Nine Extreme Moments From The NRA's 2013 Annual Meeting

During the 2013 National Rifle Association annual meeting, held May 3 - 5 in Houston, Texas, the gun rights organization reaffirmed its hardline stance against any restrictions on firearms and hosted an over-the-top Glenn Beck presentation that depicted one of the NRA's political opponents as a Nazi.

NRA executive vice president Wayne LaPierre set the tone of the convention with a May 4 speech that warned of a “long war against our constitutional rights” and concluded with a message for media and political “elites” in America: “Let them be damned.”  

The meeting also involved the adoption of a resolution put forward by fringe gun activist Jeff Knox that stated the NRA will oppose all future gun restrictions. Also featured at the annual convention was a speech from newly-elected NRA president Jim Porter, a hardline gun rights activist, that included the claim that President Obama seeks to take "revenge" against gun owners.

In a freewheeling presentation billed as the “NRA's most important gathering of the year,” conservative radio personality Glenn Beck offensively portrayed New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg as a Nazi giving the Sieg Hail salute before concluding his hour-and-a-half long “Stand and Fight” speech by comparing the struggles of gun owners to those of the African-American civil rights movement.

Here are nine moments from the NRA's annual meeting that typify the fringe nature of the organization:

“We Shall Overcome:” Beck Adopts The Mantle Of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Referencing the Underground Railroad and lunch counter protests, Beck said that he hoped the NRA would join him in a passive resistance movement. At the apex of his speech, Beck stated, “We are the law-abiding God-fearing members of the NRA. We are Americans. And we will be clear. We will stand; we'll march if we have to. We'll stand because we must. But we will not be moved. Our right to keep and bear arms will not be infringed. We will follow the footsteps of Jesus Christ, we will follow the footsteps of Frederick Douglas, Winston Churchill, Thomas Paine, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, [David] Ben-Gurion, Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan, Ghandi, Thomas Jefferson and Martin Luther King, hear me now. Hear me now. We shall overcome.”

New NRA President Jim Porter: Obama Seeks “Revenge” Against Gun Owners

LaPierre: Recent Senate Action On Guns Only A “Skirmish” In “Long War Against Our Constitutional Rights”

Beck Portrays Jewish NYC Mayor Bloomberg As Nazi Giving The Sieg Heil Salute

Beck Compares Obama's Drone Policy To Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting

Beck's Warning: “Racists Like James Earl Ray Kill One ... But Histories Show Governments Kill Millions”

Beck Claims Thomas Jefferson Believed Muslims “Will Be The Death Of Us”

Beck claimed that that the Marines received the nickname leathernecks from a garment worn “so you couldn't be beheaded by the Muslim extremists,” and claimed that Thomas Jefferson included the following warning about Muslims in his personal Quran: “Pay attention to these people. They are not fooling around and they will be the death of us.”

NRA Adopts Absolutist Resolution Against Gun Regulation At Behest Of Fringe Activist

LaPierre's Message For Media And Political “Elites:” Let Them Be Damned"