Updated at 2 p.m. ET

The attorney general of New York took action Thursday to dissolve the National Rifle Association following an 18-month investigation that found evidence the powerful gun rights group is “fraught with fraud and abuse.”

Attorney General Letitia James claims in a lawsuit filed Thursday that she found financial misconduct in the millions of dollars and that it contributed to a loss of more than $64 million over a three-year period.

The suit alleges that top NRA executives misused charitable funds for personal gain, awarded contracts to friends and family members, and provided contracts to former employees to ensure loyalty.

Seeking to dissolve the NRA is the most aggressive sanction James could have sought against the not-for-profit organization, which James has jurisdiction over because it is registered in New York. James has a wide range of authorities relating to nonprofits in the state, including the authority to force organizations to cease operations or dissolve. The NRA is all but certain to contest it.

The NRA said in a statement that the legal action was political, calling it a “baseless premeditated attack on our organization and the Second Amendment freedoms it fights to defend… we not only will not shrink from this fight – we will confront it and prevail.”

“The NRA’s influence has been so powerful that the organization went unchecked for decades while top executives funneled millions into their own pockets,” James said in a statement. “The NRA is fraught with fraud and abuse, which is why, today, we seek to dissolve the NRA, because no organization is above the law.”

James’ complaint names the National Rifle Association as a whole but also names four current and former NRA executives: Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre, general counsel John Frazer, former Chief Financial Officer Woody Phillips and former chief of staff Joshua Powell.

It lists dozens of examples of alleged financial malfeasance, including the use of NRA funds for vacations, private jets and expensive meals. In a statement, James’ office said that the charitable organization’s executives “instituted a culture of self-dealing, mismanagement and negligent oversight” that contributed to “the waste and loss of millions in assets.”

The lawsuit seeks to dissolve the NRA in its entirety and asks the court to order LaPierre and other current and former executives to pay back unlawful profits. It also seeks to remove LaPierre and Frazer from the organization’s leadership and prevent the four named individuals from ever serving again on the board of a charity in New York.

Allegations against CEO Wayne LaPierre

LaPierre, who also serves as CEO, has held the top position at the organization for nearly 30 years. In the attorney general’s lawsuit he is accused of using charitable funds for personal gain, including a post-employment contract valued at more than $17 million that was not approved by the NRA’s board of directors.

The lawsuit also claims that LaPierre received more than $1.2 million in expense reimbursements over four years, including gifts for friends, travel expenses and memberships at golf clubs and hotels.

And it alleges that he spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on private plane trips, including for extended family when he was not present; traveled to Africa with his wife on a safari gifted by an NRA vendor; and spent more than $3.6 million on luxury black car services and travel consultants in the past two years.

Those who attempted to blow the whistle on this behavior, the suit claims, were retaliated against by LaPierre.

Allegations against former CFO Woody Phillips, former chief of staff Joshua Powell and general counsel John Frazer

James’ lawsuit alleges that Phillips, whose job it was to manage the financial operations of the charitable organization, lied on financial disclosure forms and set up numerous deals to enrich himself and his girlfriend.

The New York attorney general claims that Phillips set up a contract for himself just before he retired and that the package was worth $1.8 million — purportedly for consulting services to the incoming treasurer. But the incoming treasurer told the New York attorney general that he was not aware of this contract. Phillips also directed a deal worth more than $1 million to his girlfriend, the suit alleges.

Meanwhile, James alleges that former NRA chief of staff Joshua Powell’s salary more than tripled a little more than two years into his tenure, which began in 2016. While he began at $250,000, Powell’s salary rose to $800,000.

Powell is also accused of directing charitable funds to be used for the benefit of his family members. The New York attorney general said that Powell approved of a $5 million consulting contract with the firm McKenna & Associates. That firm, in turn, hired Powell’s wife and passed her a $30,000 monthly consulting fee through the NRA. Powell also arranged for an NRA vendor to hire his father as a paid photographer, leading to $90,000 in fees for his father — funds that were ultimately billed to the NRA.

