torshin

<font size="4" face="Times New Roman">=</font><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">see butina, not all logged here
</font><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">no direct to dearborn?</font></div><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">sessions</font></div><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">
</font></div><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">bak 1119</font></div><div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">do we know what russians gave $ to am pols?</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">=</font></div><div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">=</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">NRA blackburn? sanctioned pol gave her $</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://www.alternet.org/2019/10/gop-sens-ron-johnson-and-marsha-blackburn-are-tied-to-russian-money-and-trump-conspiracy-theories-theyre-not-alone/">https://www.alternet.org/2019/10/gop-sens-ron-johnson-and-marsha-blackburn-are-tied-to-russian-money-and-trump-conspiracy-theories-theyre-not-alone/</a></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">----</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">tenn free press</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/opinion/times/story/2018/jul/30/sohn-nras-russilink-hties-blackburn/475893/">https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/opinion/times/story/2018/jul/30/sohn-nras-russilink-hties-blackburn/475893/</a></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Tennesseans know the old truism: If you lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The universal meaning is simple: Be careful of the company you keep.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Ask Republican U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>Since March, she has been reading more and more headlines and stories that link her longtime friend and former campaign president, attorney G. Kline Preston IV, to the NRA/Maria Butina Russian money and election meddling questions.</b></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">The Tennessean has reported that in addition to representing Blackburn on campaign finance questions, Preston has claimed </font><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 153, 0);">Alexander Torshin</font><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"> as a Russian client and longtime friend. Torshin is the prominent Russian politician with close ties to President Vladimir Putin who is now under scrutiny for illegally channeling Russian funds through the National Rifle Association in an effort to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election. According to the Tennessean, Preston first introduced Torshin to then-president of the NRA David Keene in 2011, and the pair attended the NRA's annual convention in Nashville in 2015.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">Blackburn, a U.S. House of Representatives member since 2002 and now a Tennessee Senate candidate seeking Bob Corker's open seat, is a longtime NRA supporter and recipient of at least $34,700 in NRA donations</span>, according to opensecrets.com, which tracks campaign donations. According to the Washington Post, Blackburn received the most NRA money since 2002 of any Tennessee Congress member. <b>As in most campaign finance snapshots, that total listed for her includes only donations, not any possible expenditures by the NRA to oppose her challengers.</b></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">But by widening the lens, the NRA money picture gets a bit darker. The NRA spent $30 million on Trump's campaign in 2016 and another $40 million in various efforts to lobby and help elect Republicans, according to a recent New Republic report.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Now the arrest of Maria Butina, an alleged Russia spy who is said to have infiltrated the National Rifle Association, has turned up the heat on the NRA, Preston and Blackburn. Butina's indictment charging her with conspiring to influence American politics means further scrutiny into the NRA and its money trail. Although that investigation seems now primarily to be focused on the 2016 presidential election, the probe's fallout already is complicating the campaigns of Trump-clinging Republicans such as Blackburn, who also took NRA money and continues to court the NRA's support.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>A spokeswoman for Blackburn in March declined to answer specific Tennessean questions about Preston's work for the campaign or his relationship with Blackburn or her family members</b>. The Tennessean, however, quoted a very general statement from the campaign: "Congressman Blackburn believes Russia is not our friend — and thinks we need to treat Russia like any bully: we need to be strong enough to prevent them from pushing the United States and our allies around, and we need to draw firm lines and show them that America is not to be trifled with."<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">[vote 3x ~ cyber security for elections?!]</span></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">After Vice President Mike Pence appeared at a Chattanooga fundraiser for Blackburn last weekend, the Tennessee Democratic Party raised new questions, as reported by WRCB:</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>"Going back to her 2007 meeting with Russian diplomat Igor Matveev, Marsha Blackburn has a more than decade-long history of meeting with Russian nationals on Tennessee soil.</b> <span style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 102);">In 2012, she met with accused spy master Alexander Torshin when he visited Williamson County — her home county — as an election observer, squired by her former campaign president, attorney, and friend G. Kline Preston IV. Blackburn's actions speak much louder than her words," said Democratic Party spokesman Mark Brown.</span></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Blackburn spokeswoman Abbi Sigler responded to WRCB: "Marsha never had a meeting with the second individual," according to WRCB.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">On Monday, Washington Post conservative columnist Jennifer Rubin, who avidly opposes Donald Trump, quoted from the Tennessean story and wrote that "Republicans who were chummy with Russia-connected figures" are about to become an issue in Tennessee's U.S. Senate race.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>"Blackburn spent last week furiously trying to distance herself from Trump's Helsinki comments," Rubin wrote. "But if the issue comes down to who will hold Trump accountable on Russia and take oversight of Russia's far-flung influence racket seriously, Blackburn will find herself playing defense."</b></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Rubin noted that recurrent mass shootings and NRA rants have reminded Americans that the organization "has become a refuge for conspiracy theories and far-right extremism. Now the Russia story and the Butina indictment raise the question of why the GOP is in bed with a group the Russians allegedly used to meddle with our elections — and whether money Republicans took is tainted by the NRA's Russia connection."</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Blackburn's campaign did not respond Friday to a Times editorial page editor's request for a more timely and specific comment. However, on Sunday, the campaign sent us the same statement we noted here earlier — the one she gave to the Tennessean last March.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
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</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">PREVIOUS ARTICLE</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Sohn: Will 3D-printed guns shoot the NRA in the foot?</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">=</font></div></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">=</font></div><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">In 2015, a number of NRA officials attended Right to Bear Arms's annual gun conference in Russia. Among them were Keene, gun manufacturer and NRA first vice president&nbsp;</span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pete_Brownell" title="Pete Brownell" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">Pete Brownell</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">,</span><sup id="cite_ref-39" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Butina#cite_note-39" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none;">[39]</a></sup><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;conservative American political operative&nbsp;</span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Erickson(activist)" title="Paul Erickson (activist)" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">Paul Erickson</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">, and&nbsp;</span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milwaukee_County" class="mw-redirect" title="Milwaukee County" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">Milwaukee County</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;sheriff&nbsp;</span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Clarke(sheriff)" title="David Clarke (sheriff)" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">David Clarke</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">.<b> One of their hosts was Russian Deputy Prime Minister&nbsp;</b></span><b><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dmitry_Rogozin" title="Dmitry Rogozin" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">Dmitry Rogozin</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">, who in 2014 was&nbsp;</span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_sanctions_during_the_Ukrainian_crisis" title="International sanctions during the Ukrainian crisis" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">sanctioned by the White House</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;following&nbsp;</span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annexation_of_Crimea_by_the_Russian_Federation" title="Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">Russia's annexation of Crimea</a></b><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b>. </b>Clarke's trip cost $40,000, with all expenses paid by the NRA, Pete Brownell (an NRA board member and CEO of a gun-parts supply company) and Right to Bear Arms.</span><sup id="cite_ref-GunsReligionRussiaWapo20170430_27-2" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Butina#cite_note-GunsReligionRussiaWapo20170430-27" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none;">[27]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-40" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Butina#cite_note-40" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none;">[40]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-Schecter_41-0" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Butina#cite_note-Schecter-41" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none;">[41]</a></sup><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;According to a disclosure Clarke filed, Right to Bear Arms paid $6,000 to cover his meals, lodging, transportation and other expenses.</span><sup id="cite_ref-time031017_21-3" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Butina#cite_note-time031017-21" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none;">[21]</a></sup><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;During the meeting, Clarke met the Russian foreign minister and attended a conference at which Torshin spoke.</span><sup id="cite_ref-GunsReligionRussiaWapo20170430_27-3" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Butina#cite_note-GunsReligionRussiaWapo20170430-27" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none;">[27]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-Schecter_41-1" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Butina#cite_note-Schecter-41" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none;">[41]</a></sup><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;In November 2016, Torshin&nbsp;</span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twitter" title="Twitter" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none rgb(255, 255, 255);">tweeted</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;that he and Butina were lifetime NRA members.</span><sup id="cite_ref-mj1_36-1" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Butina#cite_note-mj1-36" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none;">[36]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-42" class="reference" style="line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Butina#cite_note-42" style="text-decoration-line: none; background: none;">[42]</a></sup></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"></font></div><div><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/nras-man-in-moscow-hit-by-new-us-sanctions"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">https://www.thedailybeast.com/nras-man-in-moscow-hit-by-new-us-sanctions</font></a></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b>Torshin, a Russian politician and Putin ally with close ties to the National Rifle Association, is one of the 24 Russians hit by fresh sanctions announced by the U.S. Treasury Department. </b>As previously reported by The Daily Beast, Torshin&nbsp;</span><a class="TrackingLink LinkWrapper" href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/whats-the-truth-about-the-nras-man-in-moscow" style="word-break: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); transition: color 0.15s ease 0s;">hosted an NRA event in Moscow</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;in 2015, and the FBI has looked into allegations that he funneled money into Donald Trump’s campaign through his friends in the pro-gun lobbying group. Torshin, the former deputy governor&nbsp;of the&nbsp;Central Bank&nbsp;of&nbsp;Russia,&nbsp;</span><a class="LinkWrapper LinkWrapper--external" href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/796465054094868480" style="word-break: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); transition: color 0.15s ease 0s;">tweeted in November 2016</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;that he had become a “life member” of the NRA. The Daily Beast has also&nbsp;</span><a class="TrackingLink LinkWrapper" href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-kremlin-and-gop-have-a-new-friendand-boy-does-she-love-guns" style="word-break: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); transition: color 0.15s ease 0s;">reported on Torshin’s close links</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;to Maria Butina, whose relationship with Paul Erickson, a decades-long Republican Party activist, has raised eyebrows in the investigation into Russia’s involvement in the 2016 election. Butina, a former aide of Torshin’s, has been heard bragging that she was part of the Trump campaign’s communications with Russia.</span></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">https://yyy.theguardian.com/us-news<b>/2019/mar/01</b>/nra-russia-investigations-gun-lobby</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
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</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>NRA in crisis: how the gun group became ensnared in the Russia inquiry</b></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>The Russia ties of NRA bigwigs are political and legal headaches that won’t go away</b></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Peter Stone in Washington</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Fri 1 Mar 2019 05.00 ESTLast modified on Fri 1 Mar 2019 13.16 EST</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">During the National Rifle Association’s May 2016 convention, where Donald Trump won the organisation’s coveted endorsement, board member David Keene hosted a private dinner that drew three Russian lifetime NRA members: a since-convicted Kremlin influence agent, her handler and mentor, and a previously unreported Russian who chairs a defense industry foundation, the Guardian has learned.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>For the powerful 5 million-member NRA, t</b>he Russia ties of Keene and other NRA bigwigs are political and legal headaches that won’t go away – not with the FBI and congressional panels pursuing lengthy probes into the Kremlin’s alleged scheme to influence the pro-gun giant’s top brass, other conservative groups and US politicians.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In fact, as American politics has become consumed with the impact of Russia’s attempt to disrupt the 2016 presidential election in favor of Donald Trump, the NRA and some top board members have also become ensnared in Russia-related investigations, delivering an unexpected blow as the NRA’s links to Russia come under increasingly close examination.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The links are a complex web as evidenced by two of those at the 2016 convention dinner. Ex-Moscow banker Alexander Torshin, who was sanctioned last year, and his gun rights protege Maria Butina, who in late 2018 pleaded guilty to being a Russian influence agent and is now cooperating with US law enforcement, spent years cozying up to the NRA and some of its leaders. Their goal was to “establish unofficial lines of communication with Americans having power and influence over US politics”, according to Butina’s later plea agreement.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
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</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">NRA: the 'growing storm' challenging group's legendary clout and power</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">&nbsp;Read more]</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">US prosecutors, who charged Butina with conspiracy to act as an agent of Russia, have indicated that GOP operative Paul Erickson, who worked closely with her, is a target too, and Torshin was her handler.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Moreover, Senate and House panels are also continuing probes that began in 2018 into the NRA’s Russia ties, and are looking harder at what NRA leaders knew about Butina and Torshin’s real goals, and a controversial trip they hosted in late 2015 in Moscow for several NRA honchos.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“The public record is clear that the NRA bent over backwards to help a Russian agent insinuate herself into conservative political circles,” Senator Ron Wyden, a member of the intelligence and finance committees, said in a statement. “The public has a right to know who at the NRA knew Torshin and Butina’s agenda, and why they were so eager to help these Russian agents.”</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Questions about the NRA’s Moscow ties and the gun group’s role in the 2016 elections were also spurred when McClatchy reported last year that the FBI was looking into allegations that Torshin and other Russians may have improperly funneled Russian funds into NRA coffers as part of its record setting $30m in pro-Trump spending.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">The NRA has stated it did not spend any foreign funds in the elections, which would be illegal, and<b> said it only received about $2,500 from Russian sources for non-electoral purposes in the 2016 cycle.</b></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Still, Russia intelligence veterans say Torshin’s work with Butina bears hallmarks of a Kremlin operation that targeted the NRA – and had some success.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“It’s most likely that the Kremlin reached out to Torshin or he went to them” about his NRA cultivation efforts, said Steven Hall, a retired CIA chief of Russia operations. “But either way, Torshin used Butina as part of the Kremlin’s broader influence efforts.”</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina and Torshin’s long cultivation of NRA leaders involved attending several NRA conventions, and wining and dining a group of NRA bigwigs including, board member Keene, who visited Moscow in late 2015 for a week of meetings with top Russian officials organized by the Butina-led gun group, Right to Bear Arms.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina actually began working closely in 2015 with Erickson, an NRA member and fundraiser, who facilitated her entree into Republican circles nationwide and was romantically involved with Butina.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The charging documents against Butina cite her efforts to influence an unnamed “gun rights organization”, which is said to be the NRA. Although Erickson and Torshin are not named in court filings, the descriptions of the two individuals who aided Butina match the roles that Erickson and Torshin played in her Kremlin-blessed influence operations.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The NRA’s Russia ties have drawn scrutiny in part because some of Butina and Torshin’s contacts with the NRA and the Trump campaign have echoes of the Kremlin’s broader operations to help Trump become president.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>Some close NRA allies say the Butina-Torshin efforts to woo the NRA was fueled heavily by Moscow’s interest in<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"> boosting Russian gun exports and easing sanctions, a key Putin goal.</span></b></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“It’s smart to follow the money,” said Joe Tartaro, the president of the Second Amendment Foundation and an NRA ally, that sent some officials to an inaugural event for Butina’s group in 2013 that Erickson and Keene attended.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“I think people in Russia tried to cozy up to the NRA as much as they could,” added Tartaro. “They were trying to open US markets. They were interested in export business, not just for arms but ammunition as well.”</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Further, emails from Erickson indicate that Torshin and Butina around the time of the 2016 NRA convention also tried to promote a meeting between Trump and Putin.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>The NRA not only spent a record $30m to help Trump, but gave him an earlier than usual endorsement at their May 2016 convention and critical early ad support before his campaign’s ad blitzes.</b></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Besides Torshin and Butina, the other Russian who dined with Keene at the NRA meeting was Dmitriy Osipkin, who chairs the Foundation for the Development of Promising Defense Technologies, according to two sources familiar with the dinner.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">That evening Donald Trump Jr was dining with a larger NRA contingent and others at the same restaurant, enabling Torshin to chat briefly with Trump’s son.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">These and other Russia linkages with the NRA and the Trump campaign seem to explain why special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe of Russian meddling in the 2016 elections has looked at the ties between the NRA and the Trump campaign, according to CNN.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Torshin’s contacts with the NRA began around 2011 when he attended his first NRA convention; two years later Keene and Erickson were in Moscow for a Right to Bear Arms meeting hosted by Butina and Torshin.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In December 2015, Torshin and Butina invited an elite NRA group to Moscow where they were feted at vodka and caviar dinners. On the trip were incoming NRA president Pete Brownell, NRA fundraiser Joe Gregory who runs a program for donors who kick in $1m a year, and Keene.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The NRA’s Moscow itinerary featured meetings with the foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, and the deputy prime minister, Dmitry Rogozin, who oversaw defense and munitions industries.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Maria Butina, who in late 2018 pleaded guilty to being a Russian influence agent and is now cooperating with US law enforcement, spent years cozying up to the NRA.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">&nbsp;Maria Butina, who in late 2018 pleaded guilty to being a Russian influence agent and is now cooperating with US law enforcement, spent years cozying up to the NRA. Photograph: AP</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Key congressional committees and Democrats have been particularly interested in learning more details about the NRA Moscow trip.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Last December, Wyden requested documents from and interviews with Keene, Brownell and ex-NRA president Allan Cors, who opted not to go on the Moscow trip in late 2015 after the NRA’s top executive Wayne LaPierre raised concerns with him about participating, Cors said in a statement. None have agreed to be interviewed by Wyden’s office, but Brownell has provided documents, said a source familiar with the requests.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">A Democratic aide with the House intelligence committee said in a statement that it expects to look more closely at the NRA’s Russia links and “whether and to what extent Russians sought to use the NRA as a back channel and the allegations that Russians may have funneled money through the organization to influence the election”.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Maria Butina: 'covert Russian agent' will plead guilty over effort to infiltrate NRA</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">&nbsp;Read more</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The NRA and other not-for-profits can accept foreign donations for non-electoral purposes, but it’s illegal for foreign funds to be spent on elections.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">NRA outside counsel William Brewer III said the NRA hasn’t found any evidence that Russian funds were spent improperly in the elections.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“The NRA believes that no foreign money made its way into the organization for use in the 2016 presidential election,” Brewer said in a statement. The NRA “has controls in place to vet contributions to the organization”.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">But Wyden and others in Congress remain generally skeptical of the NRA’s statements about its Russia links, and is seeking more financial records to verify the scope of their activities.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“The NRA has offered many different stories about its relationship with Russia,” Wyden added, stressing that “no one should take their statements at face value”.</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">mcclatchy</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="" /><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">no lnx</font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b>Russia investigators likely got access to NRA's tax filings, secret donors</b></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">BY GREG GORDON AND PETER STONE</div><div style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">JULY 02, 2018</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> 05:00 AM&nbsp;</span></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">WASHINGTON</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">For months, the National Rifle Association has had a stock answer to queries about an investigation into whether Russian money was funneled to the gun rights group to aid Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b>The NRA, which spent $30 million-plus backing Trump’s bid,</b> has heard nothing from the FBI or any other law enforcement agency, spokesman Andrew Arulanandam reiterated in an email the other day.