The NRA was long the organization with the least wealthy members. It wasn’t money that made them powerful (though they had a lot) it was they could show their average donation was an order of magnitude less than just about anyone else. They had lots of little guys donating money and that scared politicians - money is second to votes and all those little donations meant the NRA had a lot of voters who wouldn’t be swayed by any amount of money.
Yes, the NRA was originally a grassroots organization that was coopted over time. A lot of members kept their membership long after it had changed significantly, letting it keep apprmearances up.
The reality is that votes still matter more to politicians than money. The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) is hands down the most powerful lobby in the USA. Their power comes from their ability to get their message out to their followers who are the most likely group to vote in any election.
The NRA was long the organization with the least wealthy members. It wasn’t money that made them powerful (though they had a lot) it was they could show their average donation was an order of magnitude less than just about anyone else. They had lots of little guys donating money and that scared politicians - money is second to votes and all those little donations meant the NRA had a lot of voters who wouldn’t be swayed by any amount of money.
Yes, the NRA was originally a grassroots organization that was coopted over time. A lot of members kept their membership long after it had changed significantly, letting it keep apprmearances up.
The reality is that votes still matter more to politicians than money. The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) is hands down the most powerful lobby in the USA. Their power comes from their ability to get their message out to their followers who are the most likely group to vote in any election.
The NRA’s power comes from a similar place.