The New York attorney general did not allege that NRA general counsel John Frazer committed financial misconduct, but said that he failed to comply with board governance procedures, failed to ensure the NRA was in compliance with whistleblower laws and repeatedly certified false or misleading annual statements by the NRA.

The NRA’s other legal and financial challenges

Separate from the New York Attorney General’s actions Thursday, the District of Columbia attorney general also sued: this time targeting the NRA Foundation, an independent group incorporated in D.C.

Attorney General Karl A. Racine alleged that the foundation violated local laws by placing the NRA’s interests ahead of its own charitable purposes.

“Charitable organizations function as public trusts — and District law requires them to use their funds to benefit the public, not to support political campaigns, lobbying, or private interests,” Racine said. “With this lawsuit, we aim to recover donated funds that the NRA Foundation wasted. District nonprofits should be on notice that the Office of the Attorney General will file suit if we find evidence of illegal behavior.”

Even before today’s developments, the NRA was in dire financial straits. A secret recording of an NRA board meeting obtained by NPR in April showed LaPierre telling the audience that the NRA’s legal troubles have cost the organization $100 million.

“The cost that we bore was probably about a hundred-million-dollar hit in lost revenue and real cost to this association in 2018 and 2019,” LaPierre said, according to a recording by a source in the room. “I mean, that’s huge.”

Much of this has to do with its legal troubles. Facing congressional inquiries and investigations by multiple state attorneys general, as well as internal whistleblower complaints, the NRA’s finances have sagged under the burden of legal costs. In the ongoing litigation between the NRA and Ackerman McQueen, its former public relations firm, a brief filed by the firm on April 15 indicates its belief that the NRA has paid its outside legal counsel “over $54 million” in the past two years.

The turmoil at the NRA also could have political ramifications ahead of the 2020 elections. The NRA spent tens of millions of dollars in 2016 to support then-candidate Donald Trump — a role it appears it will be unlikely to be able to repeat given its current financial condition.

Updated at 2 p.m. ET

The attorney general of New York took action Thursday to dissolve the National Rifle Association following an 18-month investigation that found evidence the powerful gun rights group is “fraught with fraud and abuse.”

Attorney General Letitia James claims in a lawsuit filed Thursday that she found financial misconduct in the millions of dollars and that it contributed to a loss of more than $64 million over a three-year period.

The suit alleges that top NRA executives misused charitable funds for personal gain, awarded contracts to friends and family members, and provided contracts to former employees to ensure loyalty.

Seeking to dissolve the NRA is the most aggressive sanction James could have sought against the not-for-profit organization, which James has jurisdiction over because it is registered in New York. James has a wide range of authorities relating to nonprofits in the state, including the authority to force organizations to cease operations or dissolve. The NRA is all but certain to contest it.

The NRA said in a statement that the legal action was political, calling it a “baseless premeditated attack on our organization and the Second Amendment freedoms it fights to defend… we not only will not shrink from this fight – we will confront it and prevail.”

“The NRA’s influence has been so powerful that the organization went unchecked for decades while top executives funneled millions into their own pockets,” James said in a statement. “The NRA is fraught with fraud and abuse, which is why, today, we seek to dissolve the NRA, because no organization is above the law.”

James’ complaint names the National Rifle Association as a whole but also names four current and former NRA executives: Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre, general counsel John Frazer, former Chief Financial Officer Woody Phillips and former chief of staff Joshua Powell.

It lists dozens of examples of alleged financial malfeasance, including the use of NRA funds for vacations, private jets and expensive meals. In a statement, James’ office said that the charitable organization’s executives “instituted a culture of self-dealing, mismanagement and negligent oversight” that contributed to “the waste and loss of millions in assets.”

