Normally this has been a Bitter thing, but since she’s currently driving, I’m going to be the one doing it this year. As soon as I got a look at the floor on Saturday, I knew it was going to be a good convention. But how good? Record breaking good:
- 72,128 NRA Members went through the Exhibit Hall. That’s a record breaker, the previous being in Louisville at 66,229. Normally we only break the attendance record by a thousand or two, this year NRA broke its attendance record by just under 6000 people! So much for the narrative that NRA is out of touch with its members.
- Revenue for the NRA Store was $415,000 which is a record amount.
- NRA signed up $683,000 in new or upgraded memberships.
- The ILA dinner brought in $244,000, also a record.
- 9,466 people attended the Leadership Forum
- 11,754 people attended the Freedom Experience, which is normally the NRA Banquet.
This is a huge difference over last year in Phoenix. I think everyone is in agreement that this was a wildly successful Annual Meeting, despite all the setbacks and problems. Overall, I would like NRA to return to Charlotte, I’m sure the Site Selection Committee would like to return to Charlotte. The question is what is Charlotte, and the State of North Carolina willing to do to get us all back there?
Wow!
Great numbers. And, worth noting, I know of at least 10 people who attended the Freedom Experience on Saturday night who did not attend anything other part of the meeting or convention.
I wonder if NRA has any breakdown on the number of people who attended either the Leadership Forum or Freedom Experience (about 20,000 total) who did not go through the exhibit hall.
North Carolina is a very nice state, unfortunatly the City of Charlotte is not like the rest of North Carolina.
I have worked in Charlotte over the years as a consultant for a technology company. I have witnessed with my own 2 eyes the City of Charlotte’s evolution in to a politically correct, anti-second amendment zone.
You ask how has this happened in a great state like North Carolina?
It is real simple formula, Charlotte is the second largest banking center in the US, after New York City.
The first wave of anti-gunners showed up when Nations Bank bought Bank of America in1997 and executives from San Francisco showed up, brng with them their California anti-gun agenda.
As Charlotte grew as a banking center other institutions began to recruit talent from other banking cities: New York, Chicago, Boston, etc. Thus bringing in more deep pocketed executives who were anti-gun.
Fast forwared to today, there Wachovia has been sold to Wells Fargo and another wave of anti-gun executives is showing up from San Francisco.
Look ever the current govoner didn’t even show up, she sent a video and only talked about hunting and NASCAR. She is affraid to stick to her neck out to speak of the right to keep and bear arms, because she knows the banking executives in Charlotte are the ones she needs money from to run her campaign.
Ed,
The current state of North Carolina, with respect to their laws and attitudes towards guns, is not a recent change. They’ve been antigun for a long, long time. Originally it was anti-blacks having guns, now it’s anti-everyone having guns. The Research Triangle and the many large universities have helped that along immeasurably.
The place is considered the Massachusetts of the south for a reason.
If it’s back in Charlotte, I won’t go… I’ll go to Pittsburgh next year since I can carry there… And Ed is absolutely correct, that is NOT the real North Carolina.
I dunno if I can 100% agree with Old NFO, in that I had such a good time the near total ban on legal carry (of course people willing to break the law can do whatever they want) was really breath-taking. Seemed like every place I went there were signs banning carry (which were binding) or alcohol being served. I hope, much like Arizona passing restaurant carry AND permit-less carry all between convention dates, maybe this HUGE cash and public relations boon can get NC to start rethinking how stupid and restrictive their laws are.
And note this is being said by a resident of Massachusetts where our gun laws SUCK, but at LEAST you (as a resident) can carry here.
Thanks for the details.
Sebastian, Bitter:
Thanks for posting this info again this year. Your blog is the only source readily found with this sort of info.
Cheers,
David