I can’t believe it’s been seven months since I was elected NRA president, and I’m already composing my eighth President’s Column. The officers never fully anticipated or appreciated the immense challenges we faced when elected. Every day has brought a new obstacle, from repairing years of neglect and fighting legal battles to rebuilding trust and tackling political impediments. Words cannot express my gratitude for the relentless work and support of vice presidents Mark Vaughan and Rocky Marshall, your Board of Directors, non-board committee members, and Executive Vice President Doug Hamlin. You can be proud of the outstanding team now leading the NRA!
As a recap for those who might have missed some of my previous columns, after the officer elections, we focused our immediate efforts on rethinking how the Board of Directors should function. The Board had not changed how it operated in over three decades and desperately needed improvement. The Board is now executing its duties of formulating policies, governing and providing oversight.
In early August 2025, the officers held a weekend retreat with most of the committee chairmen. (Incidentally, this didn’t cost the Association a penny.) The gathering led to three key takeaways.
• The group agreed that the organization and the Board needs to develop a strategic plan that would support membership, programs, funding and communications so that the Board and staff work toward the same goals that our members are demanding.
• Much discussion focused on the value of NRA membership and how to engage more women and youth in the shooting sports.
• Competitive shooting was also a key part of the conversation. Since competitors are the heart and soul of many clubs, when competitors are unhappy, other club members tend to be unhappy as well. As a group, we agreed there must be a renewed commitment to competitive shooting.
I have read all your emails (and replied to many) and shared many of your concerns and suggestions with leadership, and with the membership and marketing division. Your communications have been essential in guiding our efforts to improve the NRA at nearly every level. Remember in my first column when I said, “Actions speak louder than words.” If you have been following my columns, you know we are now implementing real change.
Over the years, NRA has launched many programs that haven’t truly advanced our mission. I call them “feel-good” programs because they dilute our core efforts. The staff and other expenses associated with these programs need to be redirected toward what our members are demanding.
Your emails and calls have shown us that you want NRA to return to its roots, and we are listening and taking action. Your leadership team is now dedicated to refocusing the NRA on our core programs and transforming each into “Centers of Excellence.” We are developing multi-year strategic plans for each Center. These plans will include gathering input from the program’s stakeholders, ensuring strong staffing and funding, and implementing new marketing, streamlined websites and a comprehensive social media and member-engagement strategy. Annual reviews will assess performance and refine ongoing efforts.
Here are the Centers of Excellence we will initially focus on, listed alphabetically:
• Clubs and Associations
• Competitions: Traditional and New
• Education & Training
• Hunting & Wildlife Conservation
• Institute for Legislative Action
• Military & Law Enforcement
• Sport/Disabled Shooting
• Youth & Women Programs
The Board’s Finance Committee is working closely with the NRA Treasurer’s office to create budgets that allocate funding to where it is most needed, supporting these Centers of Excellence. Please continue sending us suggestions at [email protected].
If you are a voting member, this issue of the magazine includes a ballot for the NRA Board of Directors election. Out of the 26 directors whose terms expire this year, 11 are not running for reelection. Earlier this year, the officers provided to the Nominating Committee a skills and experience gap analysis of the current Board. The Nominating Committee put extensive effort into selecting and recommending candidates who filled these gaps. Several other candidates qualified for the ballot by petition of the members. Please review the candidate biographies for information on each candidate’s background and experience before casting your vote.
The Great American Outdoor Show—the largest outdoor sporting exhibition in the world—runs Feb. 7-15 in Harrisburg, Pa. Please try to join more than 250,000 of your Second Amendment friends to celebrate our unique freedom. Other NRA leaders and I plan to be at the show most days, so please stop by the NRA booth, say “Hi” and share your thoughts. We’d love to meet you in person.
Finally, mark your calendars for the NRA Annual Meetings and Exhibits, set for April 16-19 in Houston. You won’t want to miss the more than 14 acres of the latest guns and gear and all the other activities.
I hope to see you soon.
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