The lawsuit seeks to dissolve the NRA in its entirety and asks the court to order LaPierre and other current and former executives to pay back unlawful profits. It also seeks to remove LaPierre and Frazer from the organization’s leadership and prevent the four named individuals from ever serving again on the board of a charity in New York.

Allegations against CEO Wayne LaPierre

LaPierre, who also serves as CEO, has held the top position at the organization for nearly 30 years. In the attorney general’s lawsuit he is accused of using charitable funds for personal gain, including a post-employment contract valued at more than $17 million that was not approved by the NRA’s board of directors.

The lawsuit also claims that LaPierre received more than $1.2 million in expense reimbursements over four years, including gifts for friends, travel expenses and memberships at golf clubs and hotels.

And it alleges that he spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on private plane trips, including for extended family when he was not present; traveled to Africa with his wife on a safari gifted by an NRA vendor; and spent more than $3.6 million on luxury black car services and travel consultants in the past two years.

Those who attempted to blow the whistle on this behavior, the suit claims, were retaliated against by LaPierre.

Allegations against former CFO Woody Phillips, former chief of staff Joshua Powell and general counsel John Frazer

James’ lawsuit alleges that Phillips, whose job it was to manage the financial operations of the charitable organization, lied on financial disclosure forms and set up numerous deals to enrich himself and his girlfriend.

The New York attorney general claims that Phillips set up a contract for himself just before he retired and that the package was worth $1.8 million — purportedly for consulting services to the incoming treasurer. But the incoming treasurer told the New York attorney general that he was not aware of this contract. Phillips also directed a deal worth more than $1 million to his girlfriend, the suit alleges.

Meanwhile, James alleges that former NRA chief of staff Joshua Powell’s salary more than tripled a little more than two years into his tenure, which began in 2016. While he began at $250,000, Powell’s salary rose to $800,000.

Powell is also accused of directing charitable funds to be used for the benefit of his family members. The New York attorney general said that Powell approved of a $5 million consulting contract with the firm McKenna & Associates. That firm, in turn, hired Powell’s wife and passed her a $30,000 monthly consulting fee through the NRA. Powell also arranged for an NRA vendor to hire his father as a paid photographer, leading to $90,000 in fees for his father — funds that were ultimately billed to the NRA.

The New York attorney general did not allege that NRA general counsel John Frazer committed financial misconduct, but said that he failed to comply with board governance procedures, failed to ensure the NRA was in compliance with whistleblower laws and repeatedly certified false or misleading annual statements by the NRA.

The NRA’s other legal and financial challenges

Separate from the New York Attorney General’s actions Thursday, the District of Columbia attorney general also sued: this time targeting the NRA Foundation, an independent group incorporated in D.C.

Attorney General Karl A. Racine alleged that the foundation violated local laws by placing the NRA’s interests ahead of its own charitable purposes.

“Charitable organizations function as public trusts — and District law requires them to use their funds to benefit the public, not to support political campaigns, lobbying, or private interests,” Racine said. “With this lawsuit, we aim to recover donated funds that the NRA Foundation wasted. District nonprofits should be on notice that the Office of the Attorney General will file suit if we find evidence of illegal behavior.”

Even before today’s developments, the NRA was in dire financial straits. A secret recording of an NRA board meeting obtained by NPR in April showed LaPierre telling the audience that the NRA’s legal troubles have cost the organization $100 million.

“The cost that we bore was probably about a hundred-million-dollar hit in lost revenue and real cost to this association in 2018 and 2019,” LaPierre said, according to a recording by a source in the room. “I mean, that’s huge.”

Much of this has to do with its legal troubles. Facing congressional inquiries and investigations by multiple state attorneys general, as well as internal whistleblower complaints, the NRA’s finances have sagged under the burden of legal costs. In the ongoing litigation between the NRA and Ackerman McQueen, its former public relations firm, a brief filed by the firm on April 15 indicates its belief that the NRA has paid its outside legal counsel “over $54 million” in the past two years.

