A diminished National Rifle Association (NRA) is starting its annual convention on Friday in Houston, confronted with falling revenue, fierce legal challenges and renewed criticism for defending access to weapons used in a spate of deadly shootings.
But it is still a potent enough player in American politics to draw to its convention former president Donald Trump and Texas senator Ted Cruz, both beneficiaries of the organisation’s generous political spending.
The four-day event, billed as the “largest gathering of NRA members and Second Amendment supporters in the country”, comes after at least 19 children and two teachers were killed on Tuesday in a primary school in Uvalde, Texas.
As millions of Americans grieving and angry following the worst school shooting in a decade, American Pie singer Don McLean led a wave of country music dropouts from the three-day event, while the Republican Governor Greg Abbott said he would no longer appear in person.
McLean said it would be “disrespectful and hurtful” to perform at the “Grand Ole Night of Freedom” concert scheduled during the convention on Saturday. At least five other country music stars, including Lee Greenwood and Larry Gatlin, have also reportedly pulled out.
Mr Abbott — who has brushed aside increasingly emotional calls for tougher gun laws in Texas, where attachment to the right to bear arms runs deep — is expected to make a pre-recorded video address instead. The governor's lieutenant Dan Patrick also cancelled plans to speak at the event.
Facing mounting scrutiny, gun manufacturer Daniel Defense — which made the assault rifle purchased by the Uvalde gunman Salvador Ramos shortly after his 18th birthday — also decided not to attend in light of the “horrifying tragedy”.
The cancellation of the past two annual meetings ate into revenue for the group, which along with mounting legal bills has forced cuts to staff and member programmes, leaving it with a smaller presence than in previous years.
Matt Grossmann, a political science professor at Michigan State University, said the NRA was less powerful politically, but its real strength is its army of members willing to engage in politics.
“The mobilised base of gun owners and the symbolic importance of guns in conservative politics, both of which the NRA helped to build, will continue and are stronger than the organisation itself,” he said.
After peaking in the year Mr Trump was elected, the NRA’s revenue fell 22 per cent over the ensuing four years to $285 million in 2020, the most recent year for which data is available.
Its legal fees hit a record that year of $40m. Based on preliminary numbers, revenue are estimated to have slipped further in 2021 and legal expenses to have hit another peak, tax filings and internal documents show.
Andrew Arulanandam, managing director of public affairs for the NRA, said in an email that: “The NRA is sound and secure — defeating courtroom adversaries and defending constitutional freedom.”
The legal battles erupted with reports in 2019 of lavish spending by its longtime boss, Wayne LaPierre, and other senior officials, which sparked internal turmoil leading to the removal of its president, Oliver North, and the departure of its top lobbyist, Chris Cox.
The NRA, Mr LaPierre and other executives were sued by New York Attorney General Letitia James in 2020 over allegations that they had misused millions of dollars of the non-profit’s assets.
Facing the prospect that it could be dissolved, the NRA sought to avoid Ms James’s suit by using a bankruptcy filing as part of a bid to move its charter from New York to Texas.
After a federal judge declared that the NRA had filed its bankruptcy claim “not in good faith”, it found itself again facing the prospect of a New York trial.
Although a state judge dismissed the prospect of disbanding it as a result of a victory to Ms James, it could force the group to replace Mr LaPierre and the rest of its leadership.
Trump victory
Mr Trump’s victory in 2016 also dampened the NRA’s ability to raise money off the prospect of imminent threats to gun rights.
Its internal conflicts, competition from state groups, and its increasing partisanship diminished the NRA’s influence, said Richard Feldman, a former lobbyist for the organisation.
“The NRA in the last 20 years has really morphed into the National Republican Association,” Mr Feldman said.
The gun-rights group has remained active in politics, even though its spending has dropped in recent cycles from a peak of $54.4m in 2016 — a sum that included $31m spent to help elect Mr Trump, according to OpenSecrets.
As the group’s legal problems mounted, its spending dipped to $9.6m in the 2018 midterms, but rebounded to $29.4m in 2020, with most of that money backing losing campaigns.
It spent $16.6m backing Mr Trump, and $5.9m supporting Republicans in the run-offs for two Georgia Senate seats won by Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock.
The group logged more wins in 2020 in races where it spent less. It backed 109 successful House candidates, spending an average of $20,100, according to OpenSecrets, a non-profit group that monitors campaign donations.
The NRA has focused more on achieving or maintaining Republican majorities in the past few cycles than on rewarding the most ardent proponents of gun rights.
It has spent heavily in battleground states such as North Carolina and Florida, and in races with endangered Democratic incumbents, but little in relatively safe Republican states such as Texas.
When challenger Beto O’Rourke raised $34m more than Ted Cruz in 2018, the NRA spent only $91,000 on the incumbent’s behalf.
“You’re going to save most of your fire for the races that are going to decide who controls the gavels in Congress,” said Michael Beckel, research director at the bipartisan political reform group Issue One.
Mr Beckel said such strategic spending enhanced a special interest’s influence with the party.
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
Ads on social media can 'normalise' drugs
A UK report on youth social media habits commissioned by advocacy group Volteface found a quarter of young people were exposed to illegal drug dealers on social media.
The poll of 2,006 people aged 16-24 assessed their exposure to drug dealers online in a nationally representative survey.
Of those admitting to seeing drugs for sale online, 56 per cent saw them advertised on Snapchat, 55 per cent on Instagram and 47 per cent on Facebook.
Cannabis was the drug most pushed by online dealers, with 63 per cent of survey respondents claiming to have seen adverts on social media for the drug, followed by cocaine (26 per cent) and MDMA/ecstasy, with 24 per cent of people.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
UK's plans to cut net migration
Under the UK government’s proposals, migrants will have to spend 10 years in the UK before being able to apply for citizenship.
Skilled worker visas will require a university degree, and there will be tighter restrictions on recruitment for jobs with skills shortages.
But what are described as "high-contributing" individuals such as doctors and nurses could be fast-tracked through the system.
Language requirements will be increased for all immigration routes to ensure a higher level of English.
Rules will also be laid out for adult dependants, meaning they will have to demonstrate a basic understanding of the language.
The plans also call for stricter tests for colleges and universities offering places to foreign students and a reduction in the time graduates can remain in the UK after their studies from two years to 18 months.