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Legal experts, though, say there’s an easy explanation for that. They say it would be routine for Justice Department Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigators, who are looking at the NRA’s funding as part of a broader inquiry into Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. elections, to secretly gain access to the NRA’s tax returns from the Internal Revenue Service.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b>On the returns, the group was required to identify its so-called “dark money” donors -- companies and wealthy individuals who financed $21 million </b>of the group’s publicly disclosed pro-Trump spending, as well as its multimillion-dollar efforts to heighten voter turnout.</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> The NRA’s nonprofit status allows it to shield those donors’ names from the public, but not the IRS.</span></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">A central question for Mueller’s office is whether any of the confidential donors’ names hold clues that could enable investigators to trace a donation camouflaged to hide its Russian origins – such as a shell company that might be the end point in a chain of offshore transactions.</span></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">It is illegal for foreign funds to be spent to influence U.S. elections.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Prosecutors’ requests to federal magistrates or judges for access to tax information are usually made “entirely in the background, with no notice to the subject of the investigation,” said David Axelrod, a Columbus, Ohio lawyer who previously prosecuted cases for the Justice Department’s Tax Division.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The main focus of Mueller’s inquiry, as McClatchy reported in January, has been whether Alexander Torshin, deputy governor of Russia’s central bank and a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, arranged for Russian money to flow through the gun rights group to aid Trump, people familiar with the inquiry say.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Play Video</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Duration 4:22The Mueller investigation into possible Russia - Trump campaign connection</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Robert Mueller is special counsel for the Department of Justice. He oversees the investigation into Russia's possible connections to the 2016 election and Trump campaign. BY ALEXA ARD, MAUREEN CHOWDHURY, PATRICK GLEASON</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b>Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon said in a statement to McClatchy that if investigators haven’t yet obtained a list of the NRA’s secret donors, it’s a vital step for determining if Russians “used shell companies as part of a scheme to influence the 2016 election.”</b></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">“Investigators must follow the money wherever it leads to understand the full story of Russia’s attack on our democracy,” said Wyden, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee that is examining Russia’s election interference.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded Russia’s intervention was aimed at helping Trump defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton, whose outspoken advocacy for stricter gun control laws won the enmity of the NRA even as her criticism of Putin estranged the Kremlin.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The NRA’s general counsel, John Frazer, said in a flurry of letters with Wyden earlier this year that the group’s donations from Russia during the 2016 election cycle totaled $2,500, but did not reveal the extent to which the group traces the true origins of its $350 million in annual funding.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">A spokesman for Mueller’s office has declined to comment on the NRA inquiry, which the sources described on condition of anonymity because it is confidential.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Still unclear is just how and why the nation’s leading gun rights lobby became entangled in Mueller’s sweeping investigation that has preoccupied the president and gripped the nation. The question is, did substantial Russian money find its way into the group’s coffers – and if so, to what extent were NRA officials or the group’s allies aware of it?</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Steve Hall, a former chief of the CIA’s Russia operations, suspects that NRA board members and current and former officers may have been duped over several years into playing a role in a Kremlin-directed intelligence operation that eventually offered the potential for both a communication line to Trump's team and a way to put money behind his campaign.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">He said he suspects that current and former NRA leaders failed to recognize that the Kremlin saw their group as a tool for its “dangerous propaganda machine. … That’s the most innocent explanation: The NRA got snookered.”</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Still, said Hall, who retired from the agency in 2015, the NRA-Russian connection bears close examination by Mueller.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">“It’s just so insidious, and it sort of ticks all the boxes: connections to the current administration, major backer of then-candidate Trump, the Russians wanting to get in and manipulate our own political system.”</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b>Torshin has drawn scrutiny in part because Spanish prosecutors accused him of money-laundering and also because he cultivated relationships with the NRA that nearly earned him a meeting with Trump</b>.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">He befriended then-NRA President David Keene beginning in 2011, became a lifetime member of the group and attended a string of NRA national conventions in the ensuing years. That led to Moscow visits by Keene and other NRA heavyweights in 2013 and 2015 to meet with a Russian gun rights group that Torshin was instrumental in forming and later with a deputy prime minister.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The Spanish prosecutors, who have cooperated with the FBI for years, say Torshin has a dark side. They have accused him of laundering money for the Russian mob, an allegation Torshin has denied.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Last month during a visit to Washington, chief Spanish prosecutor Jose Grinda spent several hours meeting with FBI officials, according to two people familiar with his itinerary. Both sources spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Grinda also met with journalists at the Hudson Institute, where he revealed that a few months ago he provided the FBI with 33 audio recordings of Torshin, including one in which a since-convicted Russian money launderer called him “godfather,” according to Yahoo News.</span></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b>On April 6, the Treasury Department included Torshin on a list of Russians sanctioned in response to the Kremlin-ordered invasion of Eastern Ukraine</b>, Moscow’s meddling in the 2016 elections and other aggressive actions. In light of all of the revelations about Torshin, the NRA reevaluated its relationship with him. His NRA membership is now “frozen,” spokesman Arulanandam said.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Hall, who worked earlier as the CIA’s Moscow station chief, believes that Torshin’s involvement with the NRA was no accident. Nor were meetings between NRA representatives and <b>Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin</b> and even Sergei Rudov, manager of a far-right Russian religious foundation, he said.</span></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">It looks like the Kremlin was pulling the strings at every turn, in a country where that happens “to a degree that cannot even be dreamed of here,” Hall said. “Everybody knows the consequences of not doing what the Kremlin wants you to do.”</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">John Aquilino, a former NRA spokesman, also is baffled by the NRA’s outreach to Torshin and Moscow.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">"The NRA has fallen into a public relations trap, and the Russians knew damn well what they were doing," Aquilino said in a phone interview. “The NRA was naive and got hoodwinked."</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">"The NRA and the gun control issue is a perfect example of an issue that would fire up the populace and sow discord,” Aquilino said. He pointed to the fact that a Russian troll farm bought dozens of Facebook ads on gun rights as part of a 2016 social media blitz aimed at dividing Americans and helping Trump.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">But Michael Carpenter, a senior Pentagon and National Security Council official specializing in Russia issues during the Obama administration, said a relationship between Russia and the NRA would be "mutually beneficial."</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Carpenter tweeted Monday that "NRA lawyers know how to use Google and were no doubt familiar with their contacts' links to the Kremlin and to organized crime."</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Michael Carpenter</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">?</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">@mikercarpenter</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">I don't buy the theory that the NRA good hoodwinked by Russian intelligence. This was a mutually beneficial relationship. NRA lawyers know how to use Google and were no doubt familiar with their contacts' links to the Kremlin and to organized crime. https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/article214075459.html …</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Russia investigators likely got access to NRA's tax filings, secret donors</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The National Rifle Association says it's had no contact from the FBI about an investigation into whether Russia funneled money to the gun group. Legal experts say it's likely that Special Counsel...</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">mcclatchydc.com</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">464</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">6:30 AM - Jul 2, 2018</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Twitter Ads info and privacy</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">213 people are talking about this</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The NRA, a flashpoint for controversy given its opposition to gun control legislation, has been resolute about protecting the anonymity of most of its donors to its lobbying arm, the Institute for Legislative Action. However, the institute has trumpeted pledges by some gun makers, such as Sturm, Ruger and Co.'s August 2016 commitment of $2 from each gun sale, with a goal to raise $4 million.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Where potential financial crimes are involved, neither the NRA nor any other group can protect the identities of large dark-money donors from investigators, even if the fortress-like IRS holds the records. Investigators need only show “a reasonable cause to believe” that the information sought is relevant to a federal crime – a lower threshold than that required for a search warrant.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">FBI and IRS agents collaborating on follow-the-money investigations commonly use “secret subpoenas, tax orders and other investigative techniques to collect an extraordinary amount of financial information without their target even knowing that the investigation exists,” said one former senior federal prosecutor, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to sensitive relationships with investigators.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Michael Zeldin, a former senior Justice Department official who oversaw money-laundering investigations, said that “it would be basic blocking and tackling for the prosecutors to seek all relevant tax returns."</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">If the tax filings identified a donor as a shell company, he said, the next step would be to “determine how difficult it will be to trace” the true source of the money.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Torshin’s enthusiastic overtures to the NRA energized a number of the group's leaders to visit Russia. <b>During a</b></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b>
</b></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b>2013 trip, Torshin introduced Keene and conservative operative Paul Erickson to his group, the Right to Bear Arms, and Maria Butina,</b> a protégé who headed the group. Butina soon enrolled a graduate student in the United States, where she was awarded lifetime membership in the NRA and became a fixture at the group's meetings.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">In 2015, the Russians lavishly wined and dined a second NRA delegation that included high-dollar NRA fundraiser, Joe Gregory, and Pete Brownell, the head of a major U.S. firearms firm who later became the NRA’s president.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">A meeting between the second delegation and Deputy Prime Minister Rogozin, who oversaw Russia’s defense and firearms industries, has drawn sharp criticism from Kremlin analysts because Rogozin had been placed under U.S. sanctions.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Ex-CIA Russia specialist Hall said he cannot fathom what the NRA officials hoped to obtain from Russia; Putin opposes arming his citizenry with more than hunting rifles.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Russia, though, may have had an agenda for its gun makers.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The NRA visit included a tour of the Russian firearms manufacturer Orsis, which also was placed under U.S. sanctions in 2014, perhaps to highlight Moscow’s hopes that victory by the right candidate could bring those curbs to an end.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Carpenter, the former Obama administration official, said Moscow had also sought to lift earlier limits on Russian gun imports from companies including the iconic Kalashnikov. But easing the restrictions “obviously wasn't in the interest of U.S. gun manufacturers,” he said.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">“So Russia turned to the NRA and other gun enthusiasts to try to promote the issue,” he said. “At the time, <b>Dmitry Rogozin</b> was overseeing this effort.”</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The Torshin-led mating dance between Moscow and the NRA culminated at the NRA’s convention in Louisville in late May 2016, when Trump received an early endorsement from the pro-gun goliath.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Torshin tried unsuccessfully that week to arrange a personal meeting with Trump, but he did cadge a short chat with Donald Trump Jr., an avid hunter. Trump Jr.’s lawyer told McClatchy it was mostly just “small talk” about guns.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">During that same time span, Erickson and Torshin each floated proposals with Trump campaign officials for a pre-election meeting between Putin and Trump, an idea that did not gain traction.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">After the election, Torshin came to Washington in February 2017 to attend the annual National Prayer Breakfast, an event where he’d been a regular for more than a half dozen years, Erickson said.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b>Torshin also was feted at a four-hour Capitol Hill dinner organized by George O’Neill Jr. a Rockefeller heir. Attendees included Erickson and Republican Rep. Dana Rohrabacher of California, considered by some analysts to be Putin’s best friend in Washington.</b></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Rohrabacher, in a phone interview last year, said that conservative American gun rights groups no longer look at Russia with Cold War angst, but rather “in friendly terms.” He remembered meeting Torshin in Moscow a few years earlier, calling him a “mover and shaker.”</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Torshin’s 2017 visit to the U.S. would be his last for awhile. The sanctions bar him from entering the United States.</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Peter Stone is a McClatchy special correspondent</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Michael Woodel contributed to this report</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Greg Gordon: 202-383-6152; @GregGordon2</div></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">7/26 fresh air; careful gifts russ trip eg wife stamps; trad xian on women role, homophobe (us legislators spoke duma?), ortho church back by putin; russian mirror prayer brekfast; wapo</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"></font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb">April 6, 2018. Torshin is one of more than 20 Russians </b><b style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb">sanctioned by the American government in response to Russian interference in 2016,</b><b style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"> among other incidents.</b></font></div><div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">=</font></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/inside-the-decade-long-russian-campaign-to-infiltrate-the-nra-and-help-elect-trump-630054/">https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/inside-the-decade-long-russian-campaign-to-infiltrate-the-nra-and-help-elect-trump-630054/</a></font></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style=""><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0.9375rem;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">November 2013, the president of the National Rifle Association, David Keene, was introduced as an honored guest at the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tj-ceQb9Ao" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">conference of the Right to Bear Arms</a>, a gun lobby in Moscow. “There are no peoples that are more alike than Americans and Russians,” Keene said. “We’re hunters. We’re shooters. We value the same kinds of things.” Keene underscored his friendship with Alexander Torshin, a top politician in the ruling party of Vladimir Putin; for the past three years, Keene said, “I’ve hosted your senator Alexander Torshin at the National Rifle Association’s annual meetings.” In words that now carry a darker connotation, Keene insisted, “We need to work together.”

. now 64, is a roly-poly politician, perhaps five feet six, with thick glasses and a passion for borscht – “like medicine!” he once&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/769518269162283008" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">tweeted</a>. A member of Putin’s right-wing United&nbsp;<a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/t/russia/" id="auto-tag_russia" data-tag="russia" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">Russia</a>&nbsp;party, he served in the Russian senate for more than a decade, <b>forging close ties to Russia’s internal security service, the FSB</b>, which awarded him a&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/750717261112049665" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">medal</a>&nbsp;in 2016. His embrace of Keene, says Steven Hall, who served as chief of Russian operations for the CIA until 2015, was about more than forging “an international brotherhood of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/t/nra/" id="auto-tag_nra" data-tag="nra" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">NRA</a>.”</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>As part of Putin’s “active measures,” Hall says, Russia has attempted to influence right-wing and populist factions abroad, preaching unity around social conservatism:</b> “‘We’re both religious-based countries – we have the Orthodox Church that’s a big deal for us.’ ” The Russians, Hall believes, “made a natural transition in the United States to the NRA”; over time Putin became determined to exploit the American gun lobby “and decided Mr. Torshin is going to be the guy to do it for him.”</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>Keene proved an easy mark.&nbsp;</b><a href="https://soprweb.senate.gov/index.cfm?event=processSearchCriteria" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">A career lobbyist</a>&nbsp;who advised presidential candidates from Ronald Reagan to Mitt Romney, he was a longtime chair of the American Conservative Union, which organizes the annual CPAC convention. NRA board member Grover Norquist has praised Keene as “<a href="https://www.newsmax.com/RonaldKessler/DavidKeene-NRA-ACU-CPAC/2011/03/28/id/390893/" rel="nofollow" target="blank" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">a conservative Forrest Gump</a>” who’s been at “the center of all things conservative for decades.” Keene, with a sweep of white hair, owlish glasses and a patrician bearing, might move in cutthroat political circles, but friends say his personality runs against type. “He’s like a teddy bear,” says <b><i>Alan Gottlieb</i></b>, founder of the Second Amendment Foundation, who has known Keene for decades. “He’s not hard-edged at all. He’s a gentleman.” (Keene did not respond to multiple interview requests.)</font></p><div class="admz" id="adm-inline-article-ad-2" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><div class="adma google-publisher" data-device="Desktop" data-width="300" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><div class="pmc-adm-goog-pub-div ad-text" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><div id="gpt-dsk-tab-inbody2-uid1" class="ad-rotatable adw-300 adh-250" data-google-query-id="CKKQ4uKLs9wCFYQJgQodkSoKMg" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_3782/rstone.site/politics/article/inbody2_0container" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0pt none;"><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Torshin and Keene forged a quick friendship. “Just a brief note to let you know just how much I enjoyed meeting in Pittsburgh during the NRA annual meeting,” Keene wrote in a 2011 letter later obtained by anti-corruption activists in Russia. Extending a personal invitation to the following year’s event, Keene added, “If there is anything any of us can do to help you in your endeavors . . . please don’t hesitate to let us know.”</font></p><div class="l-article-contentpull l-article-contentpull--left" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 1.375rem 1.375rem 1.375rem calc(-14.2857% - 0.6875rem); max-width: 11.875rem; float: left;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><div class="c-related" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(0, 0, 0);"><h4 class="c-relatedheading t-bold t-bold--upper" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.4375rem 0px 0.5rem; display: flex; align-items: center; justify-content: flex-start; text-transform: uppercase; line-height: 1; border-top: 0.3125rem solid rgb(211, 37, 49);"><font size="4" style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman">RELATED</font></font></h4><a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/a-key-russian-figure-with-connections-to-trump-and-the-nra-faces-sanctions-628836/" class="c-relatedlink" style="box-sizing: border-box; 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-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; display: block; align-items: center; padding: 0px;" /><a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/russiagates-second-smoking-gun-129451/" class="c-relatedlink" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; display: block; align-items: center; padding: 0px;" /><a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/russiagates-second-smoking-gun-129451/" class="c-relatedlink" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; display: block; align-items: center; padding: 0px;" /><a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/russiagates-second-smoking-gun-129451/" class="c-relatedlink" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; display: block; align-items: center; padding: 0px;" /><a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/russiagates-second-smoking-gun-129451/" class="c-relatedlink" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; display: block; align-items: center; padding: 0px;" /><a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/russiagates-second-smoking-gun-129451/" class="c-relatedlink" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; display: block; align-items: center; padding: 0px;" /><a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/russiagates-second-smoking-gun-129451/" class="c-relatedlink" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; display: block; align-items: center; padding: 0px;" /><a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/russiagates-second-smoking-gun-129451/" class="c-relatedlink" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; display: block; align-items: center; padding: 0px;" /><a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/russiagates-second-smoking-gun-129451/" class="c-relatedlink" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; display: block; align-items: center; padding: 0px;" /><a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/russiagates-second-smoking-gun-129451/" class="c-relatedlink" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; display: block; align-items: center; padding: 0px;" /><a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/russiagates-second-smoking-gun-129451/" class="c-relatedlink" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; display: block; align-items: center; padding: 0px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Russiagate’s Second Smoking Gun</font></a></h5></div></div><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Torshin’s “endeavors” included a plan to back a gun-rights group in Moscow. “We will start organizing our own Russian NRA,” Torshin soon&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/175081877638623232" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">tweeted</a>. The NRA president seemed flattered, seeing Torshin as a powerful Russian eager to build a gun organization that mirrored his own, and even secured a Russian translation of the NRA charter.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">But Russia experts believe Torshin’s interest in U.S. gun culture masked a dark, ulterior motive. “It’s all a big charade, basically,” Glenn Simpson, founder of the research firm behind the infamous Steele Dossier, testified to the House Intelligence Committee. Much of what passes for civil society in modern Russia is, in fact, controlled by Putin</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee published a January 2018 report on “Putin’s Asymmetric Assault on Democracy,” which describes how the Kremlin has “sought to co-opt civil society by ‘devot[ing] massive resources to the creation and activities of state-sponsored and state-controlled NGOs.”