The turmoil at the NRA also could have political ramifications ahead of the 2020 elections. The NRA spent tens of millions of dollars in 2016 to support then-candidate Donald Trump — a role it appears it will be unlikely to be able to repeat given its current financial condition.

Updated at 2 p.m. ET

The attorney general of New York took action Thursday to dissolve the National Rifle Association following an 18-month investigation that found evidence the powerful gun rights group is “fraught with fraud and abuse.”

Attorney General Letitia James claims in a lawsuit filed Thursday that she found financial misconduct in the millions of dollars and that it contributed to a loss of more than $64 million over a three-year period.

The suit alleges that top NRA executives misused charitable funds for personal gain, awarded contracts to friends and family members, and provided contracts to former employees to ensure loyalty.

Seeking to dissolve the NRA is the most aggressive sanction James could have sought against the not-for-profit organization, which James has jurisdiction over because it is registered in New York. James has a wide range of authorities relating to nonprofits in the state, including the authority to force organizations to cease operations or dissolve. The NRA is all but certain to contest it.

The NRA said in a statement that the legal action was political, calling it a “baseless premeditated attack on our organization and the Second Amendment freedoms it fights to defend… we not only will not shrink from this fight – we will confront it and prevail.”

“The NRA’s influence has been so powerful that the organization went unchecked for decades while top executives funneled millions into their own pockets,” James said in a statement. “The NRA is fraught with fraud and abuse, which is why, today, we seek to dissolve the NRA, because no organization is above the law.”

James’ complaint names the National Rifle Association as a whole but also names four current and former NRA executives: Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre, general counsel John Frazer, former Chief Financial Officer Woody Phillips and former chief of staff Joshua Powell.

It lists dozens of examples of alleged financial malfeasance, including the use of NRA funds for vacations, private jets and expensive meals. In a statement, James’ office said that the charitable organization’s executives “instituted a culture of self-dealing, mismanagement and negligent oversight” that contributed to “the waste and loss of millions in assets.”

The lawsuit seeks to dissolve the NRA in its entirety and asks the court to order LaPierre and other current and former executives to pay back unlawful profits. It also seeks to remove LaPierre and Frazer from the organization’s leadership and prevent the four named individuals from ever serving again on the board of a charity in New York.

Allegations against CEO Wayne LaPierre

LaPierre, who also serves as CEO, has held the top position at the organization for nearly 30 years. In the attorney general’s lawsuit he is accused of using charitable funds for personal gain, including a post-employment contract valued at more than $17 million that was not approved by the NRA’s board of directors.

The lawsuit also claims that LaPierre received more than $1.2 million in expense reimbursements over four years, including gifts for friends, travel expenses and memberships at golf clubs and hotels.

And it alleges that he spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on private plane trips, including for extended family when he was not present; traveled to Africa with his wife on a safari gifted by an NRA vendor; and spent more than $3.6 million on luxury black car services and travel consultants in the past two years.

Those who attempted to blow the whistle on this behavior, the suit claims, were retaliated against by LaPierre.

Allegations against former CFO Woody Phillips, former chief of staff Joshua Powell and general counsel John Frazer

James’ lawsuit alleges that Phillips, whose job it was to manage the financial operations of the charitable organization, lied on financial disclosure forms and set up numerous deals to enrich himself and his girlfriend.

The New York attorney general claims that Phillips set up a contract for himself just before he retired and that the package was worth $1.8 million — purportedly for consulting services to the incoming treasurer. But the incoming treasurer told the New York attorney general that he was not aware of this contract. Phillips also directed a deal worth more than $1 million to his girlfriend, the suit alleges.

Meanwhile, James alleges that former NRA chief of staff Joshua Powell’s salary more than tripled a little more than two years into his tenure, which began in 2016. While he began at $250,000, Powell’s salary rose to $800,000.

