National Rifle Association leader Wayne LaPierre avoided a no-confidence vote that would have ousted him from the post he’s held for more than 30 years, just days after a school massacre recharged the debate over U.S. gun laws.
The proposed vote didn’t concern the shooting, but was drafted by NRA dissidents unhappy with LaPierre’s leadership, which has come under withering internal criticism in recent years. The motion’s author, Robert Ryan of Arkansas, accused LaPierre of “cowardice” for failing to carry a firearm for personal protection.
“In the last few years you have brought questioning and shame down on this organization,” Ryan said in an apparent reference to 2019 reports of lavish spending by LaPierre and others that triggered the removal of former President Oliver North and a top lobbyist.