</span></font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Some of these faux grassroots groups buttress the Kremlin’s domestic agenda. Others are projections of Putin’s foreign policy.<b> Sen. Ben Cardin, the ranking Democrat on the committee</b>, says it is common for Russian groups that “appear to be independent” but are “really Putin groups” to build relationships with civic groups in Western democracies, like the NRA – “to have tentacles,” Cardin says, “to try and influence public opinion here in the United States. It is certainly part of Putin’s MO.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Hall agrees. </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">“The idea of private gun ownership is anathema to Putin,” he says. “So then the question is, ‘Why?’ ” Why was a pro-gun campaign being hatched by a leader in Putin’s own party? The answer, according to Hall, is that Putin was baiting a trap. “He’s reaching out to attract the NRA, specifically, over to Russia.”</span></font></p><div class="admz" id="adm-inline-article-ad-x-8" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><div class="adma google-publisher" data-device="Desktop" data-width="300" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><div class="pmc-adm-goog-pub-div ad-text" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><div id="gpt-dsk-tab-inbodyX-uid2" class="ad-rotatable adw-300 adh-250" data-google-query-id="CLCQ4uKLs9wCFYQJgQodkSoKMg" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_3782/rstone.site/politics/article/inbodyX_12container" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0pt none;"><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The FBI is now investigating whether Torshin, the current deputy governor of the Russian central bank, illegally funneled cash to the NRA to support the election of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/t/donald-trump/" id="auto-tag_donald-trump" data-tag="donald-trump" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">Donald Trump</a>,&nbsp;<a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article195231139.html" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">according to a report by McClatchy</a>&nbsp;that has sparked a probe by the Federal Elections Commission. Moscow’s NRA connections have also become&nbsp;<a href="http://docs.house.gov/meetings/IG/IG00/20180118/106796/HMTG-115-IG00-20180118-SD002.pdf" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">a focus of House and Senate Russia investigators</a>. In his House testimony, made public in January, Simpson pointed to “Russian banker-slash-Duma-member-slash-Mafia-leader” Torshin and his “suspicious” protégé, a young gun activist named Maria Butina. “It appears the Russians,” Simpson said, “infiltrated the NRA.”</font></p><p class="" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b style="">The NRA spent an unprecedented $30 million to install Trump in the White House.</b> Putin has a long track record of illegally financing nationalist opposition groups in the West. If the Kremlin’s NRA outreach culminated in pumping vast sums into the group’s coffers, America’s lax campaign-finance regulations would have posed no obstacle. “There are so many ways that a group like the NRA could be used to channel Russian money into a race, it’s shocking,” says Robert Maguire, who investigates “dark money” for the Center for Responsive Politics. In a letter to Congress, the<b> NRA has denied wrongdoing; it has not denied accepting Russian money.</b></font></p><p class="" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The notion that the flag-waving NRA of Eddie Eagle has allied itself with the Russian bear, and the government of former KGB colonel Vladimir Putin, can be hard to fathom. But an investigation by&nbsp;<i style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;">Rolling Stone</i>&nbsp;establishes deeper ties between the NRA and Russia than previously reported. The record reveals this union was the product of a sophisticated Russian influence campaign nearly a decade in the making. By November 2016, Torshin greeted Trump’s election victory as a foregone conclusion, specifically pointing to his and the president-elect’s joint connection to the NRA. “This striking personality has fascinated me for a long time,” he&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/803646401913569280" rel="nofollow" target="blank" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">tweeted</a>, in Russian. “Was sure of his victory.”</font></p><p class="" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; font-weight: 700;">By Torshin’s own account,</span>&nbsp;his affiliation with the American gun lobby began around&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/800373887007682560" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">2010</a>, when he became a member of the NRA. His passion for firearms is genuine; Torshin counted Gen. Mikhail Kalashnikov, the inventor of the AK-47, as a friend, and has tweeted, “I love guns.” Nearly as soon as Torshin joined the NRA, he began targeting the gun lobby’s leadership, leaning on a friend, a Nashville lawyer named <b style="">G. Kline Preston IV</b>. “I’ve probably known him 10 years,” Preston says of Torshin. “He’s one of the finest people I know. He’s a very capable, intelligent, honest man, a very devout Orthodox Christian, very serious about his faith.”</font></p><div class="admz" id="adm-inline-article-ad-x-12" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><div class="adma google-publisher" data-device="Desktop" data-width="300" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><div class="pmc-adm-goog-pub-div ad-text" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><div id="gpt-dsk-tab-inbodyX-uid3" class="ad-rotatable adw-300 adh-250" data-google-query-id="CK-Q4uKLs9wCFYQJgQodkSoKMg" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_3782/rstone.site/politics/article/inbodyX_11container" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0pt none;"><p class="" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Preston is a jovial Russophile. He studied abroad in Soviet Leningrad in the late Eighties on his way to an undergraduate degree in Russian language and literature. He has moonlighted as a vodka importer and a trader on the post-Soviet stock exchange. In 2006, Preston opened a sister law office in St. Petersburg, where his practice areas included “lobbying members of government bodies in the United States and the Russian Federation.” Torshin met Preston through mutual Russian contacts, and he invited the lawyer to speak to the Russian senate in 2009. “I’m very pro-Putin, honestly,” Preston says in a rich Southern drawl. “He’s been fantastic for Russia.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">A campaign banner from Putin’s 2012 election hangs in Preston’s Nashville office, also decorated with Russian nesting dolls of the Trump family. Preston believes Russia shares the values of the American South, but his own views are reactionary. He calls the Civil War “<a href="https://twitter.com/gittinpaid/status/324152456235843584" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">the War for Southern Independence</a>“; the Confederate Constitution “<a href="https://twitter.com/search?l=&q=constitution%20from%3Agittinpaid&src=typd" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">an improvement</a>“; and has blasted Lincoln as “a terrorist and a<a href="https://twitter.com/search?l=&q=lincoln%20from%3Agittinpaid&src=typd" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">&nbsp;war criminal</a>!” In 2013, he posted a meme on Twitter of Barack Obama looking unmanly in comparison to the buff, shirtless Russian leader. Preston wrote, “As long as U.S. is electing foreign-born presidents, I propose&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/gittinpaid/status/376380144425762817" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">Vladimir [Vladimirovich] Putin</a>.”</font></p><p class="" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The Nashville lawyer saw nothing odd about his Russian friend’s desire to meet the NRA president: “Torshin is a gun enthusiast,” he says. And although Preston attends the annual NRA meetings, he didn’t know Keene personally. “I just called him out of the blue,” Preston says. “I told him, ‘Hey, I got a friend who is interested in the NRA, gun rights, that kind of stuff. Happens to be a Russian senator.’ ”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">The NRA welcomed the outreach. “Russia’s essentially a gun-free zone since Bolsheviks took power,” Preston explains. (Rifles and shotguns are commonly owned; handguns are tightly restricted.)</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> “You have Russian politicians and other citizens working to change that. Senator Torshin is one of those people.” He adds, “The obvious place to look, to see a successful gun-rights organization, is the United States and the NRA.”</span></font></p><div class="admz" id="adm-inline-article-ad-x-17" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><div class="adma google-publisher" data-device="Desktop" data-width="300" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><div class="pmc-adm-goog-pub-div ad-text" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><div id="gpt-dsk-tab-inbodyX-uid4" class="ad-rotatable adw-300 adh-250" data-google-query-id="CK6Q4uKLs9wCFYQJgQodkSoKMg" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_3782/rstone.site/politics/article/inbodyX_10container" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0pt none;"><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Speaking on the phone from Tennessee and Moscow, where he traveled in March to act as an observer of the presidential election of Putin – which independent monitors have called “a sham” –</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"> Preston flatly denies that his Russian friends were meddling in the U.S. election. “These allegations are laughable,” he says. “I have no knowledge of it, never saw any indications. It’s a red herring, man. Like when we were kids, they sent us on snipe hunts – a bird that doesn’t exist.”</span></font></p><p class="" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">But as early as 2012, when Torshin attended the&nbsp;</span><a href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/231461112036601856" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">NRA convention as a “VIP” guest of “the NRA President</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">,” his fascination with U.S. gun culture was twinned with an interest in presidential politics. That November, he was in Nashville as an observer of the contest between Obama and Romney. “I set that up,” says Preston, but Torshin’s bona fides with the rifle association smoothed his path: </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b>“My NRA card,” he boasted on Twitter, “opened the doors to any polling stations for me.” Torshin&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/795269106341646341" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative;">inspected</a>&nbsp;electronic voting machines and election queues.</b> Spotting posters of Obama hanging in one precinct – a violation of election norms – “Torshin, I think, snapped pictures and sent them to Moscow immediately,” Preston recalls.</span></font></p><p class="" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Torshin also traveled to D.C., making two intriguing stops: one at the headquarters of the NRA, the other at the residence of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/russiagates-second-smoking-gun-129451/" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">Sergey Kislyak, the Russian ambassador to the United States</a>&nbsp;whose frequent contacts with Trump campaign figures have raised red flags with investigators.</font></p><p class="" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Over the next year, Torshin’s access and influence in the NRA continued to grow. At the 2013 convention in Houston, Gottlieb recalls, Torshin was presented with the gift of a rifle. “3 thousand delegates of the NRA Congress, greeted me with an ovation!” Torshin&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/330139798117425152" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">tweeted</a>. He also snapped photos of a ceremony for the “Golden Ring of Freedom,” the NRA’s high society for million-dollar lifetime donors, many of them gun executives. The group breaks bread in golden dinner jackets with elaborate crests embroidered on the breast pockets. They ring a replica of the Liberty Bell.</font></p></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">O<span style="" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px">utside the NRA bubble, however, senator Torshin was becoming infamous. Spanish authorities reportedly sought to arrest him at a 2013 birthday party for Alexander Romanov, a member of the Russian Taganskaya mob, now serving</span><span style="" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px">&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.abc.es/espana/abci-rico-ruso-y-exconvicto-igual-blanqueador-capitales-mafia-201605150529_noticia.html" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">prison time&nbsp;</a><span style="" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px">for laundering money through real estate on the Spanish island of Mallorca. According to judicial</span><span style="" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px">&nbsp;</span><a href="https://elpais.com/elpais/2017/03/31/inenglish/1490984556_409827.html" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">documents reviewed by&nbsp;<i style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;">El Pais</i>,</a><span style="" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px">&nbsp;</span><span style="" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px">Romanov referred to Torshin as “boss” and “godfather” on intercepted phone calls; Spain suspected Torshin had laundered 14 million euros through the purchase of a hotel on the island.</span></font></div><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The birthday sting was foiled when Torshin didn’t show up to the island. Charges were never filed. “Calling on Russia to arrest him would have been useless because Russia does not cooperate,” a judicial source told El Pais. In a statement to the paper, Torshin denied any wrongdoing, insisting he’d never done business with Romanov or owned Spanish real estate. Torshin has acknowledged only social connections to the mobster; for example, he is the godfather of Romanov’s teenage son. (Torshin did not respond to interview requests.)...;had partnered with Maria Butina, who would become the face of gun rights in Russia. She gained national prominence in 2011, competing in the Youth Primaries of the Young Guard of United Russia – a political competition sponsored by the Kremlin to cultivate fresh political talent. Tall and poised, with a spiky brown haircut, Butina, then 22, had grown up with guns, learning to hunt with her father in her home region of Altai, in southern Siberia. Her&nbsp;<a href="http://mp2011.ru/people/776/" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">platform</a>in the contest included liberalizing Russia’s gun laws. Torshin was captivated. He hired Butina as a special assistant. That same year, she became the founding chair of Russia’s new gun group: the Right to Bear Arms.</font></p><p class="p1" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">For an upstart organization, the Right to Bear Arms’ conference was crawling with Russian government officials. Torshin delivered the keynote address, and Butina presented him and a half-dozen other Russian politicians – including the <b>ultra-nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky </b>– with honorary memberships.</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> (Butina has denied taking even “one coin” in government money.) Leading the American cohort was the NRA’s president, Keene, who delivered his address promoting Russo-American unity. In pictures<b>, Keene </b>posed next to Butina – now sporting long red hair – grinning like a schoolboy.</span><span class="s1" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;">In late 2013, Torshin and Butina hosted an NRA delegation, along with other American gun-rights activists, at a Right to Bear Arms convention in Moscow. A lavish affair, staged in an upscale convention center, the event doubled as a coming-out party for Torshin’s young protégé. </span><span class="s1" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">They arranged private meals for American guests, who feasted on Russian delicacies and downed flavored vodkas. Leggy models in mini-skirts put on a fashion show, flashing garter belts that doubled as conceal-carry gun holsters. “I was impressed with the grassroots movement they created,” says Gottlieb, of the Second Amendment Foundation. “I wish we had as many good-looking young ladies involved in our gun-rights movement here in the United States.”</span></font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Putin did not attend, but those in the audience felt his influence. “I make the assumption that they have the blessing of more than just Alexander Torshin, because he’s an upper-ranking member of Putin’s party,” Gottlieb says. “He’s not going to do things that are going to upset Putin.” (Despite this cleareyed assessment, Gottlieb rejects the notion that the Russians and the NRA were in cahoots in 2016.)</font></p><p class="" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Right to Bear Arms’ international outreach extended to&nbsp;<a href="https://vk.com/albums-62707439" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">John Bolton</a>, the former U.N. ambassador and longtime NRA activist, who now serves as President Trump’s national security adviser. In late 2013, a video appeared online of Bolton delivering an address to Right to Bear Arms, as the group was pursuing a gun-rights amendment to the Russian constitution. (That campaign – like much of Right to Bear Arms’ political agenda – has foundered.) Through his bushy mustache, Bolton praised Putin’s autocratic country as a “force for democracy in the world,” and encouraged the Russian activists. “Good luck on your journey,” he said, “into a new century of freedom.”</font></p><p class="" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Torshin&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/399412843344588800" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">feted</a>&nbsp;Butina, calling her “<a href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/399425407076007936" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">very young and talented</a>. She is the youngest prominent public figure in the Russian Federation.” Torshin also praised more than her political acumen, saying she had become “<a href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/467162837911998464" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">more beautiful</a>” and “<a href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/499449978671337472" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">ideally slim</a>.” Hall, the former CIA officer, says Butina fits a mold: “The Russians are not stupid. It’s a safe bet that there’s more men in leadership positions on the conservative side of American politics in places like the NRA. If you are looking to attract people to your cause, guys would be more interested in talking to somebody like her. It’s one of the old plays out of the KGB handbook.”</font></p><p class="" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina, he says, “reminds me of Anna Chapman – the fiery redhead who was one of the illegals who was kicked out of the United States back in 2010.” Chapman had lived in New York before being unmasked as a spy by the FBI; she pleaded guilty to acting as a foreign agent and was deported in a spy exchange – for the Russian double agent recently poisoned with a nerve agent in the U.K. Chapman now has a popular Instagram account in which she poses in revealing outfits, often with weapons. Butina has flashed a similar sex appeal, stripping down for&nbsp;<a href="http://www.gq.ru/person/kak-sozdat-oruzhejnoe-lobbi-i-ne-progoret" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">a 2014 profile in&nbsp;<i style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;">GQ</i>&nbsp;Russia&nbsp;</a>– wielding a pair of pistols, wearing stilettos, a black leather jacket, and lingerie from Dolce & Gabbana – and posing as the cover model for the Right to Bear Arms glossy in-house magazine.</font></p><p class="" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><b style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">In early 2014, U.S.-Russia relations were cratering, following the</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"> invasion of Crimea. Torshin helped steer the legislation that officially annexed the territory, appearing with Putin at a Kremlin signing ceremony.</span></b><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> But his relationship with the NRA was sunnier than ever. “Republicans are the bones of the NRA,” Torshin tweeted in February. “Great political victories are ahead of you!” At the 2014 convention in Indianapolis, Butina met with the highest-ranking officers of the NRA – including,&nbsp;</span><a href="https://vk.com/photo-26869863_331224854" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">Rolling Stone can report, Wayne LaPierre, the NRA’s executive vice president</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">. She presented a plaque from Right to Bear Arms to then-NRA president Jim Porter, tweeting, “Mission accomplished.” Her tour through the conservative elite included snapping selfies with former GOP presidential candidates&nbsp;</span><a href="https://vk.com/photo-26869863_331225394" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">Bobby Jindal</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;and&nbsp;</span><a href="https://vk.com/photo-26869863_331225645" rel="nofollow" target="blank" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">Rick Santorum</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">.</span></font></p><p class="" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">As a guest of&nbsp;<a href="https://vk.com/photo-26869863_331225379" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">Keene</a>, Butina joined the rituals of the Golden Ring of Freedom, even&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/Maria_Butina/status/459758901559177216" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">ringing the NRA’s liberty bell.</a>&nbsp;“To the right to bear arms for citizens of the whole world,” she said as the bell sounded. Her first American trip, she blogged, culminated in “an experience at the Washington office of the NRA.” Standing before the group’s blue-glass headquarters, she&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/Maria_Butina/status/463533360640692225" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">posed for a photo with Keene</a>.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><b style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Butina and Torshin soon began leveraging their NRA connections to gain personal access to GOP presidential contenders.</b><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"> Not yet a declared candidate, Trump addressed the NRA’s 2015 convention in Nashville. “We need strength,” Trump said. “We need people that are respected. Putin has no respect for our president.” Torshin has claimed he met Trump in Nashville, and that Trump ribbed him: “ So, you’re from Russia – when are you going to invade Latvia?” The Trump White House has&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-04-06/trump-s-russian-fans-won-t-take-nyet-for-an-answer-in-washington" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">denied</a>&nbsp;this encounter took place.</span></font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b>The Russians also rubbed elbows with Scott Walker, then a viable candidate, and the beneficiary of more than<a href="http://www.wisdc.org/pr062216.php#tbl" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative;">&nbsp;$3.5 million from the NRA</a>&nbsp;over his career. </b>Walker charmed Butina when they first met, she blogged, greeting her in Russian. “We talked about Russia,” she&nbsp;<a href="https://butina.livejournal.com/1035941.html" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">wrote</a>. “I did not hear any aggression towards our country, the president or my compatriots.” Two months later, Butina traveled to Waukesha, Wisconsin, to attend Walker’s official presidential launch.</font></p><p class="" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Butina was not keeping a low profile. In June, she wrote an&nbsp;<a href="http://nationalinterest.org/feature/the-bear-the-elephant-13098" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">English-language op-ed</a>&nbsp;about U.S-Russia relations for The National Interest, the foreign-policy magazine founded by neoconservative Irving Kristol.</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> Butina staked out a case for regime change in America: “It may take the election of a Republican to the White House in 2016 to improve relations between the Russian Federation and the United States,” she wrote. “As improbable as it may sound, the Russian bear shares more interests with the Republican elephant than the Democratic donkey.” Citing the GOP’s coalition of social conservatives, businessmen and anti-terrorism hawks, Butina wrote, “These are values espoused by United Russia, the current ruling political party in Moscow.” The magazine identified Butina as the founder of “a Russian version of the NRA.” Not included in her bio: Butina was still on the government payroll, as special assistant to Torshin, who by now was deputy governor of the Russian central bank.</span></font></p><p class="" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina soon appeared in Las Vegas for&nbsp;<a href="https://archive.freedomfest.com/2015/" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">Freedom Fest</a>, a libertarian conference where Trump spoke. Barely a month into his candidacy, Trump had said little formally about Russian relations. “I am from Russia,”&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nP8xogCIGXw&t=568s" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">Butina said</a>&nbsp;in lilting English from a microphone in a ballroom at the Planet Hollywood casino. “If you would be elected as the president, do you want to continue the politics of sanctions?”</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“I know Putin,” Trump replied. “I believe I would get along very nicely with Putin. OK?” Then Trump gave an answer that was music to Kremlin ears: “I don’t think you’d need the sanctions.”</font></p><p class="" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; font-weight: 700;">Butina’s intelligence, drive and charisma</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;won her powerful friends in the NRA. But she became remarkably close with one lifelong GOP activist in particular: </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Paul Erickson. </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Six-feet-four, with a bald crown ringed by graying curls, Erickson has a skier’s build and greets fellow Yalies with a fight-song-inspired “Boola, Boola.” A member of the </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">same cohort of college Republicans that produced Norquist, Christian Coalition head Ralph Reed and disgraced super-lobbyist Jack Abramoff, Erickson has enjoyed a vivid and varied career. A rabid anti-communist, he spent the summer of 1983 sending supplies to insurgents battling the USSR in Afghanistan. He has lobbied on behalf of Zairean strongman&nbsp;<a href="http://rapidcityjournal.com/news/local/timeline-the-life-of-paul-erickson/article_57f06602-f8a4-5d51-9611-82816db0dd25.html" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">Mobutu</a>&nbsp;Sese Seko, mounted the “Love Hurts” media tour for celebrity penis amputee John Wayne Bobbitt and was credited as an executive producer on Abramoff’s 1989 B-movie <b>Red Scorpion</b>, starring Dolph Lundgren.