Powell is also accused of directing charitable funds to be used for the benefit of his family members. The New York attorney general said that Powell approved of a $5 million consulting contract with the firm McKenna & Associates. That firm, in turn, hired Powell’s wife and passed her a $30,000 monthly consulting fee through the NRA. Powell also arranged for an NRA vendor to hire his father as a paid photographer, leading to $90,000 in fees for his father — funds that were ultimately billed to the NRA.

The New York attorney general did not allege that NRA general counsel John Frazer committed financial misconduct, but said that he failed to comply with board governance procedures, failed to ensure the NRA was in compliance with whistleblower laws and repeatedly certified false or misleading annual statements by the NRA.

The NRA’s other legal and financial challenges

Separate from the New York Attorney General’s actions Thursday, the District of Columbia attorney general also sued: this time targeting the NRA Foundation, an independent group incorporated in D.C.

Attorney General Karl A. Racine alleged that the foundation violated local laws by placing the NRA’s interests ahead of its own charitable purposes.

“Charitable organizations function as public trusts — and District law requires them to use their funds to benefit the public, not to support political campaigns, lobbying, or private interests,” Racine said. “With this lawsuit, we aim to recover donated funds that the NRA Foundation wasted. District nonprofits should be on notice that the Office of the Attorney General will file suit if we find evidence of illegal behavior.”

Even before today’s developments, the NRA was in dire financial straits. A secret recording of an NRA board meeting obtained by NPR in April showed LaPierre telling the audience that the NRA’s legal troubles have cost the organization $100 million.

“The cost that we bore was probably about a hundred-million-dollar hit in lost revenue and real cost to this association in 2018 and 2019,” LaPierre said, according to a recording by a source in the room. “I mean, that’s huge.”

Much of this has to do with its legal troubles. Facing congressional inquiries and investigations by multiple state attorneys general, as well as internal whistleblower complaints, the NRA’s finances have sagged under the burden of legal costs. In the ongoing litigation between the NRA and Ackerman McQueen, its former public relations firm, a brief filed by the firm on April 15 indicates its belief that the NRA has paid its outside legal counsel “over $54 million” in the past two years.

The turmoil at the NRA also could have political ramifications ahead of the 2020 elections. The NRA spent tens of millions of dollars in 2016 to support then-candidate Donald Trump — a role it appears it will be unlikely to be able to repeat given its current financial condition.

Joe Biden says that he believes prosecuting a former president would be a “very unusual thing and probably not very … good for democracy,” but he would not stand in the way of a future Justice Department pursuing criminal charges against President Trump after he leaves office.

The comments from the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee came during a virtual interview Tuesday with members from the National Association of Black Journalists and National Association of Hispanic Journalists.

“Look, the Justice Department is not the president’s private law firm. The attorney general is not the president’s private lawyer. I will not interfere with the Justice Department’s judgment of whether or not they think they should pursue the prosecution of anyone that they think has violated the law,” Biden told NPR’s Lulu Garcia-Navarro.

Trump has been connected with alleged illegal activity by his former lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen and investigators working for former special counsel Robert Mueller. What isn’t clear is whether federal authorities are investigating the president or whether prosecutors might take action against Trump if he no longer enjoyed the privileges that protect him from being indicted as a sitting president.

Biden made clear that any future prosecution against Trump would not be directed by him if he’s elected president.

“In terms of saying, ‘I think the president violated the law. I think the president did this, therefore, go on and prosecute him’ — I will not do that,” he said.

“If [a case] prove[s] to be a criminal offense, then in fact, that would be up to the attorney general to decide whether he or she wanted to proceed with it. I am not going to make that individual judgment,” Biden added.

Sen. Kamala Harris of California told The NPR Politics Podcast last year that if elected president, her administration’s Department of Justice would bring criminal charges against Trump after his presidency, saying, “I believe that they would have no choice.” Harris is a top contender on Biden’s shortlist for vice president.

