According to a new report by The Guardian, the NRA “faces a deepening financial crisis with over 200 staff layoffs and furloughs in 2020.” The story adds that “the situation is likely to hinder efforts by the [NRA] to help Trump and republicans win in November’s election”––a devastating blow to the organization that was the single largest outside spender in President Trump’s 2016 election.
 
The Guardian report, written by Peter Stone, tells the full story: 

• The real reason for the NRA’s struggles: NRA CEO Wayne LaPierre has consistently argued that the NRA’s struggles are a result of COVID-19, but the Guardian reports that the 200-plus layoffs and furloughs “were spurred by declines in revenues and fundraising, heavy legal spending, political infighting, and charges of insider self-dealing under scrutiny by attorneys general in New York and Washington DC.” 
• NRA official “deeply concern[ed]”: An anonymous NRA official went so far as to say that “layoffs and furloughs have further harmed both the NRA’s legal capacity and political influence beyond what was already a troubling deterioration.” The official added that the outlook for political spending on the coming election is “deeply concerning.” 
• Impact on the 2020 elections: According to “gun analysts” interviewed by The Guardian, the NRA’s woes “are expected to sharply reduce spending this year compared with the $30m the group spent on ads to help Trump win in 2016. They are also likely to mean cuts to its once formidable get out the vote operations in key states that historically provide big boosts to GOP candidates.” 

This report comes at a time when the NRA is “basically on life support,” with the Trump administration reportedly “aggressively reaching out to other gun groups” and the organization mired in financial, legal, and internal turmoil.