</span></font></p><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">...</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Like&nbsp;<span style="" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px">&nbsp;</span><span style="" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px">Keene, with whom he served on the board of the American Conservative Union, Erickson is a low-profile everywhere man, described by one friend as a “secret master of the political universe.” He has helped run a number of GOP presidential campaigns, serving as national political director for nativist Pat Buchanan’s 1992 run. (Erickson did not respond to repeated interview requests.) In 2013,</span><span style="" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px">&nbsp;</span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=535384583217979&set=t.100002393251827&type=3&theater" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">Erickson</a><span style="" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px">&nbsp;</span></span><span style="" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">joined the NRA’s first visit to the Right to Bear Arms conference in Moscow </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">– the following September, according to Butina’s blog, he returned to Russia, solo, to address her group on behalf of the NRA.</span></span></font></div><p class="" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">As she tracked GOP presidential candidates in 2015, Butina touched down, repeatedly, in South Dakota, where Erickson lives. In July, she lectured at a camp for young Republicans with Erickson by her side. That same month, the duo appeared on a podcast in Manhattan. Erickson regaled the audience with a creation myth about Right to Bear Arms worthy of a Silicon Valley startup. “Maria is very humble,” Erickson said. “She started the Right to Bear Arms in the Russian version of McDonald’s with friends, and her work became noticed by the highest levels of the Russian government.” In September, the pair partied by the graveside of F. Scott Fitzgerald in Maryland. Butina wore a flapper’s silver headband and a long string of pearls; Erickson carried a bottle of rum and a copy of The Great Gatsby.</font></p><p class="" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">At the close of 2015, Torshin and Butina invited a new delegation of NRA members to a Right to Bear Arms convention in Moscow. The crowd included faces familiar and new, including Keene; Pete Brownell, CEO of one of America’s largest gun-sellers who is now the NRA’s president; Joe Gregory, the chair of the NRA’s Golden Ring of Freedom; as well as Trump surrogate and then-Milwaukee Sheriff David A. Clarke. Erickson reportedly also attended.</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The Russians put on a wintry spectacle – replete with ornate Christmas trees and white chairs tied up like presents with red ribbons. Arnold Goldschlager, a major NRA donor who also attended, would tell McClatchy, “They were killing us with vodka and the best Russian food.” In a public filing,&nbsp;<a href="http://county.milwaukee.gov/ImageLibrary/Groups/cntySheriff/documents/2016/2015SEI.pdf" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">Clarke estimated</a>&nbsp;Right to Bear Arms spent $6,000 on his hotels, meals, excursions and transportation around Moscow.</font></p><div class="admz" id="adm-inline-article-ad-x-41" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><div class="adma google-publisher" data-device="Desktop" data-width="300" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><div class="pmc-adm-goog-pub-div ad-text" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><div id="gpt-dsk-tab-inbodyX-uid10" class="ad-rotatable adw-300 adh-250" data-google-query-id="CN_d6eKLs9wCFTQMZQodBsYL9g" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">In these same days, Putin himself was pursuing other angles of influence with the American right. The Russian president met with right-wing pastor Franklin Graham for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/how-the-republican-right-found-allies-in-russia/2017/04/30/e2d83ff6-29d3-11e7-a616-d7c8a68c1a66_story.html?utm_term=.82f049227009" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">a 45-minute exchange</a>. And on December 10th, Putin infamously sat next to Gen. Michael Flynn, Trump’s future national security adviser, at an RT gala in Moscow.</font></div></div></div></div><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">As they lived the high life in Moscow, the NRA delegation kept crossing paths with top Putin cabinet officials. Clarke&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/SheriffClarke/status/675022833806897153" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">tweeted</a>&nbsp;about a meeting with “the Russian Foreign Minister” – who is Sergey Lavrov. NRA members also convened with Dmitry Rogozin, the deputy prime minister of Russia who is in charge of the defense industry, and a subject of U.S. sanctions. But for the representatives of the NRA, geopolitics seemed a distant concern. This trip was all&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/SheriffClarke/status/676961567112589313" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">fun and guns.</a>&nbsp;Sheriff Clarke tweeted photos from Russian gunmaker Orsis, delighting, “I test fired one of their sniper rifles.”</font></p><blockquote class="blockquote-1" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; line-height: 2rem; overflow: hidden; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px; font-weight: 700; text-align: center;"><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The Russians, Hall believes, were seeking a “mechanism by which they can, sort of, control the NRA.”</font></p></blockquote><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">If NRA members were having a carefree good time, the Russians were almost certainly watching their every move, seeking leverage, says Hall. “The FSB is set up first and foremost to collect compromising information on people who might later be useful to the Russian government,” he says. “It’s not always that,” he adds. “A lot of it involves establishing personal relationships that then could be leveraged into something different. That’s where a lot of the dinners, and the toasting, and the private meetings start. This is something the Russians have done for decades.”</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>The Russians, Hall believes, were seeking a “mechanism by which they can, sort of, control the NRA.”</b> They might start with the “friendly route,” he says, “pulling the wool over the organization’s eyes, getting them to buy into: ‘Hey, we’re both real conservatives at heart. Russia is actually a friend of the United States. Why can’t we get past all of this ugliness?” The question is where the camaraderie ends. “Do they end up with a senior NRA guy who they formally recruited, who can now work clandestinely for them?”</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Many recruits are oblivious of Russian influence – until it’s too late. “They’ll start it off with something seemingly innocuous,” Hall says. “And then they’ll move it as far as they possibly can. If they start hitting resistance, they might very well say, ‘Let’s not forget that trip to Moscow you took six months ago, where you had a few too many drinks and got a little too friendly with somebody.’ That’s there as well.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">At the beginning of 2016, Butina and Erickson were taking their relationship to a new level. Back in South Dakota, they became partners in a limited-liability corporation called&nbsp;<a href="https://sosenterprise.sd.gov/BusinessServices/Business/FilingDetail.aspx?CN=064236191089001247030098158165155023024203221157" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">Bridges</a>; in legal documents, Butina and Erickson list their&nbsp;<a href="https://sosenterprise.sd.gov/BusinessServices/Business/ImageDownload.aspx?id=064236191089001247030098158165155023024203221157" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">address at the same suite in Sioux Falls</a></span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">, but the purpose and activities of Bridges remain opaque. According to a conversation between Erickson and reporters for McClatchy, the corporation, founded in February 2016, “was established in case Butina needed any monetary assistance for her graduate studies.” (Months later, Butina would enroll in a master’s program at American University.)&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article195231139.html" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">McClatchy</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;deadpanned this would be “an unusual way to use an LLC.”</span></font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The timing of Bridges’ founding is notable. Three days later, Torshin tweeted from Russia, sharing news of the Republican presidential race: “Maria Butina is now in the U.S. She writes to me that</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"> D. Trump (a member of the NRA) is really for the cooperation with Russia.”</span></font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">That spring, Erickson would attempt to broker a meeting between the GOP candidate and Torshin, with the hope that it would lead to a future sit-down between Trump and Putin. Erickson sent an e-mail to a top member of the Trump campaign in May, with the subject line “Kremlin Connection.” (The message, obtained by Congress, was shared with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/03/us/politics/trump-putin-russia-nra-campaign.html" target="blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;"><i style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;">The New York Times</i></a>.) Erickson explained that “happenstance” and NRA connections had enabled him to “slowly begin cultivating a back-channel to President Putin’s Kremlin.” He informed the campaign that “Putin is deadly serious about building a good relationship with Mr. Trump” and wished candidate Trump “to visit him in the Kremlin.”<b> Erickson implied that Moscow saw Hillary Clinton as “beyond redemption.”</b></font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Referring to “President Putin’s emissary on this front” – who&nbsp;<span style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/03/us/politics/trump-putin-russia-nra-campaign.html" rel="nofollow" target="blank" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;">The New York Times</span>&nbsp;determined</a>&nbsp;was Torshin – Erickson proposed an initial meeting would be possible between Trump and Torshin in Louisville, Kentucky. Timed with the 2016 NRA convention, Erickson wrote, the event weekend could be used by Torshin to “make ‘first contact.’ ”</span></font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb" /><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>The NRA officially endorsed Trump in Louisville on May 20th, marking the gun lobby’s earliest-ever presidential endorsement.</b> Accepting the NRA’s backing, Trump vowed, “I will never let you down.” Torshin watched in the audience, later&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/733898930958651392" rel="nofollow" target="blank" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">tweeting</a>, “He was not simply endorsed at the NRA Congress at Louisville, it was unanimous. . . . the applause!”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Torshin, it seems, did not secure the face-to-face meeting with Trump. But the Russian banker did meet with the president’s son, lifetime NRA member Donald Trump Jr., at a dinner during the convention. (Outreach from Russia was coming strong: Weeks later, in early June, Trump Jr. would sit down with another cast of Russians promising “dirt” on Clinton at <b>Trump Tower.) In July, Torshin received his medal from the FSB.</b></font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Through Election Day, the NRA would spend more than $30 million in federally recorded funds on behalf of Trump. Citing two sources close to the gun lobby, McClatchy reporters Peter Stone and Greg Gordon&nbsp;<a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article195231139.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; transition: color 0.24s cubic-bezier(0.215, 0.61, 0.355, 1); text-decoration-line: none; position: relative; font-weight: 600;">suggest the true total may be far greater</a>&nbsp;–<b> $70 million or more – noting that Internet advertising, field work and get-out-the-vote campaigns are not documented in federal disclosures.</b></font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b>The source of the millions spent by the NRA is untraceable; the organization is a dark-money giant that can hide its benefactors. This privilege of secrecy is granted to “social welfare” organizations</b>, whose primary purpose is not political. Despite its prodigious power in our elections, the NRA spends most of its money on other activities – from magazine publishing to gun education to NRATV.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">“The<b> NRA is routinely used as a conduit” for “sketchy” money spent on Republican politics, says Maguire, the investigator for the Center for Responsive Politics. “We’ve seen some of the groups in the <font color="#ff0000">Koch</font> network give large, six- and seven-figure grants to the NRA – knowing that the NRA is going to spend that money on ads in an election,” Maguire says. “They get away with it.”</b></font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">The Russians, Maguire says, could easily have funneled money into the NRA’s coffers, using a similar pathway: “It is not surprising that the NRA would be used in that way.” It might even have been legal, he says. The NRA is allowed to accept foreign cash; it’s only forbidden from spending that money directly on U.S. elections. But in an organization as vast and varied as the NRA, cash is fungible. A legal, ostensibly apolitical donation to the NRA by Russia could have freed up other, unrestricted funds to spend on politics. It’s also possible the gun lobby was duped. “The NRA may have been used without even knowing it,” Maguire says. <b>“Russians could easily set up a Delaware corporation, with a name like ‘Americans for Gun Freedom LLC,’ and give the NRA a $5 million check. The NRA would just say, ‘Hey great, it sounds like our kind of people,’ ” and spend the cash.</b></font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The NRA did not respond to numerous requests to comment for this piece. In letters to <b>Ron Wyden, the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee</b>, a lawyer for the NRA wrote that the organization is committed to “raise and spend our funds within the bounds of the law” and that it works to vet “significant contributions from unknown entities.”</span><b style=""><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> However, the lawyer admitted that the NRA accepts donations from “foreign persons” to accounts not dedicated to elections – adding that</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"> money moves between election and nonelection accounts “as permitted by law.</span></b><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">”</span></font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Wyden tells Rolling Stone that “money in these accounts could be used to pay for ad campaigns and voter mobilization efforts,” insisting that “the NRA has a public responsibility to disclose where their foreign donations are coming from.” Understanding how “outside actors are directly or indirectly influencing the U.S. political debate,” the Oregon Democrat says, “is critical to the preservation of our Democracy.”</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Torshin has blasted the accusations in the McClatchy exposé as “gossip from the media,” taunting critics on Twitter to “produce concrete proof of my financing of the NRA (amounts of money, account numbers, dates). . . . I’m waiting!” On social media, Butina has argued her gun advocacy should be taken at face value, and not as evidence of the “long arm of the Kremlin” in the 2016 election. “Sometimes,” she wrote, in a nod to Freud, “a cigar is just a cigar.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; margin: 0px; padding: 0.9375rem 0px;" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Some members of Congress see the apparent Russian effort to turn the NRA as part of a larger, ongoing Kremlin offensive. “The tentacles of Russian enterprise in this country are deep and ubiquitous,” says Rep. <b>Jackie Speier, </b>a California Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee. “The Russians are as close to being warlike as you can imagine, without bullets being fired.” Putin, says Sen. Cardin, “uses an asymmetric arsenal in order to undermine our democracy and our institutions of democracy” – noting that “part of his game plan is to finance entities that he believes disrupt the unity of our country.” Pointing to the gun lobby’s polarizing role in our political culture, Cardin adds, “The NRA would be perfect.”</font></p><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
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</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://theintercept.com/2018/07/21/maria-butina-indictment-russia-investigation/" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none;">https://theintercept.com/2018/07/21/maria-butina-indictment-russia-investigation/</a></font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style=""><div data-reactid="187" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bold; letter-spacing: 0.1em; box-shadow: rgb(255, 255, 255) 0px 1px 0px, rgb(17, 17, 17) 0px 4px 0px; text-transform: uppercase;">FEDERAL INDICTMENT</span>&nbsp;of Maria Butina, the 29-year-old gun rights activist charged with being a Russian agent, has attracted plenty of media attention this week — but mostly for the wrong reasons.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Many stories about her case have been filled with&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/18/us/politics/maria-butina-russia-espionage.html" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent;">salacious allegations</a>about her sex life and&nbsp;have been rife with superficial comparisons to the television show “<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/alleged-russian-agent-maria-butina-had-ties-to-russian-intelligence-agency-prosecutors-say/2018/07/18/a1a4042c-8a01-11e8-a345-a1bf7847b375_story.html?utm_term=.20fd58a66989" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent;">The Americans</a>.”&nbsp;What has been missing in the media narrative is the indictment’s ominous significance. The Butina case is almost certainly the opening move in a brand new front in the Trump-Russia investigation.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Butina is just a minor figure in what appears to be a broader ongoing inquiry into the relationships between Russia, conservative American organizations like the National Rifle Association, and Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. For months, federal investigators have been looking into&nbsp;whether the NRA or other conservative organizations were used by the Russian government or Russian oligarchs to funnel money to the Trump campaign during the 2016 election.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Investigators working with special counsel Robert Mueller have&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/04/politics/mueller-special-counsel-investigation-russian-oligarchs/index.html" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; box-sizing: border-box;">repeatedly questioned</a>&nbsp;Russian oligarchs traveling to the United States about whether they made cash donations directly or indirectly to Trump’s campaign or his inauguration, CNN reported earlier this year. In at least one case, they stopped a Russian oligarch when his private plane landed in New York.</font></p></div><div data-reactid="197" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina has attracted the attention of federal investigators mainly because of her connections to this shadowy intersection of powerful Russians and right-wing Americans. In fact, it was Butina’s work for Alexander Torshin, a close political ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, that made her a target of federal investigators. <b>Torshin — not Butina — is the Russian figure whose involvement with the NRA and American conservatives brings the Trump-Russia case closer to Russian organized crime and Putin.</b></font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b>Torshin,</b> now a top official at the Russian central bank and a former Russian senator, has been identified by Spanish authorities as the&nbsp;<b>“godfather” of&nbsp;<a href="https://elpais.com/elpais/2017/03/31/inenglish/1490984556_409827.html" style="text-decoration-line: none; outline: none; box-sizing: border-box;">Taganskaya</a>, a Russian organized crime group. Spanish police sought to arrest Torshin in 2013 for a scheme to launder money through the purchase of hotels in Mallorca.</b></font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">But the police plan to catch him at a party for&nbsp;<b>Alexander Romanov, another Russian organized crime figure,</b>&nbsp;fell through when<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">&nbsp;Torshin was apparently warned by Russian authorities not to travel to Spain,</span>&nbsp;El País, a Spanish newspaper, reported. (In 2016, Romanov pleaded guilty to money laundering in a Spanish case. Torshin told El País that he knew Romanov in the 1990s, but that he “never intended to visit” him.)</font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Shockingly, Torshin was able to travel to the United States and develop close and long-standing relationships with prominent figures in the American conservative movement for years after Spain’s failed attempt to catch and arrest him.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Spanish officials have reportedly now provided information to the FBI about Torshin, and earlier this year the Treasury Department levied sanctions against him. In January, McClatchy reported that the&nbsp;<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">FBI was investigating whether Torshin&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article195231139.html" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; box-sizing: border-box;">illegally funneled money to the NRA</a>&nbsp;in order to help Trump’s campaign in 2016</span>. But even given this recent flurry of activity, it is clear that American law enforcement officials were very late to picking up on what the Spanish knew about him.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">While the Spanish were trying to put him behind bars, Torshin was making himself at home in the United States, where he grew close to the leadership of the NRA<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">. His romance with the gun rights movement led him to write a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/jan/2/torshin-kalashnikov-the-man-and-the-weapon/" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; box-sizing: border-box;">strange op-ed in 2014</a>&nbsp;in the right-wing&nbsp;<b>Washington Times</b>, mourning the death of his “friend and colleague” Mikhail Kalashnikov, the Russian inventor of the Kalashnikov AK-47 assault rifle, while also mentioning that he “had the pleasure of attending the National Rifle Association’s annual meeting in Houston” the previous year. (<b>David Keene, who was president of the NRA from 2011 to 2013, was named the opinion editor of the Washington Times in July 2013 and currently serves as the paper’s editor at large.)</b></span></font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Butina, who has been pursuing a master’s degree at American University in Washington, previously worked for Torshin as his special assistant at the Russian Central Bank. Prosecutors now allege that while Butina was working as a Russian agent in the United States from 2015 until at least early last year, she was being directed by a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/russian-national-charged-conspiracy-act-agent-russian-federation-within-united-states" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; box-sizing: border-box;">Russian official</a>. The court documents do not name the official, but appear to describe Torshin.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Under Torshin’s direction, Butina worked assiduously to develop relationships with leading American conservative organizations and political figures. Like Torshin, Butina made the NRA the focus of many of her efforts. Both Butina and Torshin became NRA life members.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina gained a reputation in American conservative circles as a young&nbsp;spokesperson for gun rights in Russia – a country where citizens have few gun rights. She formed a group called Right to Bear Arms in Russia, which promoted a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/03/22/595897412/john-boltons-curious-appearance-in-a-russian-gun-rights-video" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent;">video of John Bolton,</a>&nbsp;now Trump’s national security adviser, advocating for Russian gun rights.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">One key question in the Butina case is whether the Right to Bear Arms in Russia was created under orders from Torshin or other Russian officials to serve as a front organization to help her gain access to American conservative groups like the NRA.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina showed her ability to forge relationships with American political players by forming a company in South Dakota with Paul Erickson, a longtime Republican operative who did fundraising for the NRA. But Torshin’s inroads into American conservative circles were even more impressive. At the NRA’s annual convention in May 2016, he met and spoke with Donald Trump Jr. At about the same time, Torshin sought to set up a meeting between then-candidate Trump and Putin. An American Christian political activist&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/17/us/politics/trump-russia-kushner.html" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; outline: none; box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent;">emailed</a>&nbsp;a Trump campaign aide passing on Torshin’s suggestion for a Trump-Putin meeting.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 1.5; letter-spacing: 0.01em;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina’s role as an assistant and protege of Torshin would be of obvious interest to the FBI as part of that broader investigation into Torshin’s activities. The charges brought against her may be part of an effort to get Butina to cooperate with federal prosecutors and share what she knows about Torshin.