WASHINGTON POST • April 28, 2021
The wounded elephant was on the ground, his hunters drawn close for the kill. But the longtime head of the National Rifle Association – touted as a skilled marksman – struggled to finish the job. Following a guide and clad in safari gear, Wayne LaPierre fires shots from a few feet away. The elephant’s breathing is labored. “I’m not sure where you’re shooting,” the guide says. One apparently errant shot later, another man steps in. The 2013 footage from a Botswana hunting trip – captured for a TV show that the NRA used to sponsor – never aired out of concern it could became a “public relations fiasco.” LaPierre at times appears to struggle with basic marksmanship and could have violated the NRA’s ethics code for hunters.