranded effort to ban AR-15s and other guns in New Mexico.

This week, we're looking ahead to the end of the NRA's corruption trial that's set to arrive on Friday. To better understand exactly what's at stake in the case, I've brought on an expert in not just non-profit law but New York non-profit law. Pace University Law Professor James Fishman, who has written extensively on the subject, joins the show to give us some expert insight into the facts of the case and the potential outcomes. He provides an overview of what to expect once the case ends. Fishman argued the admitted misappropriation of funds by current and former NRA leadership, especially former CEO Wayne LaPierre, put the group in serious legal jeopardy. He also dismissed many of the arguments the group and its leadership have used in the case thus far. He painted a dim picture of the group's chances for success in the case. Fishman did admit New York Attorney General Letitia James (D.) erred when describing the NRA as a "terrorist organization" during her campaign. But he explained the NRA's repeated attempts to use her comments as a defense in the case failed because the AG built her case around provable instances of corruption and misappropriation of funds that have left the NRA in dire straights. He argued those facts would weigh more on the judge and jury than the AG's rhetoric. As for the likely outcome, Fishman said the NRA will likely end up with a court-appointed overseer in charge of vetting its financial decisions. He said the overseer could also force reform on the group's 76-member board and its opaque bylaws. Plus, Contributing Writer Jake Fogleman and I discuss the Hawaiian Supreme Court ruling putting the "Spirit of Aloha" above gun rights.Special Guest: James Fishman.

This week, we're changing pace a little bit. We tend to interview subject matter experts on whatever the biggest story of the week is. But with the election in full swing, I want to make sure we're paying attention to that. And I think it's especially important to take a look at those gun owners who don't necessarily fit into traditional partisan boxes, especially since that group appears to have grown over the past several years. That's why when I saw a short but interesting profile of Ben Beauchemin in a New York Times report during the lead-up to the New Hampshire primary, I thought it would be good to interview him. Luckily, he agreed to come on.  Ben owns a gun shop and custom AR-building business in New Hampshire, which might seem like a pretty easy indicator of his politics. But his beliefs don't necessarily line up perfectly with either party. And he's grown increasingly disillusioned with the political choices they offer up. He said it would be difficult for him to vote for President Joe Biden because of his pursuit of new gun restrictions. But he'd also have trouble voting for former president Donald Trump for a myriad of other reasons. And he isn't sold on former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley either. Ben also said he's been unhappy with the gun-rights movement in recent years. And he gave his view of how the industry has handled the shift toward gun owners with different backgrounds and beliefs, like himself. Plus, I give my firsthand report of what it was like inside the NRA's corruption trial up in New York City this week.

The NRA's corruption trial carried on last week with Wayne LaPierre taking the stand for the first time. So, I invited one of the best gunwriters in the country on the show to talk about it. Cam Edwards is not only the editor of Bearing Arms, but he's a former NRA News and NRATV host. That means he worked for Ackerman McQueen, which is the contractor at the center of the NRA corruption allegations. That gave him some special insight into how the relationship between the two sides. Cam was willing to be very candid about what he saw during his years at the organization. He said sometimes there were signs of outrageous spending, but he said those in the lower levels of each side didn't know about the kind of mismanagement LaPierre and others had admitted to in court. He decried the way high-level executives wasted NRA money on their own personal expenses. He pointed to former NRA CFO Woody Philips using the group's funds to commute from Texas to Virginia. He said he would often forgo reimbursement for legitimate business expenses when working on behalf of the NRA and never dreamed of using NRA funds for his commute after he moved several hours from the office he broadcast from. Cam said he knew many Ackerman and NRA employees who were as reserved in their expense accounting as he was because they believed in the group's mission. He said they also understood that the bulk of the NRA's money came from regular members giving money that was often a not insignificant part of their family budgets. He argued the corruption that ran rampant at the NRA was unacceptable and things need to change. But he also said the NRA is one of the most important institutions in the gun-rights movement and needs to be saved. Plus, I talk about my time at SHOT Show with Contributing Writer Jake Fogleman and the effect of the Biden Administration's pause on gun exports.Special Guest: Cam Edwards.