</font></p></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">=</font></div></div><div style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">===</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/07/nra-maria-butina-spying-charges-trump-campaign/"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/07/nra-maria-butina-spying-charges-trump-campaign/</font></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style=""><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span class="section-lead" style="box-sizing: inherit;">&nbsp;For decades, the</span><span class="section-lead" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700;">&nbsp;National Rifle Association</span>&nbsp;has promoted its hardline politics with appeals to patriotism, freedom, and the staunch defense of the Second Amendment. But now, the controversial gun lobbying group finds itself deeply caught up in a wide-ranging effort to sabotage American democracy by an enemy foreign power.&nbsp;</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Federal prosecutors unsealed charges this week against 29-year-old Russian national Maria Butina, a self-styled gun activist with long-running ties to the NRA who worked for Alexander Torshin, a high-level Russian government and banking official from President Vladimir Putin’s party. Butina, who was a graduate student at American University until this spring, began traveling to the United States in 2014 and operated as a “covert Russian agent,” according to an FBI affidavit. She acted as an unregistered foreign agent and participated in a multiyear conspiracy to infiltrate conservative political groups including the NRA, federal prosecutors say, in order to “advance the interests of the Russian Federation.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina and Torshin—who for years also traveled to America for NRA events and were among Russian officials&nbsp;<a href="https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sm0338" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">sanctioned</a>&nbsp;by the Treasury Department in April—worked together in attempts to cultivate Republican politicians and eventually Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. Under Torshin’s direction, “the covert influence campaign involved substantial planning, international coordination, and preparation,” according to court documents, which detail some of the evidence gathered by the FBI on Butina’s connections to a Russian intelligence agency and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/07/maria-butina-nra-putin-russian-oligarch/" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">Russian oligarchs</a>. Torshin is referred to only as a “Russian official” in the court documents, but his identity has since been confirmed in multiple news reports, and he appears with Butina in both the United States and Russia throughout&nbsp;<a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/03/trump-russia-nra-connection-maria-butina-alexander-torshin-guns/" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">several years’ worth of social-media posts previously documented</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<em style="box-sizing: inherit;">Mother Jones</em>.</font></p><div id="InContent_Banner_1" data-adunit="InContent_Banner_1" data-size-mapping="InContent" class="dfw-unit display-none" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; text-align: center; position: relative; z-index: 2000;"><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The pair of Russians spent years building ties with the NRA, as we reported in our recent investigation. And according to a&nbsp;<em style="box-sizing: inherit;">New York Times</em>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/17/us/maria-butina-russian-agent-charges.html?hpw&rref=us&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=well-region&region=bottom-well&WT.nav=bottom-well" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">report</a>&nbsp;this week, the NRA “repeatedly brought Butina from her native Russia to the United States for events until she obtained a student visa in August 2016.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Beginning back in 2013, Butina developed a relationship with an unnamed “American political operative” described in the court documents, who has been identified in media reports as GOP activist and<b>&nbsp;NRA member Paul Erickson.</b>&nbsp;In her private communications with Erickson, Butina spoke of the key influence of the NRA on the Republican Party, noting that the gun group is “the largest sponsor of the elections to the US congress.” Through Erickson and her connections with the NRA, Butina sought to establish “‘back channel’ lines of communication” to influential political figures.&nbsp;In&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BlV1cmynyyc/?utm_source=ig_share_sheet&igshid=5qzvd7ioijno" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">photos</a>&nbsp;that she posted to her Facebook page, she posed with Republican politicians, including former presidential candidates Scott Walker and Bobby Jindal, and former US Sen. Rick Santorum.</font></p><figure id="attachment_620896" class="inline-image alignnone" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px auto 1.5rem; padding-top: 0.5rem; float: none; max-width: 630px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">
</font></div><figcaption class="wp-caption-text" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 1.3;"><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; display: inline; line-height: 1.3;"><span class="media-caption" style="box-sizing: inherit; padding-right: 5px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina at an NRA shooting range in Fairfax, Virginia, posted to&nbsp;<a href="https://vk.com/albums31690263?z=photo31690263_328607862%2Fphotos31690263" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" font-weight="font-weight" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">her VK page</a>&nbsp;in May 2014<br style="box-sizing: inherit;" /></font></span></p></figcaption></figure><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">As the putative founder of a Russian group called The Right to Bear Arms, Butina forged connections with NRA executives, including former NRA President David Keene, whom she was in extensive contact with over several years. Keene traveled to Moscow in November 2013 at the invitation of Butina and Torshin to attend a Right to Bear Arms event. That same month, future Trump national security adviser John Bolton—then a member of the NRA’s “international affairs subcommittee”—<a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/03/trump-russia-nra-connection-maria-butina-alexander-torshin-guns/" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">recorded a video address</a>&nbsp;talking up gun rights at Keene’s request, which Right to Bear Arms purportedly used to lobby the Russian legislature.&nbsp;(Private gun ownership is&nbsp;<a href="https://themoscowtimes.com/articles/russians-their-guns-and-the-state-52720" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">relatively minimal</a>&nbsp;in Russia.)</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">The following January, Torshin published a gun appreciation piece in the&nbsp;<em style="box-sizing: inherit;">Washington Times</em>, where Keene was the op-ed editor at the time.</span>&nbsp;That April, Torshin and Butina attended the NRA convention in Indianapolis, where Butina joined Keene for meetings. In the fall of 2014, Erickson traveled to Moscow to attend a Right to Bear Arms meeting with Butina.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Then in late March 2015—two days before&nbsp;<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Butina emailed Erickson a plan for further building political connections</span>—she&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=796993867057048&set=t.100002393251827&type=3&theater" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">posted</a>&nbsp;on Facebook that she was again headed for the NRA annual convention. Butina and Torshin both traveled to Nashville for the event that April, one of multiple NRA annual conventions that the pair of Russians attended between 2012 and 2016. There, Butina and Torshin met Scott Walker.&nbsp;<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">According to a report in&nbsp;Bloomberg,&nbsp;Torshin also met and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/03/trump-russia-nra-connection-maria-butina-alexander-torshin-guns/" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">had a “jovial exchange”</a>&nbsp;with Trump.</span></font></p><div id="InContent_Banner_2" data-adunit="InContent_Banner_2" data-size-mapping="InContent" class="dfw-unit display-none" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; text-align: center; position: relative; z-index: 2000;"><aside class="pullquote-left" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; position: relative; width: 275.391px; margin-top: 0.75rem; margin-bottom: 1.25rem; margin-left: 0px; padding: 1rem 0px 0px; float: left; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; border-top: 15px solid rgb(0, 0, 0); font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 1.3; letter-spacing: -1px; margin-right: 2.5rem !important; left: 0px !important;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina’s American contact noted that the “international reach of the NRA placed me in a position a couple of years ago to slowly begin cultivating a back-channel to President Putin’s Kremlin.”</font></aside><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Three months later, in July 2015,<b>&nbsp;Butina went to Wisconsin to attend Walker’s presidential campaign launch</b>. The Wisconsin trip came just two days after Butina had traveled to Las Vegas for FreedomFest, an annual conservative event where Trump was speaking. Trump,&nbsp;who had announced his White House run in June, fielded questions from the audience. Butina took a turn at the microphone: “I am visiting from Russia,” she said.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">“Ahhhhh, Putin!” Trump interjected, prompting laughter from the crowd as he added a mocking riff about the current president: “Good friend of Obama, Putin. He likes Obama a lot. Go ahead.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“My question will be about foreign politics,” Butina said, and then asked Trump if he would continue “damaging” economic sanctions against Russia as president. Trump appeared not to know who Butina was. After going off on Obama and digressing into trade talk, he responded that he would “get along very nicely” with Putin.&nbsp;<b>“I don’t think you’d need the sanctions,”&nbsp;<a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/03/trump-spoke-to-a-russian-activist-about-ending-sanctions-just-weeks-after-launching-his-campaign/" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">Trump said.</a>&nbsp;</b></font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">When<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">&nbsp;senior Trump campaign aides later saw&nbsp;<a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/03/trump-spoke-to-a-russian-activist-about-ending-sanctions-just-weeks-after-launching-his-campaign/" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">video of the exchange</a>&nbsp;(first highlighted in the national media by our investigation published in March), they found it&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/markfollman/status/1019001410128523264" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">strange and disconcerting.</a></span></font></p><h3 class="subheader" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 1.3; margin: 2rem 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The NRA junket to Moscow</font></h3><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">In December 2015, an NRA delegation including Erickson, Keene, NRA Vice President Pete Brownell, major NRA donor Joe Gregory, and Milwaukee Sheriff David Clarke traveled to Moscow, where they met with Kremlin officials—including Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, one of the first Russians sanctioned by the Obama administration after Putin annexed Crimea in 2014. The delegation dined on lavish meals and&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/SheriffClarke/status/675442397044711424" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">visited a Russian gun manufacturer</a>.&nbsp;Butina and Torshin participated in and helped host the gathering.</font></p><div id="InContent_Banner_3" data-adunit="InContent_Banner_3" data-size-mapping="InContent" class="dfw-unit display-none" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; text-align: center; position: relative; z-index: 2000;"><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b>Sheriff Clarke</b>, who has served on NRA subcommittees and spoken at NRA political events dating back to 2014, filed an ethics&nbsp;<a href="http://county.milwaukee.gov/ImageLibrary/Groups/cntySheriff/documents/2016/2015SEI.pdf" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">report</a>&nbsp;showing that The Right to Bear Arms, Butina’s group, had paid $6,000 for his trip expenses. The report also noted that Brownell, who became NRA president in 2017, personally paid nearly $14,000 for Clarke’s airfare and visa expenses for the Russia trip.&nbsp;</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The NRA has tried&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/27/politics/nra-documents-russian-banker/index.html" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">to downplay</a>&nbsp;the junket. This May,&nbsp;NRA national spokeswoman Dana Loesch, who&nbsp;<a href="https://home.nra.org/nra-announcement-about-dana-loesch/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">speaks directly</a>&nbsp;for the NRA leadership,&nbsp;commented on a story from my colleague David Corn about&nbsp;<a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/05/the-pentagon-considers-this-russian-sniper-rifle-a-big-threat-to-us-soldiers-the-nra-helped-promote-it/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">a Russian sniper rifle that the NRA helped promote</a>&nbsp;by participating in a video recorded at the gun manufacturer during the Moscow trip.<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Loesch asserted in a tweet that&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/DLoesch/status/993899896041295877" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">“there was no NRA trip.”</a>&nbsp;But when I raised that exchange again after the news of Butina’s arrest this week, Loesch confirmed the NRA delegation’s visit to Moscow—though she now claimed it was an unofficial one.&nbsp;“I said it wasn’t an official trip,”&nbsp;</span>she&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/DLoesch/status/1019009175152680961" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">tweeted</a>&nbsp;at me.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The gun manufacturer’s promotional&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zInAXfvdzSE&feature=youtu.be" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">video</a>&nbsp;opens with a title card reading, “The delegation of National Rifle Association of America (NRA), headed by the first vice-president of the association Pete Brownell, visited the Moscow firearms factory ORSIS on December 11, 2015.” The video shows the NRA leaders and representatives in talks with the Russians, touring the premises, and enthusiastically firing various weapons. In one segment, Butina can be seen sitting just behind Clarke.</font></p><figure id="attachment_621021" class="inline-image alignnone" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px auto 1.5rem; padding-top: 0.5rem; float: none; max-width: 672px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">
</font></div><figcaption class="wp-caption-text" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 1.3;"><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; display: inline; line-height: 1.3;"><span class="media-caption" style="box-sizing: inherit; padding-right: 5px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina and<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">&nbsp;Clarke (right); screen shot from video recorded at the December 2015 gathering in Moscow</span></font></span></p></figcaption></figure><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The NRA has not commented publicly so far about the federal case against Butina. Two NRA spokespersons declined to respond to a detailed inquiry from&nbsp;<em style="box-sizing: inherit;">Mother Jones</em>.&nbsp;David Keene and Paul Erickson also did not respond to multiple separate requests for comment.</font></p><h3 class="subheader" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 1.3; margin: 2rem 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Targeting the 2016 election</font></h3><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">When the NRA annual convention kicked off in May 2016 in Louisville, Kentucky, Torshin met Donald Trump Jr. during a private dinner the night before his father gave a much anticipated speech. (“The only way to save our Second Amendment,” his father told the crowd the next day, “is to vote for a person that you all know named Donald Trump.”) A lawyer for Don Jr. later said the exchange between his client and Torshin at the dinner “was all gun-related small talk.” The&nbsp;<em style="box-sizing: inherit;">Washington Post</em>&nbsp;reported this week that&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/maria-butina-russian-gun-rights-advocate-charged-in-us-with-acting-as-russian-federation-agent/2018/07/16/d1d4832a-8929-11e8-85ae-511bc1146b0b_story.html" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">Butina also met Don Jr.</a>&nbsp;briefly at the convention. &nbsp;</font></p><div id="InContent_Banner_4" data-adunit="InContent_Banner_4" data-size-mapping="InContent" class="dfw-unit display-none" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; text-align: center; position: relative; z-index: 2000;"><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Butina and Torshin are both&nbsp;<a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/03/trump-russia-nra-connection-maria-butina-alexander-torshin-guns/" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">“lifetime members” of the NRA</a>, according to Torshin, who&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/torshin_ru/status/777309576341385216" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">posed</a>&nbsp;for photos in Louisville armed with a large rifle, an NRA “Ring of Freedom”&nbsp;</span>donor ID badge hanging around his neck.</font></p><figure id="attachment_583589" class="inline-image alignnone" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px auto 1.5rem; padding-top: 0.5rem; float: none; max-width: 990px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">
</font></div><figcaption class="wp-caption-text" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 1.3;"><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; display: inline; line-height: 1.3;"><span class="media-caption" style="box-sizing: inherit; padding-right: 5px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Torshin at the 2016 NRA annual convention in Louisville</font></span></p></figcaption></figure><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">That same month, as the&nbsp;<em style="box-sizing: inherit;">New York Times</em>&nbsp;previously&nbsp;<a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/07/17/629627064/new-charges-confirm-that-infiltration-was-an-aspect-of-russian-2016-attack" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">reported</a>, Erickson emailed a high-level Trump campaign official with the message that “Russia is quietly but actively seeking a dialogue.” He noted that the “international reach of the NRA placed me in a position a couple of years ago to slowly begin cultivating a back-channel to President Putin’s Kremlin.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Three months earlier, Erickson and Butina had formed&nbsp;<b>Bridges LLC</b>; Erickson later&nbsp;<a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article195231139.html" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">told&nbsp;<em style="box-sizing: inherit;">McClatchy</em></a>&nbsp;that they created the South Dakota-based company for Butina to get financial assistance for her graduate studies—“an unusual way to use a LLC,” as&nbsp;<em style="box-sizing: inherit;">McClatchy</em>&nbsp;dryly noted.&nbsp;</font></p><aside class="pullquote-left" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; position: relative; width: 275.391px; margin-top: 0.75rem; margin-bottom: 1.25rem; margin-left: 0px; padding: 1rem 0px 0px; float: left; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; border-top: 15px solid rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: bold; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 1.3; letter-spacing: -1px; margin-right: 2.5rem !important; left: 0px !important;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">After Trump won, Butina contacted Torshin. “I am ready for further orders,” she told him.</font></aside><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">After Trump won the presidential election, according to the court documents made public this week, Butina contacted Torshin. “I am ready for further orders,” she told him.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">A lawyer for Butina has denied the federal charges, calling them “overblown.” Butina appeared at a hearing in federal court on Wednesday in Washington, where her lawyer said she had cooperated with an FEC inquiry in March regarding contributions to a political committee (no further details of which were specified at the hearing). The latest court filing from prosecutors on Wednesday alleged that Butina&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/18/us/politics/maria-butina-russia-espionage.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=b-lede-package-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">offered sex to another American</a>, whose identity is unknown, in “exchange for a position within a special interest organization.”</font></p><div id="InContent_Banner_5" data-adunit="InContent_Banner_5" data-size-mapping="InContent" class="dfw-unit display-none" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; text-align: center; position: relative; z-index: 2000;"><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">According to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article195231139.html" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">report</a>&nbsp;earlier this year from&nbsp;<em style="box-sizing: inherit;">McClatchy</em>, the FBI has been investigating whether Torshin illegally funneled money to the Trump campaign through the NRA. (The FBI would “neither confirm nor deny” the investigation to&nbsp;<em style="box-sizing: inherit;">Mother Jones.</em>)</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The Butina case is being prosecuted by the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the National Security Division of the Justice Department; it is unclear to what degree the case may relate to the ongoing investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller. But a near certainty is that additional significant details from the case will emerge.</font></p><figure id="attachment_620329" class="inline-image alignnone" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px auto 1.5rem; padding-top: 0.5rem; float: none; max-width: 990px;"><div style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">
</font></div><figcaption class="wp-caption-text" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 1.3;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" /><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px; display: inline; line-height: 1.3;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span class="media-caption" style="box-sizing: inherit; padding-right: 5px;">Butina in Moscow with former NRA President David Keene; posted November 2013</span></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font>

<span class="media-credit" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.3; letter-spacing: 0.3px;">Facebook</span></p></figcaption></figure><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">The NRA seemed emboldened by the 2016 election. Sheriff Clarke gave&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKUE6mZ0xU8" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">another speech</a>&nbsp;for the political arm of the organization at the 2017 annual convention in Atlanta, where he boasted, “You know I worked hard to get Donald Trump elected president of the United States.” As the crowd applauded, he added, “You see, these rat bastards on the left never give up. For them, election defeats don’t matter. It’s simply a time to regroup and continue their assault on our constitution, the rule of law, liberty, and American exceptionalism.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Two weeks after the high school massacre this February in Parkland, Florida, NRA Executive Director Chris Cox met privately in the Oval Office with Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, and then&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisCoxNRA/status/969393625611333632" style="box-sizing: inherit; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; background-position: 0px 90%; background-image: url(" wp-content="wp-content" themes="themes" motherjones="motherjones" css="css" img="img" orange-border.png="orange-border.png" background-repeat="background-repeat" repeat-x="repeat-x" text-shadow="text-shadow" rgb="rgb" px="px">announced</a>, “POTUS & VPOTUS support the Second Amendment, support strong due process and don’t want gun control. #NRA #MAGA.”&nbsp;</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1rem;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Yet, as the federal government prosecutes an alleged Russian spy whose mission flourished thanks to her deep ties with the NRA, the gun group may no longer be able to so easily declare itself a patriotic defender of America.</font></p></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
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</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></div></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">wapo&nbsp; no lnx</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Public Safety</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>Maria Butina, Russian gun-rights advocate who sought to build ties with NRA, charged with acting as a covert Russian agent</b></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">By Rosalind S. Helderman, Tom Jackman and Devlin Barrett</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">July 16 at 8:46 PM</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
