This week, we’re looking at the relationship between President Donald Trump and the NRA.
We broke the news that Trump has decided not to speak at this year’s NRA Annual Meeting. It’s the first time he’s skipped the event in a decade, and it comes at a perilous time for the gun-rights group. I look at how bad things have gotten and whether the NRA can still recover in a piece for members.
We also have another ruling in an AR-15 ban case, this time out of Massachusetts. Montana also took an interesting step in the fight over “Red Flag” laws. Meanwhile, Contributing Writer Jake Fogleman explores the politics surrounding the most sweeping gun restrictions in Colorado’s history.
Plus, Larry Keane from the National Shooting Sports Foundation explains how tariffs might impact gunmakers on the podcast. We also have a lot of stories down in the links, including President Trump’s initial reaction to Thursday’s terrible shooting at Florida State University.
Trump Snubs NRA Convention
By Stephen Gutowski
For the first time since 2015, President Donald Trump won’t be speaking at the National Rifle Association’s Annual Meeting.
On Tuesday, the NRA confirmed President Trump would not be attending the event in Atlanta, Georgia, at the end of the month. It also said it had canceled the Leadership Forum, the part of the conference where Trump and other politicians usually address NRA members. It cited scheduling conflicts as the reason for Trump’s absence.
“Though President Trump is unable to attend the NRA’s 2025 Annual Meeting, he is always welcome on our stage to address our members and has done so on nine occasions over the last decade,” the NRA told The Reload. “As an NRA Life Member himself, President Trump remains a steadfast advocate for NRA members and a champion for the right to keep and bear arms. Considering the high level and pace of work being done by his administration on many fronts to make America great again and put America first on the world stage, we can understand that he has a complex, ever-moving schedule.”
Analysis: Can the NRA Still Pull Out of Its Tailspin? [Member Exclusive]
By Stephen Gutowski
The National Rifle Association is finally on the other side of its New York corruption trial with reformers firmly in control, but its existential crisis is still growing.
This week, President Donald Trump decided to bail on the gun-rights group’s annual conference for the first time since he began his political career in earnest. That blow came shortly after news that the NRA is still shedding members. Plus, two other lawsuits against it present more potential peril.
Can the NRA still survive?
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First Circuit Upholds Massachusetts ‘Assault Weapon,” Magazine Bans
By Jake Fogleman
The Bay State’s ban on the sale of certain semi-automatic firearms and ammunition magazines does not run afoul of the Second Amendment, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday.
A three-judge panel for the First Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously upheld the denial of a preliminary injunction against Massachusetts’ ban on the sale of “assault weapons,” such as the popular AR-15, and ammunition magazines capable of holding more than ten rounds. It determined that the logic of a prior ruling upholding Rhode Island’s ban on certain magazines applied to the weapons banned by Massachusetts law.
“A straightforward application of our prior holding in Ocean State Tactical supports the Commonwealth’s demonstration that the Massachusetts Ban’s AR-15 restriction ‘is consistent with the Nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation,'” Judge Gary Katzmann wrote in Capen v. Campbell. “This means that Appellants have failed to demonstrate at this stage that the Ban is unconstitutional in all its applications.”
Montana Bans ‘Red Flag’ Laws
By Stephen Gutowski
Big Sky Country won’t allow temporary gun confiscation orders at the state or local level.
On Monday, the Montana Legislature sent HB809 to Republican Governor Greg Gianforte’s desk. The bill bars localities from implementing their own Extreme Risk Protection Orders (ERPO), commonly called Red Flag laws, or accepting grants to pursue them. The state doesn’t have a Red Flag law, and, if the bill is signed into law, none of its cities or towns will be allowed to consider their own.
“The governor will carefully consider any bill that makes it to his desk and will always firmly defend the Second Amendment rights of Montanans,” Kaitlin Price, Governor Gianforte’s press secretary, told The Reload when asked if he plans to sign the bill.
Podcast: Tariffs and the Gun Industry (ft. National Shooting Sports Foundation’s Larry Keane)
By Stephen Gutowski
This week, we’re taking a close look at the state of the gun industry and the potential impact of President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
That’s why I’m interviewing the head of the gun industry’s trade group. National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) general counsel Larry Keane is back on the show to detail where the industry is at today and where it’s headed. Perhaps the biggest question to answer is what tariffs will do to domestic and foreign firearms companies.
You can listen to the show on your favorite podcasting app or by clicking here. Video of the episode is also available on our YouTube channel.
Plus, contributing writer Jake Fogleman and I discuss Colorado Governor Jared Polis signing the most sweeping and restrictive gun bill in the state’s history and what that says about gun politics in the Democratic Party. We also talk about major new developments at the ATF, both in terms of potential gun policy changes, as well as the announced shakeup in the top two leadership positions of the agency.
Analysis: The Thorny Politics of Colorado’s New Semi-Auto Law [Member Exclusive]
By Jake Fogleman
Colorado Governor Jared Polis (D.) just picked sides between a rock and a hard place.
On Thursday, Polis signed SB25-003 into law. As a result, beginning in August 2026, the manufacture, sale, and purchase of most semi-automatic firearms that can accept detachable ammunition magazines will be outlawed in Colorado. Only those who undergo special vetting from their local sheriff’s office, take up to 12 hours of training over multiple days from a soon-to-be-developed state-sanctioned class, and pay an undetermined amount in fees for both processes will be permitted to buy the common weapons covered under the law.
The new law once again puts Colorado in the national spotlight over gun politics, a potentially uncomfortable place to be for the man who signed it.
Polis, a soon-to-be term-limited Governor regularly floated as a potential 2028 presidential candidate, has worked hard to garnish a reputation as a political moderate with libertarian leanings. Until this week, that work extended to guns.
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Outside The Reload
Trump rejects calls for gun control after FSU shooting | AP News | By Darlene Superville
3 major gun bills advance in Oregon legislature | OPB | By Bryce Hole
That’s it for this week in guns.
I’ll see you all next week.
Thanks,
Stephen Gutowski
Founder
The Reload
