Why a Weakened N.R.A. Still Gets What it Wants
The Political Scene | The New Yorker
The New Yorker
4.3 • 3.9K Ratings
🗓️ 2 June 2022
⏱️ 28 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The National Rifle Association has been one of the most feared groups in Washington, D.C., for decades. It profoundly reshaped the conversation around guns in America through a combination of financial prowess, lockstep messaging, and a ability to motivate its membership. But, in recent years, multiple lawsuits—including one from the New York State attorney general—have drained the organization's finances, and membership and revenue have declined precipitously. In light of this, and in the wake of several horrific mass shootings, the guest host and New Yorker staff writer Susan B. Glasser seeks out the root of our political gridlock on gun violence. She talks with Mike Spies, a reporter for The Trace and a contributor to The New Yorker who has reported extensively on the N.R.A. He argues that it’s time to stop attributing the Republican Party’s stance on the Second Amendment to the gun lobby. “I don’t think there is anything the N.R.A. can do to any federal lawmaker right now,” Spies says. “They don’t have the money to spend, they don’t have the contractors who are responsible for the messaging to help them carry out the rhetoric and campaigns that would have previously resonated with voters.”
Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choicesTranscript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Hi there, I'm Lale Arikoglu, and this podcast is brought to you by Wilderness, a conservation-driven |
| 0:06.4 | hospitality company that offers intimate world life encounters in extraordinary remote landscapes. |
| 0:12.5 | Last year, I embarked on two separate solo adventures with Wilderness, one to Botswana and the other |
| 0:18.2 | to Namibia, where the expert guides delivered a truly once-in-a-lifetime |
| 0:23.6 | experience. I promise you, whatever you watch and see before you go won't prepare you for the thrill |
| 0:29.4 | of a wilderness adventure. eBay, it's a place to fall in love with new pre-loved vintage and rare |
| 0:36.6 | fashion over and over again. |
| 0:39.0 | Your favorite designers, expertly authenticated. |
| 0:42.5 | Yeah, eBay. Things people love. |
| 0:48.5 | Welcome to the political scene. I'm Susan Glasser. |
| 0:52.3 | Here we go again. |
| 0:53.2 | The horrible shootings in Buffalo, |
| 0:56.1 | in Texas, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, just this week. |
| 1:00.4 | As a political reporter in Washington, |
| 1:02.8 | I've watched this cycle play out for decades. |
| 1:05.7 | A massacre and calls for gun control. |
| 1:08.8 | Politicians here in Washington throwing up their hands, saying |
| 1:12.1 | there's nothing we can do, the power of the NRA is just too strong. |
| 1:17.1 | Just the other day, that was the very first response that President Biden had to the latest |
| 1:21.4 | outrageous incident, to say, when is it going to be time to challenge the power of the gun |
| 1:26.6 | lobby? But maybe, just maybe, |
| 1:29.1 | it's time to rethink that narrative. In fact, in many ways, it's striking how much the National |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from The New Yorker, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of The New Yorker and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.