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</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">A Russian woman with ties to a senior Russian government official was charged in Washington on Monday with conspiracy to act as an agent of the Russian Federation, including by building ties to the leadership of the National Rifle Association and other conservative political organizations.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Maria Butina, 29, who recently received a graduate degree from American University, was arrested Sunday in the District and made her first appearance in U.S. District Court before Magistrate Judge Deborah A. Robinson, where she was ordered held without bond.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Butina is accused of trying to cultivate relationships with American politicians to establish “back channel” lines of communication and seeking to infiltrate U.S. political groups, including an unnamed “gun rights organization,” to advance Russia’s agenda. Descriptions in court papers match published reports about Butina’s interactions with the NRA.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The case, which is not part of the special counsel investigation into Russian interference, lays out the strongest allegations to date of American involvement in Russia’s influence operations.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Butina was allegedly assisted in her efforts by a U.S. political operative who helped introduce her to influential political figures. That person was not charged and is not named in court papers, but the description matches that of Paul Erickson, a GOP consultant who sought to organize a meeting between then-candidate Donald Trump and Alexander Torshin, Butina’s Russian colleague and a former Russian senator, at a May 2016 NRA convention.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">NRA officials and Erickson did not respond to requests for comment.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">&nbsp;</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Russian gun rights activist Maria Butina at a Las Vegas conservative political event in July 2015. (FreedomFest/FreedomFest)</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">[Trump hands Putin a diplomatic triumph by casting doubt on U.S. intelligence agencies]</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>Butina’s attorney, Robert Neil Driscoll, denied that she is a Russian agent</b>&nbsp;and said she was merely networking to develop relationships with Americans.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">He told the judge that she had testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee in a closed session several months ago and had offered before her arrest to cooperate with the government.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina did not speak during the brief hearing, other than to state her name. A detention hearing and preliminary hearing were set for Wednesday.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The Russian Embassy said in a statement to the Interfax News Agency that it is “seeking consular access” to Butina “with the aim of defending her legal rights.”</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">A former furniture store owner from Siberia and gun-rights activist, Butina was the first to publicly quiz President Trump about his views on Russia when she asked him a question at a town hall in July 2015.</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">She also briefly met Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son, at the NRA convention in May 2016, according to a person familiar with the encounter.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Court filings do not mention her interactions with Trump and his son, but do recount Butina’s other contacts regarding the NRA convention and the National Prayer Breakfast, an annual event attended by government and political leaders in Washington.<b>&nbsp;Erickson sought to arrange a meeting for Torshin with Trump at the February 2017 breakfast, according to a person familiar with the event.</b></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">After attending the event with a large Russian delegation, Butina wrote to an organizer to offer “important information for you to further this new relationship” with Russia, according to court filings. The nature of the information is not described.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">[Read the affidavit about Maria Butina]</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The charges against Butina were announced days after the Justice Department unveiled an indictment against 12 Russian intelligence officers for allegedly conspiring to hack Democrats in 2016 and just hours after Trump cast doubt on Russia’s involvement in an extraordinary joint news conference with President Vladi­mir Putin.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>Over the weekend, law enforcement officials became increasingly concerned that Butina appeared to be planning to leave the Washington area</b>, according to people familiar with the matter. Investigators were concerned such a trip could pose operational challenges for their work and decided to make an arrest, these people said.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Although special counsel Robert S. Mueller III is aware of the details of the Butina case, the investigative work began before he was appointed to that job, and it has continued to be handled by federal agents and prosecutors outside of his office, these people said.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In an affidavit filed with the court, FBI Special Agent Kevin Helson outlined a two-year alleged effort by Butina to penetrate and influence the U.S. political system for Russia’s benefit by building ties to the American conservative movement.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina’s efforts in the United States came as a number of Republicans began rethinking the party’s traditional hostility to Russia, forming new bonds with Putin’s government around conservative social views on religion and same-sex marriage. That shift culminated with the November 2016 election of Trump, who had argued throughout his campaign that the United States should seek warmer relations with Russia.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">[Guns and religion: How American conservatives grew closer to Putin’s Russia]</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>As early as March 2015, Butina emailed the American political operative about her belief that the Republican Party would likely win the White House in 2016, according to court papers. She proposed a special project to use the NRA to build relations with the GOP.</b></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">She wrote that “the resulting status needs to be strengthened” before the 2016 election and asked for a $125,000 budget to help her attend “all upcoming major conferences” of the Republican Party.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>According to the affidavit, the FBI found evidence on Butina’s computer that she kept an unnamed Russian official closely apprised of her activities. Descriptions of the official in the complaint match Torshin, a Russian central banker who has also built ties with the NRA.</b></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In one March 2016 email to an unnamed American, Butina described Torshin’s “desire in our Russian-American project” and indicated that a Putin representative had expressed support “for building this communication channel.”</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina began reaching out to NRA members and other American gun enthusiasts in 2013 and hosted delegations of NRA executives and gun activists in Moscow. She and Torshin also attended a series of NRA events in the United States starting in 2014.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>In June 2015, as Trump announced his candidacy, Butina wrote a column in the National Interest, a conservative U.S. magazine, suggesting that only by electing a Republican could the United States and Russia hope to improve relations.</b></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">The next month at FreedomFest, a libertarian political event in Las Vegas, she asked Trump at a public event: “What will be your foreign politics, especially in the relations with my country?”</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“I know Putin and I’ll tell you what, we get along with Putin,” Trump responded, in the first of his many campaign statements about his desire to build better ties with Russia.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina told The Washington Post in April 2017 that her question to Trump was “happenstance” and that she has never been an employee of the Russian government.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Butina also attended an NRA convention in May 2016, where Erickson worked to get Torshin a meeting with Trump. In an email to the campaign, Erickson referred to Torshin as “Putin’s emissary” in an effort to improve relations with the United States</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">, The Post and other media organizations previously reported.</span></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The meeting did not happen, but Torshin had an interaction at the event with Trump Jr., who has said it was brief and not memorable. Trump Jr. also interacted with a woman described as Torshin’s assistant who he later came to believe was Butina, according to a person with knowledge of the episode.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina also accompanied Erickson to Trump’s inauguration, one of a number of Russians who attended the festivities and toasted to better relations between Russia and the United States.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Tom Hamburger, Shane Harris and Carol D. Leonnig in Washington and Anton Troianovski in Helsinki contributed to this report.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">&nbsp;no lnx</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>
</b></font></div><div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>Timeline: The odd overlap of Maria Butina, the gun-rights movement and the 2016 election</b></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">By Philip Bump</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">July 16 at 7:06 PM</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Email the author</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">&nbsp;</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">An attendee holds a Smith & Wesson revolver at the company’s booth during the National Rifle Association annual meeting in Dallas on May 5. (Daniel Acker/Bloomberg News)</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Another criminal allegation against another Russian national who was involved in the 2016 election was announced by the Department of Justice on Monday — but the circumstances are far different from what we’ve seen in the past.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">To date, the investigation by special counsel Robert S. Mueller III into Russian interference in the 2016 election has resulted in indictments against 25 Russian nationals and three Russian businesses. The criminal complaint filed against Maria Butina, the founder of a pro-gun group in Russia, comes not from Mueller but from the Justice Department directly. Butina is accused not of trying to influence the 2016 election or having colluded with the campaign of President Trump but, instead, of having conspired to act as an agent of the Russian government.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">This doesn’t mean, though, that Butina had no connection to the campaign. In fact, she worked closely with a former Russian politician named Alexander Torshin, who was sanctioned by the U.S. government earlier this year. Torshin actively sought to build a connection with the Trump campaign in 2016, according to various reports that have emerged over the past year, including leveraging his lifetime membership with the National Rifle Association to build a relationship with Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">It’s not clear how significant the criminal complaint against Butina might be. But it’s worth fleshing out the timeline presented in that case in order to show where Butina, Torshin and 2016 politics overlapped. This timeline includes several points first presented in a very good report from Mother Jones.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">&nbsp;</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Maria Butina attends a rally at Krasnopresnenskaya Zastava Square in support of legalising the possession of handguns. (ITAR-TASS/ZUMAPRESS.com)</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">2011. Maria Butina forms “Right to Bear Arms” in Russia. The aim of the organization mirrors that of the NRA: Broadening Russians’ access to firearms.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">April 15, 2012. Alexander Torshin, a former Russian senator and lifetime member of the NRA, tweets about Butina’s group, comparing it to the NRA.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">His longstanding relationship with Butina and biographical descriptions including in the complaint make clear that the “RUSSIAN OFFICIAL” identified in the document is Torshin.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">2013. Per the complaint, Butina allegedly makes contact with an American political operative (“U.S. Person 1” in the complaint), who agrees to introduce her to influential figures in American politics. That includes a “gun rights organization,” identified contextually within the complaint as the NRA.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">November 2013. White House national security adviser John Bolton, then a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, records a video promoting an expansion of gun rights in Russia that’s later used by Right to Bear Arms for promotion.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">April 2014. Butina and Torshin attend the national NRA convention.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">March 24, 2015. Butina allegedly emails Person 1 to propose a project titled “Diplomacy.” (The email subject line apparently makes reference to a former KGB propagandist.) She writes that the Republican Party (identified only as [POLITICAL PARTY 1] in the complaint) will likely gain power in 2016 but is “traditionally associated with negative and aggressive foreign policy, particularly with regards to Russia.”<b>&nbsp;The time was right, she wrote, to build a relationship with the party, using the “[c]entral place and influence” in the Republican Party of the NRA.</b></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">She noted her relationship with the NRA and past interactions with Republican officials in the email, anticipating a $125,000 budget to be spent on major political conferences. Person 1 responded with suggestions about people with whom she should meet and some strategic recommendations.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">April 24, 2015. Butina attends the NRA convention in Nashville. There she and Torshin meet&nbsp;</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Gov. Scott Walker (R-Wis.), who reportedly greets her in Russian.</span></b></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">June 12, 2015. Writing for National Interest, Butina argues that a Republican president might be the only way to improve relationships with Russia. After the article published, she sent it to Torshin, who approved.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">July 11, 2015. Butina asks Trump a question at FreedomFest, a libertarian event held that year in Las Vegas. As president, she asked, would Trump continue the sanctions imposed against Russia in 2014?</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“I know Putin, and I’ll tell you what, we get along with Putin,” Trump replied. “Putin has no respect for President Obama. Big problem. Big problem. And Russia has been driven — you know I’ve always heard, for years I’ve heard, one of the worst things that can happen is if Russia ever gets driven to China. We have driven them together, with the big oil deals that are being made. We’ve driven them together. That’s a horrible thing for this country. We have made them friends because of incompetent leadership. I believe I would get along very nicely with Putin, okay? And I mean where we have the strength. I don’t think you’d need the sanctions.”</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>July 13, 2015. Butina attends Walker’s presidential campaign launch event.</b></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">August 2015. Butina allegedly assists Torshin in preparing for a congressional delegation to Moscow. It’s not clear who participated in this trip.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Dec. 8, 2015. An NRA delegation arrives in Moscow to meet with Butina’s group. Right to Bear Arms covers some of the trip’s costs. Included in the group is former Milwaukee County sheriff David Clarke.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>2015 and 2016. Butina allegedly exchanges emails with another American (“U.S. Person 2”)</b>&nbsp;in an effort to arrange a series of dinners in New York and Washington to introduce Russians to people influential in American politics.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Jan. 19, 2016. Butina allegedly contacts Torshin about logistics for the upcoming National Prayer Breakfast.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Feb. 4, 2016. The National Prayer Breakfast is held with Torshin in attendance. He regularly attended the event.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Feb. 14, 2016. Torshin tweets that Butina is in the United States where she reports that Trump is “for cooperation with Russia,” according to Mother Jones.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">March 14, 2016. Butina allegedly emails Person 2 and indicates that Torshin had informed her that “Putin’s side” had approved of her outreach plan to high-profile political figures.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">March 30, 2016. Butina allegedly emails an organizer of the prayer breakfast to suggest that Putin might attend in 2017, given certain conditions. He did not, but the organizer offered 10 spots at the 2017 event for Putin.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">May 2016. Through two different individuals close to the Trump campaign, Torshin tries to set up a meeting with Donald Trump Jr. when the two are at the NRA convention in Kentucky later that month. In one of the emails, adviser Rick Dearborn explained that Russia was “quietly but actively seeking a dialogue with the U.S.”</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">May 10 and 11, 2016. Butina allegedly contacts Persons 1 and 2 to set up a series of dinners with influential political figures later that month.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">At some point this month,&nbsp;<b><u>Butina is allegedly part of a group seeking a meeting with the campaign to discuss persecutions against Christians,</u></b>&nbsp;according to Post reporting.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">May 20, 2016. At a dinner on the sideline of the NRA convention, Torshin and Trump Jr. are seated near each other and meet each other briefly.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">August 2016. Butina allegedly arrives in the United States on an F-1 student visa.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Sept. 16, 2016. Butina allegedly emails Persons 1 and 2 to express an urgent need for another dinner with prominent figures in Washington out of concern that those urgently looking for Russia expertise would turn to the “currently popular radically oppositional to Russia crowd of experts.”</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Oct. 4, 2016. Person 1 allegedly emails an acquaintance.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">“Unrelated to specific presidential campaigns,” he writes, “I’ve been involved in securing a VERY private line of communication between the Kremlin and key POLITICAL PARTY I leaders through, of all conduits, the [NRA].”</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Oct. 5, 2016. Over Twitter, Butina allegedly messages Torshin, who is in the hospital receiving treatment.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“We made our bet. I am following our game. I will be connecting the people from the prayer breakfast to this group. … Yesterday’s dinner showed that American society is broken in relation to Russia,” she allegedly writes. “This is now the dividing line of opinions, the crucial one in the election race. [The Republicans] are for us, [Democrats] — against- 50/50. Our move here is very important.” (The complaint obscures the identity of the parties.)</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">They also allegedly discussed whether or not Butina should serve as an election observer, but decide against it. “Right now everything has to be quiet and careful,” Butina writes. Torshin had served in that capacity in 2012, according to Mother Jones.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Oct. 17, 2016. Butina allegedly asks Torshin if he has recommendations for the prayer breakfast seats.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Nov. 8, 2016. Trump wins the presidency. The NRA spends more than $30 million on supporting his campaign.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Nov. 8 and 9, 2016. Butina and Torshin allegedly discuss the election results.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“Think about in which areas of life we could go towards bringing us closer. ISIS- understandably, what else we need to look at the American agenda,” Torshin allegedly writes. She suggests a phone call, but he worries that their phones are tapped. In May, Yahoo reported that Torshin’s phones were tapped — by Spanish authorities.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>Nov. 11, 2016. Butina allegedly sends Torshin a proposal for a conference including a number of members of Congress focused on Russia</b>.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Nov. 12, 2016. Torshin allegedly rejects the plan, saying that “they” won’t go for it — a message that prosecutors allege signal instruction from the Russian government to Butina.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Nov. 30, 2016. Butina allegedly emails Person 1 about the prayer breakfast, assuring Person 1 that the people included in the Russian delegation, handpicked by Torshin and herself, were “coming to establish a back channel of communication.”</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Dec. 1, 2016. Person 1 allegedly explains to Butina how to book the hotel for the Russian delegation to the breakfast and suggests that Torshin cover the cost.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Dec. 26, 2016. Torshin allegedly explains who will and won’t be attending, as per the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Jan. 20, 2017. President Trump is inaugurated.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Butina attends one of the inaugural balls, according to Post reporting.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Feb. 2, 2017. Butina and Torshin attend the prayer breakfast.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Feb. 6, 2017. Butina allegedly thanks a prayer breakfast organizer for meeting with her and suggests she has “important information” for the organizer. She asks for a follow-up meeting.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Feb. 8, 2017. Butina allegedly emails Person 2 to thank him.</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>“My dearest President has received ‘the message’ about your group initiatives and your constructive and kind attention to the Russians,” she writes.</b></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Jan. 18, 2018. McClatchy reports that Mueller’s team is investigating the NRA’s role in the 2016 election. In a letter released several months later, the group indicates having received only about $2,500 from “people associated with Russian addresses.”</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><b>April 6, 2018. Torshin is one of more than 20 Russians sanctioned by the American government in response to Russian interference in 2016, among other incidents.</b></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">=</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://www.alternet.org/news-amp-politics/nra-insiders-are-bracing-themselves-potential-investigation-their-russian-ties">https://www.alternet.org/news-amp-politics/nra-insiders-are-bracing-themselves-potential-investigation-their-russian-ties</a></font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">...</font><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">NRA's precautions could be little more than due diligence as the group faces inquiries from congressional investigators and the media about its relationship with Torshin. But the feeling among some officials internally is that the group appears to be readying for an investigation.</span></font></div><blockquote style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 22px; line-height: 32px !important;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">"True believers to the cause are getting very antsy," said a person privy to the NRA's internal deliberations. "They were definitely preparing, they were bracing themselves."</font></p></blockquote><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 22px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 32px !important;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The gun advocacy group has admitted previously that some of its funding in recent years has come from numerous&nbsp;<a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/04/11/601534305/nra-in-new-document-acknowledges-more-than-20-russian-linked-contributors" style="text-decoration-line: none;">Russians</a>&nbsp;or people living in Russia, but it described these as "routine payments." But&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article195231139.html" style="text-decoration-line: none;">McClatchy</a>&nbsp;has reported that the FBI is investigating whether Kremlin-linked sources used the&nbsp;NRA to financially support President Donald Trump's campaign, which would likely&nbsp;violate federal election law.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 22px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 32px !important;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">...</font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 22px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 32px !important;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 22px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 32px !important;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">ref april 11</font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 22px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 32px !important;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/04/11/601534305/nra-in-new-document-acknowledges-more-than-20-russian-linked-contributors">https://www.npr.org/2018/04/11/601534305/nra-in-new-document-acknowledges-more-than-20-russian-linked-contributors</a></font></p><p style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 22px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 32px !important;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">...One high-profile Russian NRA supporter, state bank official Alexander Torshin,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/03/01/590076949/depth-of-russian-politicians-cultivation-of-nra-ties-revealed" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">has cultivated a years-long relationship</a>&nbsp;with the organization — but he was placed under sanction by the United States with other Russians last week.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The NRA acknowledged that Torshin, a Kremlin-linked politician, is a life member of the NRA, and has been since 2012. "He has paid membership dues, but has not made any contributions," NRA general counsel John Frazer wrote to Wyden.</font></p><aside id="ad-backstage-wrap" aria-label="advertisement" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Now, however: "Based on Mr. Torshin's listing as a specially designated national as of April 6, we are currently reviewing our responsibilities with respect to him," Frazer wrote.