TargetTalk

BenEnglishTX wrote:Is there no longer any utility in pointing out that the NRA and the NRA-ILA are two different things? Or is my info so out of date that I'm wrong about that, too?

I had never heard of the ILA until now. I've never before seen a distinction made between the two.

Type of entity: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_ ... ssociation
IRS Description of the type of entity: https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profi ... anizations

Last paragraph explains the reasoning. NRA is a 26 U.S.C. § 501(c)(4) organization. NRA-ILA is a separate entity organized for political lobbying. Broadly speaking, a (c)(4) can engage in some political activity, but not too much and it's taxed. Rather than risk losing the ability to give donors to the NRA tax deductions for charitable contributions (which would effectively kill a LOT of donations), they likely spun off the political activities into a separate arm of the overall umbrella of NRA.

Without the legalese: the NRA-ILA does the lobbying so that the NRA doesn't get penalized for lobbying.

SlartyBartFast wrote:I had never heard of the ILA until now. I've never before seen a distinction made between the two.

A long time ago, when discussions like this came up, it was useful to point out that the NRA and the Institute for Legislative Action were different things. They are different business entities with different tax statuses and perform different functions. (Yes, they have the same leadership, just like most of the other entities under the NRA umbrella.)

When faced with:

"Don't be mad at the NRA! The NRA does:

• safety programs for hunters and new shooters;
  sanctions competitive shooting events;
  maintains a museum;
  partners with youth organizations like the Boy Scouts for outdoor activities;
  publishes a couple of magazines;
  certifies instructors as a crucial step toward their being able to teach LEOs and others;
  and even manages our shooters at the Olympic games.

If you don't like what's happening in Washington, don't blame the NRA. It's the ILA that does the lobbying. At least know who you want to be mad at."

plenty of people I talked to back then (and that last bullet point should tell you how long it's been since I used this line of reasoning.) would stop in their tracks and admit that the NRA sounded pretty good, even if they didn't like the lobbying.

I'm guessing that these days, as I alluded to before, the ILA tail wags the NRA dog so completely that making the distinction is meaningless outside the context of deciding who files what tax returns.