Immigration

Biden also told Garcia-Navarro that he would not tear down parts of the wall along the U.S. southern border built during the Trump administration, but he vowed to end its construction.

When asked about asylum-seekers waiting in camps in Mexico due to the Trump administration’s policy known as “Remain in Mexico,” Biden said reversing Trump’s policies will have to be done with care.

“Because if we just say, ‘OK, all done. I’ve withdrawn the order,’ you’re going to have a crisis on the other side of the border as well,” Biden said. “And we shouldn’t be putting these people when they come across the border in jail; we should be monitoring them.”

Watch Biden’s response on rolling back Trump immigration policy:

The controversial “Remain in Mexico” policy, officially named the Migrant Protection Protocols, was first implemented in January 2019 and mandates that asylum-seekers coming through Mexico wait outside the U.S. while their immigration proceedings take place. As NPR’s Vanessa Romo reported, the policy has led to 60,000 migrants getting sent back across the border, with tens of thousands still there.

The U.S. Supreme Court decided in March to allow the program to continue.

Biden added that a push for more humanitarian resources is needed and said that Immigration and Customs Enforcement “is going to go back to school.”

“The idea that ICE is sitting outside of a Mass on Sunday to arrest a parent coming out as undocumented, the idea that they’re going to schools, the idea they’re going to doctors’ appointments is wrong,” Biden said. “You have so many young children, so many young children under enormous … psychological pressure wondering whether or not they’re going to come home and there’s going to be no one there.”

Choosing a running mate

Biden declined to offer new insight into his thinking for a vice presidential pick, telling the journalists, “You’ll find out shortly.”

CBS’ Errol Barnett pointed to reports that former Sen. Chris Dodd, who’s on Biden’s vice presidential search committee, has been critical of Harris for not having a more conciliatory tone toward Biden in the early primary debates.

“Well, [Dodd] didn’t say that to the press. He was talking to somebody offline, and it was repeated,” Biden said. “Now, I don’t hold grudges, and I’ve made it really clear that I don’t hold grudges. I think it was a debate. It’s as simple as that. And she’s very much in contention.”

Watch Biden’s response on VP speculation:

Reopening schools and businesses

Biden said it’s challenging to foresee what the country would look like in January if he were entering office then, but he said he would scale back reopenings in places seeing spikes of the coronavirus if he were president today.

“Everyone, wherever there is a significant percentage of people with COVID, should be required to keep social distancing and masks,” Biden said. “Bars should not be open. There should not be congregations of more than 10 people.”

As for the Trump administration’s desire to reopen schools this fall, Biden said it only works if it’s done safely.

“Look, I want our schools to open. The question is, will the president do the work he needs to make them safe? Just ordering your schools to open, like Trump has done, isn’t going to be good enough,” he said.

Biden’s plan includes giving school districts “uniform guidance without political interference” on safety protocols for schools that are able to reopen, directing resources to districts to implement guidance and bolstering virtual learning for districts that can’t reopen safely.

“Start working now to close the learning gap in terms of distance learning because of COVID. President Trump should stop tweeting and start doing his work,” he said.

Election security

“Frankly, this is the thing that keeps me up most nights,” Biden said in response to a question from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution‘s Tia Mitchell about voter confidence in a secure election. “Making sure everyone who wants to vote gets to vote, making sure that everyone’s vote is counted. And we’re going to undertake a historic effort in terms of resources, commitment to beat back every voter suppression effort.”

“No campaign has ever built anything to the scale that we’ve built to make sure we can get out the vote. We have a major, major dedicated operation in states to address the head-on voter suppression in any form that it’s going to take, and steps we can take to go to court as well,” he said.

The pandemic has caused election experts to worry about a shortage of poll workers for the general election, and states are preparing for an increase in mail-in voting this fall.

The White House has repeatedly advanced conspiracy theories surrounding the integrity of mail-in voting, and Trump went so far as to suggest delaying the November election based off the false claim that mail-in voting can be “rigged.”