Heaven only knows why they would choose to draw attention to their internecine struggle. If they just stay under the radar, there are plenty of rubles to go around!
NY Governor Andrew Cuomo showed great sympathy for the organization’s troubles: “As for the NRA, we’ll remember them in our thoughts and prayers.”
Eureka! I just had a great epiphany that explains Trump completely. Everything he says and does makes complete sense once you realize that he doesn’t understand what the words “legally” and “illegally” mean. He probably thinks they are synonyms, like “flammable” and “inflammable.”
I don’t see how any investigations may be illegal, but Cuomo and New York State have arguably taken unconstitutional actions against the NRA. If a state government takes an adverse action against an organization because it dislikes the message that organization is advocating, that action may well violate the 1st Amendment. By sending letters to organizations with business relationships with the NRA and implicitly (or explicitly) threatening adverse regulatory actions against these organizations if they continue to do business with the NRA New York is violating the 1st Amendment if they are doing so because they dislike the NRA’s protected speech and lobbying. Based on Governor Cuomo’s statements about the NRA, I think the NRA will have an easy time proving an unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination. But if an investigation uncovers illegal activity by the NRA or it’s officers, I doubt the 1st Amendment will bar prosecution.