</font></p><div id="res601543547" class="bucketwrap internallink insettwocolumn inset2col " style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 27px 15px; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; position: relative; float: right; width: 330.781px; clear: right; z-index: 1;"><div class="bucket img" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border-width: 1px 0px 0px; border-top-style: solid; border-right-style: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(224, 224, 224); border-right-color: initial; border-bottom-color: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-image: initial; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; overflow: hidden;"><div class="bucketblock" style="box-sizing: content-box; margin: 0px 0px 0px 80px; padding: 9px 11px 9px 17px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; min-height: 62px;"><h3 class="slug" style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.27273; vertical-align: baseline; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/national-security/" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; -webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 1px;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">NATIONAL SECURITY</font></a></h3><h3 style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.27273; vertical-align: baseline; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/04/06/600111532/the-russia-sanctions-saga-weapons-dealers-mobsters-and-suitcases-full-of-cash" data-metrics="{" category="category" story="Story" to="to" action="action" click="Click" internal="Internal" link="Link" label="label" https="https" www.npr.org="www.npr.org" the-russia-sanctions-saga-weapons-dealers-mobsters-and-suitcases-full-of-cash="the-russia-sanctions-saga-weapons-dealers-mobsters-and-suitcases-full-of-cash" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; -webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">The Russia Sanctions Saga: Weapons Dealers, Mobsters And Suitcases Full Of Cash</font></a></h3></div></div></div><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">McClatchy has previously reported that the<a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article195231139.html" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">&nbsp;FBI is investigating</a>&nbsp;whether Torshin may have funneled money to the NRA</font></p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Frazer told Wyden in his letter that he believed the NRA has been more than cooperative with Wyden's questions and that this would be the last response he'll send to the senator's office.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">"Given the extraordinarily time-consuming and burdensome nature of your requests, we must respectfully decline to engage in this beyond the clear answers we have already provided," Frazer wrote.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The NRA has been revising its statements on the question of foreign donations. Steven</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Hart, an outside counsel for the NRA, had said previously in an interview with&nbsp;<a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/nra-received-contribution-1000-russian/story?id=54080082" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">ABC News</a>&nbsp;that the NRA had received just one contribution from a Russian individual between 2012 and 2018.<a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/politics/" style="font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; -webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 1px;">POLITICS</a></span></font></p><div id="res601558416" class="bucketwrap internallink insettwocolumn inset2col " style="background-image: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 27px 15px; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; position: relative; float: right; width: 330.781px; clear: right; z-index: 1;"><div class="bucket img" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border-width: 1px 0px 0px; border-top-style: solid; border-right-style: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(224, 224, 224); border-right-color: initial; border-bottom-color: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-image: initial; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; overflow: hidden;"><div class="bucketblock" style="box-sizing: content-box; margin: 0px 0px 0px 80px; padding: 9px 11px 9px 17px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; min-height: 62px;"><h3 style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.27273; vertical-align: baseline; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/03/27/597279176/nra-says-it-receives-foreign-funds-but-none-goes-to-election-work" data-metrics="{" category="category" story="Story" to="to" action="action" click="Click" internal="Internal" link="Link" label="label" https="https" www.npr.org="www.npr.org" nra-says-it-receives-foreign-funds-but-none-goes-to-election-work="nra-says-it-receives-foreign-funds-but-none-goes-to-election-work" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none; -webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">NRA Says It Receives Foreign Funds, But None Goes To Election Work</font></a></h3></div></div></div><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Since then, it has emerged&nbsp;<a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/04/09/600359958/the-nra-may-have-more-russian-contributors-than-first-it-said" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">there have been more</a>.&nbsp;</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">A Wyden aide, who asked not to be identified discussing the office's investigation, said the NRA's shifting statements would prompt Wyden to consider how he might continue his questioning.</span></font></p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">"After three letters, the NRA continually, and specifically avoided detailing what measures it takes to vet donations, including from shell companies, a known means for Russians to funnel money into the United States," the aide said.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">"Sen. Wyden will be referring his correspondence with the NRA to the Federal Elections Commission to contribute to their inquiry ... As ranking member of the Finance Committee, he is considering additional oversight actions in light of this response."</font></p><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">ref mcclathy</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">...</font></div><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4" /><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman"><font face="Times New Roman">Mueller’s office declined comment.</font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Disclosure of the Torshin investigation signals a new dimension in the 18-month-old FBI probe of Russia’s interference. McClatchy reported a year ago that a multi-agency U.S. law enforcement and counterintelligence investigation into Russia’s intervention, begun even before the start of the 2016 general election campaign, initially included a focus on whether the Kremlin secretly helped fund efforts to boost Trump, but little has been said about that possibility in recent months.</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The extent to which the FBI has evidence of money flowing from Torshin to the NRA, or of the NRA’s participation in the transfer of funds, could not be learned.</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">However, the NRA reported spending a record $55 million on the 2016 elections, including $30 million to support Trump</b><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;–</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">&nbsp;triple what the group devoted to backing Republican Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential race. Most of that was money was spent by an arm of the NRA that is not required to disclose its donors.</span></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Two people with close connections to the powerful gun lobby said its total election spending actually approached or exceeded $70 million. The reporting gap could be explained by the fact that independent groups are not required to reveal how much they spend on Internet ads or field operations, including get-out-the-vote efforts.</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">During the campaign, Trump was an outspoken advocate of the Second Amendment right to bear arms, at one point drawing a hail of criticism by suggesting that, if Clinton were elected, gun rights advocates could stop her from winning confirmation of liberal Supreme Court justices who support gun control laws.</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">“If she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do folks,” Trump said at a rally in August 2016. “Although the Second Amendment people, maybe there is, I don’t know.”</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><b>Spanish authorities tag Torshin for money laundering</b></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Torshin, a leading figure in Putin’s party, has been implicated in money laundering by judicial authorities in Spain, as Bloomberg News first revealed in 2016. Spanish investigators alleged in an almost 500-page internal report that Torshin, who was then a senator, capitalized on his government role to assist mobsters laundering funds through Spanish properties and banks, Bloomberg reported</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">A summary obtained by McClatchy of the still-secret report links Torshin to Russian money laundering and describes him as a godfather in a major Russian criminal organization called Taganskaya.</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Investigators for three congressional committees probing Russia’s 2016 operations also have shown interest in Torshin, a lifetime NRA member who has attended several of its annual conventions. At the group’s meeting in Kentucky in May 2016, Torshin spoke to Donald Trump Jr. during a gala event at the group’s national gathering in Kentucky in May 2016, when his father won an earlier-than-usual NRA presidential endorsement.</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">An FBI spokesman declined to comment on the investigation.</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">"We have not been contacted by the FBI about anything related to Russia," said Steven Hart, an outside attorney for the NRA, in a statement provided to McClatchy five days after publication of this story.</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Torshin could not be reached for comment, and emails to the Russian central bank seeking comment from Torshin and the bank elicited no response.</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Mueller’s investigation has been edging closer to Trump’s inner circle. This week, The New York Times reported that Mueller had negotiated an agreement under which Steve Bannon, who was recently ousted from his post as a senior White House adviser, would fully respond to questions about the Trump campaign. Bannon headed the campaign over its final weeks.</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">
</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Since taking over the investigation last May, Mueller has secured guilty pleas from two former Trump aides, former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and former campaign foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos, both of whom agreed to cooperate with prosecutors; and criminal charges against two other top campaign figures, former campaign Chairman Paul Manafort and his deputy, Rick Gates.</div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">...</div><div><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">year ago, three U.S. intelligence agencies signed off on a joint assessment that was the basis for the expulsion of 35 Russian diplomats and other sanctions against the Kremlin. The intelligence agencies concluded that what began as a sophisticated Russian operation to undermine Americans’ faith in democracy morphed into a drive to help Trump win.</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">Torshin is among a phalanx of Putin proxies to draw the close attention of U.S. investigators, who also have tracked the activities of several Russian billionaires and pro-Russian Ukrainian oligarchs that have come in contact with Trump or his surrogates.</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;"><b>Torshin was a senior member of the Russian Senate and in recent years helped set up a Moscow gun rights group called Right to Bear Arms.</b>He not only spoke with Trump Jr. at the NRA convention, but he also tried unsuccessfully to broker a meeting between Putin and the presidential candidate in 2016, according to the Times. He further sought to meet privately with the candidate himself near the 2016 NRA convention.</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">Torshin’s ties with the NRA have flourished in recent years. In late 2015, he hosted two dinners for a high-level NRA delegation during its week-long visit to Moscow that included meetings with influential Russian government and business figures.</p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">In their internal report, Spanish prosecutors revealed a web of covert financial and money-laundering dealings between Torshin and Alexander Romanov, a Russian who pleaded guilty to money-laundering charges in 2016 and was sentenced to nearly four years in prison.</span></p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">The prosecutors’ evidence included 33 audio recordings of phone conversations from mid-2012 to mid-2013 between Torshin and Romanov, who allegedly laundered funds to buy a hotel on the ritzy island of Mallorca. Torshin had an 80 percent stake in the venture, the Spanish report said.</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">In the phone conversations, Romanov referred to Torshin as the “godfather” or “boss.” Torshin has denied any links to organized crime and said his dealings with Romanov were purely “social.”</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">The Madrid-based newspaper El Pais last year reported that Spanish police were on the verge of arresting Torshin in the summer of 2013, when he had planned to attend a birthday party for Romanov, but a Russian prosecutor tipped the banker to plans to nab him if he set foot in Spain, and Torshin canceled his trip.</p><h3 style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box;" mcclatchy="McClatchy" slab="Slab" georgia="Georgia" times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" serif="serif" line-height="line-height" em="em" margin-top="margin-top" px="px" margin-bottom="margin-bottom" font-size="font-size" padding="padding">Congress looking at Torshin, too<span class="ng-command" data-value="252" style="box-sizing: border-box;" /></h3><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">The House and Senate Intelligence Committees and Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee also have taken an interest in Torshin as part of their parallel inquiries into Russia’s interference in the 2016 elections.</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">In questioning Donald Trump Jr. at a closed-door hearing in mid-December, investigators for the Senate Intelligence Committee asked about his encounter with Torshin at the NRA convention, according to a source familiar with the hearing.</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">Alan Futerfas, a lawyer for Trump Jr., said his client and Torshin talked only briefly when they were introduced during a meal.</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">“It was all gun-related small talk,” Futerfas told McClatchy.</p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, sent letters in November to two senior Trump foreign policy aides, J.D. Gordon and Sam Clovis, seeking copies of any communications they had with or related to Torshin; the NRA; veteran conservative operative Paul Erickson; Maria Butina, a Torshin protege<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">&nbsp;</span>who ran the Russian pro-gun group he helped launch, and others linked to Torshin.</span></p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">Erickson has raised funds for the NRA and is a friend of Butina’s. Shortly before the NRA’s May 2016 convention,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/03/us/politics/trump-putin-russia-nra-campaign.html" target="blank" title="" style="box-sizing: border-box; background: 0px 0px; text-decoration-line: none;">he emailed Trump campaign aide Rick Dearborn&nbsp;</a>about the possibility of setting up a meeting between Putin and Trump during the campaign, according to the Times<span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">.</span></p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">Erickson’s email to Dearborn bore the subject line “Kremlin Connection.” In it, Erickson solicited advice from Dearborn and his boss, Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, a top foreign policy adviser to Trump’s campaign, about the best way to connect Putin and Trump.</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">Both Dearborn and Butina, who has been enrolled as a graduate student at American University since mid 2016, have been asked to appear before the Judiciary Committee, but so far Erickson has not, sources familiar with the matter said.</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;"><b>Bridges LLC, a company that Erickson and Butina established in February 2016 in Erickson’s home state of South Dakota, also is expected to draw scrutin</b>y. Public records don’t reveal any financial transactions involving Bridges. In a phone interview last year, Erickson said the firm was established in case Butina needed any monetary assistance for her graduate studies — an unusual way to use an LLC.</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">Erickson said he met Butina and Torshin when he and David Keene, a former NRA president, attended a meeting of Right to Bear Arms a few years ago in Moscow. Erickson described the links between Right to Bear Arms and the NRA as a “moral support operation both ways.”</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">Torshin’s contacts with the NRA and the Trump campaign last year also came to the attention of Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and key adviser. When Torshin tried to arrange a personal meeting with Trump near the NRA convention site last May, Kushner scotched the idea, according to emails forwarded to Kushner.</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">On top of Torshin’s efforts to cozy up to the Trump campaign, the Moscow banker has forged ties with powerful conservatives, including Republican Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, the Californian whom some have deemed Putin’s best friend in Washington. In a phone interview in 2016, Rohrabacher recalled meeting Torshin in Moscow a few years earlier and described him as “a mover and shaker.”</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">Last February when Torshin visited Washington, Rockefeller heir and conservative patron George O’Neill Jr. hosted a fancy four-hour dinner for the banker on Capitol Hill, an event that drew Rohrabacher, Erickson and other big names on the right. Rohrabacher has labeled Torshin as “conservatives’ favorite Russian,” Torshin was in Washington at the time to lead his country’s delegation to the National Prayer Breakfast, where Trump spoke. The banker also was slated to see the presidentat a meet-and-greet event prior to a White House breakfast, but Torshin’s invitation was canceled after the White House learned of his alleged mob connections, Yahoo News reported.</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">Torshin’s involvement with the NRA may have begun in 2013 when he attended the group’s convention in Houston.&nbsp;<b>Keene, the ex-NRA leader and an avid hunter, was instrumental in building a relationship with the Russian, according to multiple conservative sources.</b></p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">Keene also helped lead a high-level NRA delegation to Moscow in December 2015 for a week of lavish meals and meetings with Russian business and political leaders. The week’s festivities included a visit to a Russian gun company and a meeting with a senior Kremlin official and wealthy Russians, according to a member of the delegation, Arnold Goldschlager, a California doctor who has been active in NRA programs to raise large donations.</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">Others on the trip included Joe Gregory, who runs the NRA’s Ring of Freedom program for elite donors who chip in checks of $1 million and upwards, Milwaukee&nbsp;<b>Sheriff David Clarke and Pete Brownell, a chief executive of a gun company and longtime NRA board member.</b></p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">In a phone interview, Goldschlager described the trip as a “people-to-people mission,” and said he was impressed with Torshin — who, he noted, hosted both a “welcoming” dinner for the NRA contingent and another one.</p><p style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1em; line-height: 1.5;">“They were killing us with vodka and the best Russian food,” Goldschlager said. “The trip exceeded my expectations by logarithmic levels.”</p></div></div><div style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></div></aside><div style=""><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">preston torshin russia</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://thinkprogress.org/russia-elections-nra-observer-e7cfe4816869/">https://thinkprogress.org/russia-elections-nra-observer-e7cfe4816869/</a></font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Here’s what we know about the American lawyer tying Russia to the NRA</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Bit by bit, we're learning more about the NRA's connections in Russia.</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">CASEY MICHEL</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">MAR 20, 2018, 2:12 PM</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">&nbsp;Kline Preston introduced Alexander Torshin to the NRA—and praised Putin's recent reelection. CREDIT: YOUTUBE /&nbsp; TG33</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">KLINE PRESTON INTRODUCED ALEXANDER TORSHIN TO THE NRA—AND PRAISED PUTIN'S RECENT REELECTION. CREDIT: YOUTUBE / TG33</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The National Rifle Association (NRA) might not want to answer any questions about its ties to Russia. But a series of reports over the past few days provide new insight into how the gun lobby first became acquainted with Alexander Torshin — a Russian operative accused of massive money laundering — and how Torshin helped build up a series of bizarre ties between Moscow and the NRA.</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">On Tuesday, The Tennessean reported that the NRA first met Torshin through the help of a Nashville-based lawyer named Kline Preston. According to the report, Preston considers Torshin a “longtime friend,” despite the latter’s close links to the Kremlin and Russian officials sanctioned by the United States.</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In 2011, Preston connected Torshin with David Keene, former president of the NRA — and a member of the NRA’s notorious 2015 trip to Moscow — due to Torshin’s “strong interest in gun rights.” In 2015, Torshin joined Keene and Preston at the NRA convention, and even “enjoyed an evening at an Alan Jackson concert, Preston said.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">A photo shared by Russian Deputy PM Dmitry Rogozin (right), then under U.S. sanctions, which appears to show him standing alongside the NRA's Joe Gregory, Pete Brownell, and David Keene in Moscow in Dec. 2015. (CREDIT: TWITTER)</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The NRA tried to dodge questions about its ties to Russia, but Congress isn’t done yet</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Preston told The Tennessean that any allegations that Torshin helped funnel Russian money to the NRA in the hopes of supporting Donald Trump’s campaign were “probably false.” Preston — whose Twitter feed is saturated with Russian propaganda outlets and numerous conspiracy theorists — also claimed that Torshin was “not anti-American in any way.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Kline Preston</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">@gittinpaid</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">&nbsp;As long as US is electing foreign-born presidents, I propose Vladimir Vladimirivich Putin.&nbsp;</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">9:23 AM - Sep 7, 2013</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">See Kline Preston's other Tweets</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Twitter Ads info and privacy</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Kline Preston</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">@gittinpaid</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">&nbsp;Putin sets example for U.S. in crackdown on foreign funding of NGOs. Foreign influences must be prevented! ???????&nbsp; ???????? ????????????!</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">1:59 PM - Mar 29, 2013</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">See Kline Preston's other Tweets</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Twitter Ads info and privacy</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Kline Preston</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">@gittinpaid</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">&nbsp;@AlanCullison Your latest hit piece on Russia lacks integrity. US observers said last 3 elections were fair and free!</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">2:04 AM - Nov 6, 2016</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">See Kline Preston's other Tweets</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">However, Preston may not the best judge of character — or political realities. Over the past week, Preston traveled throughout Russia to act as an “independent” international observer for Russia’s most recent sham election, which saw Putin effectively crowned for another six years.</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The election was neither free nor fair, with rampant ballot-stuffing and carousel voting — to say nothing of blocking leading opposition figure Alexei Navalny from running — marring the election results.</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Someday, Russia will have a free and fair election. CREDIT: GETTY / MIKHAIL SVETLOV</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Meet the latest critic of Russia’s sham election: Edward Snowden</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">But that didn’t matter to Preston. According to Russian state media, Preston saw the election as “honest, open, and trustworthy,” adding that “Putin’s crushing victory is a clear sign of trust in his policy and leadership.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In another video, Preston claimed that he “didn’t see any complaints” from voters.</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">While observing the Russian elections — and helping whitewash Putin’s regime — isn’t, on its face, illegal, RIA Novosti also reported that Preston observed “elections” in Crimea, which remains occupied by Russia. While in Crimea, Preston proclaimed that “Crimea is yours… Crimea was, is, and will be Russian.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">It’s also worth noting, as The Tennessean found, that Preston appears close with Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), who is also one of his clients. Preston told The Tennessean that he was “close” to Blackburn, and that they’d been “family friends” for a “long time.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></p></div><div style=""><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/03/trump-russia-nra-connection-maria-butina-alexander-torshin-guns/">https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/03/trump-russia-nra-connection-maria-butina-alexander-torshin-guns/</a></font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">
