Less a Powerhouse Than a Parasite

WAYNE LAPIERRE, HEAD of the National Rifle Association (NRA) and supposed political giant, is actually an indecisive wimp who hides from staff, from public appearances, and from conflict while enjoying the perks of running a well-heeled nonprofit organization. That’s one juicy revelation in Tim Mak’s Misfire: Inside the Downfall of the NRA, an eye-opening and often gossipy exposé of the financial shenanigans and abuses of trust behind the organization’s legal woes. The NRA’s political enemies are savoring its troubles, but the book leaves the impression that the greatest beneficiaries of the group’s implosion could be advocates of self-defense rights, who could gain more honest, competent representation.

“After the shootings in Columbine High School in 1999, NRA higher-ups had a series of tense strategy sessions,” Mak, an NPR correspondent, writes. “When NRA executives and consultants arrived at one