The National Rifle Association
Following Mitch’s Money, Presentation by Doug Price on July 20th, 2020
A couple of years ago I watched a TV series titled The Americans. The central characters were Russian citizens brought to America to spy on America. Fast forward to 2016. Is this fiction the Truth?
In 2018 Maria Butina a 30-year-old gun rights enthusiast was the first Russian citizen convicted of conspiracy to act as an unregistered foreign agent of Russia within the United States. She was released in October 2019 and deported to her hometown of Barnaul Siberia. I understand it is really cold there.
She burst onto the scene when she connected with the NRA and started working to help the NRA connect with Gun Rights in Russia. She got involved with an American lobbyist (Paul Erickson) who is now in jail for other matters.
From an article by Anna Massoglia
the NRA disclosed spending on foreign fundraising for the first time in the gun rights group’s history.
While the NRA’s disclosed spending on foreign fundraising makes up only a small slice of the operation’s total 2018 outlay, the actual amount of money brought in by that fundraising is unknown. The NRA is not allowed to use foreign funds to influence elections. But as a 501(c)(4) nonprofit, it can continue to spend millions of dollars on political activity without revealing its funders, how much foreign money it takes in or what that money was spent on.
Prior to reporting $92,000 on foreign program expenses and $24,000 spending on foreign fundraising in 2018, the NRA’s previously disclosed overseas activities were limited to offshore investments in Central America and the Caribbean along with occasional trainings or events in that region and Europe.
Do we want American based organizations and American politicians receiving funds from foreign governments and/or potential pass through from foreign governments to politicians? Do we want foreign governments messing in our elections? I think 2016 election and the aftermath holds the answer to this!
Here are some NRA campaign contribution figures from Open Secrets – the Center for Responsive Politics.
In the 2020 election cycle NRA had donated
$264,773 to Republicans and a measly $2,640 to Democrats:
$206,000 to the NRA Victory Fund
$30,000 each to the Natl Republican Congressional and Senatorial Cmte
$16,000 to the Republican National Cmte
And $10,000 to Mitch
Most people will remember Jim Brady who was President Reagan’s Press Secretary until he was wounded during an assassination attempt of Reagan. The Brady organization continues work to pass universal background checks. Here is a Mitch related nugget from their web page: the NRA has contributed $1,267,139 to Mitch over his career. We heard from an earlier Moscow Mitch Monday contributor that a meeting with Mitch cost at least $25,000. I would guess that $1.2 million buys more than $25 thousand.
So what does Mitch think about guns? From a Washington Examiner OP Ed by Charlie Spiering in 2014: Does Senator Mitch McConnell own a gun?
“Of course Sen. McConnell has shot a gun but as a matter of principle he’s not interested in helping the left bully people into revealing what protection they may keep in their own homes,” McConnell campaign spokesman Allison Moore emailed in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
After the Marshall County KY school shooting where 2 people were killed in 2018 Mitch said: “I don’t think at the federal level there’s much that we can do other than appropriate funds,” McConnell is not in favor of gun control laws. He just wants to throw money at the schools rather than addressing the real problem. He thinks school security is the most likely way that schools can stop shootings. “You would think, given how much it takes to get on an American plane or given how much it takes to get into courthouses, that this might be something that we could achieve, but I don’t think we could do that from Washington, I think it’s basically a local decision.”
He added: “It’s a darn shame that’s where we are, but this epidemic is something that’s got all of our attention.”
Does $1.2 million buy dedication to the NRA?
Seems like there is another epidemic going on and at least he finally stepped up and said masks are a good thing. But he continues to remain silent about the current Administration’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic.
On our Moscow Mitch Monday presentation last week we heard from Congressman John Yarmuth. He said the House had approved a Universal Background Check measure but Mitch has not brought that bill forward along with almost 400 others. Congressman Yarmuth believes that Mitch doesn’t really care whether or not the bill would pass – he only cares about protecting Senators who would have to face constituents if the bill is considered.
I’ve said repeatedly that the key to all of this is people voting. Too many times only 45% of registered voters vote which indicates that you only have to win 23% of the vote. This means that 77% of the registered voters did not vote to elect our politicians.
We need voter turnout in November.
We need mail in balloting in November.
We must vote to Retire Mitch on November 3, 2020!
Doug Price is a member/treasurer of the MMRC and a regular participant on the #MoscowMitchMonday live stream, discussing Mitch and Money. Doug is an advocate of governmental change on the State/Federal level and has periodically worked on Democratic campaigns dating back to the 80s. Follow Doug on Twitter @ PriceDoug
