The National Rifle Association (NRA) will hold its annual convention this weekend in Houston. The event will take place over Memorial Day weekend from May 27-29, with 55,000 people expected to attend, according to Houston First, the city government’s tourist arm.
The event will take place at the George R. Brown Convention Center.
Among the guest speakers at this year’s event will be former President Donald J. Trump, Texas Senator Ted Cruz (R), and Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R).
All three have long been supporters of the NRA and its mission to protect the Second Amendment.
Some Democratic politicians had called for the NRA Convention not to take place as planned in the wake of the elementary school shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
At a vigil for the school shooting victims on Tuesday in Houston, U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Houston) called on the NRA to cancel the event, saying “it’s not the time.”
Beto O’Rourke, Governor Abbott’s Democratic opponent in the November general election, took to social media on Tuesday to call on Abbott not to speak at the event and order it to be moved out of Texas.
“Governor Abbott, if you have any decency, you will immediately withdraw from this weekend’s NRA convention and urge them to hold it anywhere but Texas,” he tweeted.
Trump is billed as the keynote speaker for the meeting. On Wednesday, he posted about the event on his social media platform Truth Social.
“America needs real solutions and real leadership in this moment, not politicians and partisanship. That’s why I will keep my longtime commitment to speak in Texas at the NRA Convention and deliver an important address to America,” Trump wrote.
Trump will speak Friday afternoon during the NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) Forum, which will begin at 2 p.m.
“It is truly an honor to have President Trump address NRA members for the sixth time at our 2022 NRA-ILA Leadership Forum in Houston,” NRA CEO Wayne LaPierre told Fox News on Thursday. “President Trump delivered on his promises by appointing judges who respect and value the Constitution and the Bill of Rights and in doing so helped ensure the freedom of generations of Americans.”
The event will be the first NRA annual meeting since 2019, as the previous two events were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Trump spoke during the 2019 annual meeting, stressing that his administration and supporters “believe in the right to self-defense and the right to protect your family, your community, and your loved ones.”
“We believe in the wisdom of our Founders. And we believe in freedom and liberty and the right to keep and bear arms,” he said.
In January of that year, Abbott posted a comic panel featuring Benjamin Franklin pointing at a sign that reads: “Disarming innocent people does not protect innocent people.”
“This says it all. @NRA,” Abbott wrote as the post’s caption.
The NRA has endorsed Senator Cruz in multiple elections, including his 2018 campaign against former U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke.
“Sen. Cruz is a champion of our Second Amendment freedoms and has always fought to protect the constitutional rights of law-abiding Americans,” said Chris W. Cox, chairman of the NRA’s Political Victory Fund, during the 2018 endorsement. “Ted Cruz’s support of our fundamental freedoms is unwavering, and the NRA is proud to endorse him.”
The event will also include speeches from South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem (R), Texas Senator John Cornyn (R), Houston-area U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R), and North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson (R).
The meeting is free to attend for all NRA members, their spouses, and their children under 18. Non-members wishing to attend must register to join the organization at specially marked tables on the first floor of the convention center.