</font></div><div style=""><font face="Times New Roman" size="4" /><div style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">many links pix</font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Very Strange Case of Two Russian Gun Lovers, the NRA, and Donald Trump</div><div style="text-align: left;">Here’s what we uncovered about an odd pair from Moscow who cultivated the Trump campaign.</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">DENISE CLIFTON AND MARK FOLLMAN&nbsp; MAR. 8, 2018 6:00 AM</div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">For more than a year, reports have trickled out about deepening ties among prominent members of the National Rifle Association, conservative Republicans, a budding gun-rights movement in Russia—and their convergence in the Trump campaign.</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Now attention is focused around a middle-aged Russian central bank official and a photogenic young gun activist from Siberia who share several passions: posing with assault rifles, making connections with Republican lawmakers and presidential candidates, and publicizing their travels between Moscow and America on social media. Alexander Torshin and his protégé Maria Butina also share an extraordinary status with America’s largest gun lobbying group, according to Torshin: “Today in NRA (USA) I know only 2 people from the Russian Federation with the status of ‘Life Member’: Maria Butina and I,” he tweeted the day after Donald Trump was elected president.</div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Of particular interest are their overtures to Trump. Butina asked him directly at a campaign event about the future of “damaging” sanctions against Russia. Torshin twice tried to meet with Trump, according to the New York Times, and did meet with Donald Trump Jr. at an NRA event. Meanwhile, the House Intelligence Committee has heard sworn testimony about possible Kremlin “infiltration” of the NRA and other conservative groups. And the FBI reportedly is investigating whether Torshin illegally funneled money to the Trump campaign through the NRA—which backed Trump with a record $30 million.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Torshin, a former Russian senator and longtime ally of Vladimir Putin, has been accused of having ties to the Russian mob (an allegation he has denied). Butina, a graduate student since fall 2016 at American University in Washington, DC—who founded a Russian gun rights group and worked as Torshin’s assistant—has reportedly bragged about her connections to the Trump campaign.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Does this odd pair indicate anything more than a far-flung association of international gun rights advocates? Neither Torshin nor Butina responded to our requests for comment, but we built a timeline from hundreds of their photos and social-media posts going back seven years—including previously unreported material—that stirs further questions about their roles.</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Introductions and a new gun group</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">2011: Torshin, then a Russian senator, is introduced to NRA President David Keene through <b>G. Kline Preston IV,</b> a lawyer from Nashville, Tennessee, who had been doing business in Russia for years. Preston later tells the Washington Post, “The value system of Southern Christians and the value system of Russians are very much in line.</span>”</div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Butina at the 2014 NRA convention in Indianapolis VK page</div><div style="text-align: left;">2011: Maria Butina, in her early 20s, creates Right to Bear Arms, aiming to seed a gun rights movement in Russia.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">2011: US gun manufacturer Arsenal Inc. sells 100 limited-edition AK-74s signed by Mikhail Kalashnikov—a personal friend of Torshin’s—with the anticipated $100,000 or more in proceeds to go to the NRA-ILA, the organization’s political lobbying arm.&nbsp; &nbsp;</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">NRA magazine&nbsp; America’s First Freedom</div><div style="text-align: left;">December 2011: Preston serves as an international observer of Russia’s legislative elections, calling them free and fair, despite mass street protests and European observers reporting fraudulent activity.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Targeted by the Kremlin</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">2012: The FBI warns Republican Rep. Dana Rohrabacher—a cold warrior turned Russia apologist who claimed to have once lost a drunken arm-wrestling match to Putin in a Washington dive bar—that the Kremlin aims to recruit him as a source.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">April 15, 2012: Torshin tweets about returning from the NRA annual convention to a rally in Moscow for the Right to Bear Arms, where he notes how “similar,” “good-looking,” and “confident” the supporters of both gun groups are.</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">July 24, 2012: Torshin and Butina lobby the Russian senate to expand gun rights.&nbsp; &nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">November 2012: Torshin and Preston observe the US presidential elections in Nashville and allege improprieties took place on behalf of President Barack Obama.</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">From Houston to Moscow</div><div style="text-align: left;">May 2013: After attending the NRA annual convention in Houston, Torshin writes, “Kalashnikov couldn’t join me, though we have both been ‘life members’ of the NRA for years,” adding that “dozens of AK-47 clones” on display at the event represented one of “our country’s greatest accomplishments.”&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Keene and Butina in a photo posted on Butina’s Facebook page in November 2013</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">November 2013: Torshin and Butina invite Keene to Moscow for a Right to Bear Arms meeting that draws 200 people and features a fashion show, including attire designed for carrying concealed weapons.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Concealed-carry fashion Right to Bear Arms Facebook page</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b>November 2013: Former UN ambassador and future Trump national security adviser John Bolton appears in a video in which he talks up gun rights in Russia. </b>Bolton is a member of the NRA’s “international affairs subcommittee” at the time. NPR later reports that Bolton recorded the address at Keene’s request for the Russian legislature, and that Right to Bear Arms used the video in its lobbying.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">“We would like to be friends with NRA”</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">January 2014: Following the death of Kalashnikov at age 94, the<b> Washington Times</b> publishes an appreciation written by Torshin. Former NRA President Keene is the op-ed editor at the time.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">April 2014: Torshin and Butina attend the NRA convention in Indianapolis, where Butina joins Keene for meetings. Butina later explains the purpose: “We protect gun rights in Russia, and people who are gun owners and in a situation of self-defense.” She adds, “We would like to be friends with NRA.”&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">September 2014<b>: Paul Erickson—an NRA member and longtime conservative Republican operative from South Dakota</b>—attends a Right to Bear Arms meeting in Moscow with Butina. Erickson has known Butina at least since 2013.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Butina and Erickson in Russia, in a photo posted in November 2013 Facebook</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>November 18, 2014: Russia changes its laws to allow citizens to carry guns in public for self-defense.&nbsp;&nbsp;</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Trump to Butina: “I don’t think you’d need the sanctions”</div><div style="text-align: left;">January 2015: Torshin is appointed deputy governor of the Central Bank of Russia.&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">March 2015: Butina announces on Facebook that she will attend the NRA’s upcoming convention in Nashville. She notes the importance of “paying attention to the politicians that we have more similarities than differences.”</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">April 2015: Butina posts about 200 pictures from Nashville, including one with Republican Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin, who she says greeted her in Russian. She notes he’s “one of the possible future nominees for the post of US President,”</span> and ponders the “beginning of a new dialogue between Russia and the US.” Donald Trump also attends, telling the crowd, “I promise you one thing, if I run for president and if I win, the Second Amendment will be totally protected, that I can tell you.” Torshin, also present, later tells Bloomberg that he had a “jovial exchange” with the future president.&nbsp; &nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Butina at the NRA convention in Nashville VK</div><div style="text-align: left;">April 16, 2015: Butina gives a talk at the University of South Dakota; she says Right to Bear Arms now has 10,000 members and 76 offices “all over Russia.”</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">June 2015: Four days before Trump announces his campaign, Butina writes in the conservative National Interest urging friendship between “the bear and the elephant”: “It may take the election of a Republican to the White House in 2016 to improve relations between the Russian Federation and the United States.”&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">
</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">July 11, 2015: At FreedomFest in Las Vegas, Butina asks Trump, “What will be your foreign politics…and do you want to continue the politics of sanctions that are damaging on both economy?” Trump responds, “I know Putin and I’ll tell you what, we get along with Putin…I don’t think you’d need the sanctions. I think that we would get along very, very well.”</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Q&A with Trump at FreedomFest VK</div><div style="text-align: left;">July 13, 2015: Butina posts photos from the Wisconsin event where Gov. Scott Walker announces his presidential candidacy.&nbsp; &nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Butina attends Gov. Walker’s campaign launch VK</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">August 29, 2015: Preston tweets a picture of Trump speaking to the National Federation of Republican Assemblies, posting in Russian, “Donald Trump today in Nashville. He is a friend of Russia.”&nbsp;</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">September 25, 2015: A Right to Bear Arms post on Facebook features a Trump meme, attributing to him in Russian, “Nobody can encroach on the citizenry’s right to store and carry firearms. Period.”&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">Right to Bear Arms post</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">December 8-13, 2015: Erickson, Keene, future NRA President Pete Brownell, and <b>Milwaukee Sheriff David Clarke meet with Kremlin officials in Moscow, where they have lavish meals and visit a gun manufacturer. Clarke, an outspoken Trump supporter, later files an ethics report showing that Right to Bear Arms paid $6,000 for his expenses.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">December 10, 2015: Future Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn is also in Moscow, attending a gala for the Kremlin-controlled RT media network. Flynn, who sits next to Putin and across from<b> future Green Party candidate Jill Stein,</b> gives a <b>speech for which he is paid $45,000</b>—a sum he fails to report on his financial disclosure forms.&nbsp;</span>&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Campaign ammo</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">January 21, 2016: Trump speaks at the National Shooting Sports Foundation’s annual “SHOT Show” in Las Vegas; Don Jr. and Eric Trump also attend, posing with representatives from<b> Sig Sauer, whose “Black Mamba” MCX assault rifle would soon be used in the Orlando nightclub massacre.</b> Ten days later, at an event at an Iowa gun shop, Don Jr. and Eric Trump shoot assault rifles and brag about their concealed-carry permits. “I shoot all the time,” Don Jr. tells the Telegraph. “Every weekend.”</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">February 13, 2016: Torshin writes on Twitter, “Maria Butina is currently in the USA. She writes to me that D. Trump (an NRA member) really is for cooperation with Russia.”</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">February 2016: <span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Butina and Erickson form Bridges LLC. Erickson later tells McClatchy that they created the South Dakota-based company for Butina to get financial assistance for her graduate studies—“an unusual way to use a LLC,” as McClatchy dryly notes.</span>&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">
</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">February 23, 2016: After winning the Nevada primary, Trump gives a victory speech hailing his sons’ gun bona fides: “[Don Jr.] loves the rifle stuff. This is serious rifle. This is serious NRA, both of them, both of them. We love the Second Amendment folks. Nobody loves it more than us, so just remember that.</span>”</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>March 3, 2016: In a primary debate, Trump is reminded that in his 2000 book, The America We Deserve, he supported a ban on assault weapons. His response: “I don’t support it anymore.”</b>&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">May 2016: In an email to Trump campaign aide Rick Dearborn, with the subject line “Kremlin Connection,” Erickson says Russia is “quietly but actively seeking a dialogue with the U.S.” and proposes using the NRA convention to set up “first contact” with the Trump team. According to a New York Times report, Erickson writes that he’s in a position to “slowly begin cultivating a back-channel to President Putin’s Kremlin.” The email doesn’t name Torshin but appears to reference him as “President Putin’s emissary” who planned to attend a dinner hosted by conservative Christian activist Rick Clay. Meanwhile, Clay sends an email to Dearborn with the subject line “Russian backdoor overture and dinner invite,” seeking a meeting between Trump and Torshin. Dearborn forwards Clay’s email to Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who reportedly nixes the proposal.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">May 19-20, 2016: <b>Torshin meets Don Jr.</b> at a private dinner the night before his father speaks at the NRA convention in Louisville, Kentucky. Don Jr.’s lawyer later says the exchange “was all gun-related small talk.”</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">The NRA endorses Trump for president. Trump tells the crowd, “The only way to save our Second Amendment is to vote for a person that you all know named Donald Trump.”</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Torshin poses for photos wearing an NRA “Ring of Freedom” donor ID badge.</div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">June 15, 2016: House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy tells fellow GOP leaders in a private conversation, “There’s two people I think Putin pays: Rohrabacher and Trump. Swear to God.” House Speaker Paul Ryan immediately shuts down the conversation and swears those present to secrecy. When a recording of the conversation later becomes public, McCarthy says he was just joking.&nbsp; </span>&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">August 2016: Hours after Trump appears to threaten Hillary Clinton during a campaign rally by invoking “Second Amendment people” who might “do something” to stop her, Politico reports that the NRA has bought its most expensive pro-Trump campaign ad yet: a $3 million spot attacking Clinton.&nbsp; &nbsp;</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">September 2016: <b>Don Jr. appears in a promotional video for gun silencer manufacturer SilencerCo, whose CEO subsequently donates $50,000 to the Trump Victory fund.</b> “That thing’s awesome,” Don Jr. says, firing guns in the opening segment. The 38-minute video closes with the CEO saying, “Your father is someone that we believe in very strongly.”</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">October 2016: A wave of NRA-sponsored<b> TV political ads targets voters in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and North Carolina. Since the end of June, the NRA has aired more than 10,000 ads criticizing Clinton or extolling Trump—about 16 percent of all TV ads produced by Trump and his allies. Trump goes on to win all three states.</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Early November 2016:&nbsp; <b>Pro-gun messages feature prominently in “junk news” spread by Russian trolls and others on Twitter, particularly in key battleground states, according to a later analysis by Oxford University researchers.</b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">November 8, 2016: Donald Trump is elected the 45th president of the United States.</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">November 12, 2016: Butina hosts a costume party in DC for her 28th birthday, attended by Erickson and Trump campaign aides. Erickson dresses as Russian mystic Rasputin, and Butina dresses as the Russian empress Alexandra. Two unnamed guests tell the Daily Beast that Butina bragged about being part of the Trump campaign’s communications with Russia.&nbsp; &nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">“You came through for me”</div><div style="text-align: left;">Jan. 20, 2017: <b>Butina and Erickson attend the Freedom Ball, </b>one of the three official inaugural balls Trump attends.&nbsp; &nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">From right: <b>Kolyadin </b>and Torshin, with others including Rohrabacher, second from left Kolyadin’s Facebook</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">January 31, 2017: Torshin, Erickson,<b> Rohrabacher </b>(who has received at least $18,000 from the NRA over the past 20 years), and former Kremlin staffer Andrey Kolyadin attend a private event on Capitol Hill hosted by George O’Neill Jr., a longtime conservative activist.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">February 2, 2017: Torshin and Butina accompany a delegation of more than a dozen Russian officials and academics to the National Prayer Breakfast, where Trump is the main attraction. Kolyadin posts a photo with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, commenting that he “treats Russia pretty well, by the way.” Kolyadin later brags about his “direct access to leadership,” noting, “we sat very close to each other and just smiled.”&nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Torshin was scheduled to meet with President Trump, but the meeting is canceled when a national security aide points out that Torshin reportedly is under investigation by Spanish authorities for an alleged “godfather” role in organized crime and money laundering. For his part,<b> Rohrabacher </b>tells Yahoo News that Torshin is “sort of the conservatives’ favorite Russian.”&nbsp;</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
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</div><div style="text-align: left;">“Direct access to leadership” Kolyadin’s Facebook</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">February 24, 2017: “For years, the media couldn’t have cared less about Vladimir Putin or Russia,”<b> NRA leader Wayne LaPierre </b>says in a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference, giving early voice to a “deep state” conspiracy theory on Trump’s behalf: “But now, barely a month into Trump’s presidency, they’re ‘horrified’ and all a-fret over the ‘Russian-American equation.’ Even more alarming is that they’ve apparently found willing co-conspirators among some in the US intelligence community.”&nbsp; &nbsp;</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">April 28, 2017: Having recently reversed an Obama-era law making it more difficult for mentally ill people to buy guns, Trump addresses the NRA annual convention: “You came through for me,” he says, “and I am going to come through for you.”&nbsp; &nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b>August 15, 2017: After Rohrabacher meets with WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange at the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, he claims he has evidence to share with the White House that the Russians did not hack the Democratic National Committee.</b> But White House chief of staff John Kelly rebuffs him. Rohrabacher later tells the Intercept, “What is preventing me from talking to Trump about this is the existence of a special prosecutor. Not only Kelly, but others are worried if I say one word to Trump about Russia, that it would appear to out-of-control prosecutors that that is where the collusion is.”&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">October to November 2017: Russian-linked trolls spread conspiracy theories following mass shootings on the Las Vegas Strip and at a church in Sutherland Springs, Texas.&nbsp; &nbsp;</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">November 14, 2017: “It appears the Russians…infiltrated the NRA,” Glenn Simpson, founder of the opposition research firm Fusion GPS, testifies to the House Intelligence Committee. “They targeted various conservative organizations, religious and otherwise, and they seem to have made a very concerted effort to get in with the NRA.” Referencing Torshin and Butina, he adds, “The most absurd [thing] about this is that, you know, Vladimir Putin is not in favor of universal gun ownership for Russians. And so it’s all a big charade, basically.”&nbsp; &nbsp;</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Investigations and a politicized school massacre</div><div style="text-align: left;">January 18, 2018: McClatchy reports the FBI is investigating whether Torshin illegally funneled money to the Trump campaign through the NRA. (The FBI would “neither confirm nor deny” the investigation to Mother Jones.)</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">January 29, 2018: Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff, the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, tells NPR that the committee’s probe of the NRA-Russia angle has been stymied by the Republican majority.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">“I am specifically troubled by the possibility that Russian-backed shell companies or intermediaries may have circumvented laws designed to prohibit foreign meddling in our elections.”</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">
</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">February 2, 2018: Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden sends separate letters to the NRA and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin demanding they provide any documents showing financial ties between the NRA and Russia. </span>“I am specifically troubled by the possibility that Russian-backed shell companies or intermediaries may have circumvented laws designed to prohibit foreign meddling in our elections,” Wyden writes. NRA General Counsel John Frazer responds, “The NRA and its related entities do not accept funds from foreign persons or entities in connection with United States.”&nbsp; &nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">February 14, 2018: Following the school massacre in Parkland, Florida, Kremlin-linked trolls and Russian state media jump into action on Twitter, stirring both sides of the gun debate.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">February 21, 2018: During a live-televised “listening session” with Parkland survivors at the White House, Trump endorses NRA talking points to end “gun-free zones” and arm teachers to “harden” America’s schools.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">
</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">February 22, 2018: Trump hails the leaders of the NRA: </span>“Great People and Great American Patriots. They love our Country and will do the right thing. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” <b>NRA spokesperson Dana Loesch echoes Trump’s blame on the FBI’s Russia investigation for the failure to prevent the Parkland massacre: “Maybe if you politicized your agency less and did your job more, we wouldn’t have these problems.”</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;">March 2018: In an NRA magazine, LaPierre blasts media bias against Trump, specifically calling out coverage of “the bogus Russia investigation.”</div><div style="text-align: left;">
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">March 1, 2018: Trump and Vice President Mike Pence meet privately in the Oval Office with NRA Executive Director Chris Cox. Trump calls the meeting “great.” Cox announces: “POTUS & VPOTUS support the Second Amendment, support strong due process and don’t want gun control. #NRA #MAGA.”</span></div></div><div style=""><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://thegrio.com/2018/01/29/nra-russia-ties/"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">https://thegrio.com/2018/01/29/nra-russia-ties/</font></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Did&nbsp;<span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">&nbsp;Russia infiltrate the NRA? Did the NRA launder Russian money for Trump? If the answer to these questions is yes, then the problem of guns in America—and why we can’t seem to discuss it, address it or solve it–starts to make more sense.</span></font></div><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The FBI is investigating whether a Russian banker, mafia boss and politician with close ties to&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Vladimir Putin</strong>&nbsp;illegally funneled millions to the NRA to help Trump win the presidency.<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Alexander Torshin</strong>, a former Russian senator with connections to the Kremlin, is the deputy governor of Russia’s central bank—and a lifetime NRA member, as reported by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article195231139.html" target="blank" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">McClatchy</a>.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">Torshin is reportedly the godfather of the Russian criminal syndicate Taganskaya. Authorities in Spain were prepared to arrest him in 2013 on the resort island of Mallorca for</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;</span><a href="https://www.propublica.org/article/russian-politician-who-reportedly-sent-millions-to-nra-has-long-history-in-spain" target="blank" rel="noopener" style="background-color: transparent; font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" box-sizing="box-sizing" border-box="border-box" text-decoration-line="text-decoration-line" none="none">money laundering</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">, until he cancelled his travel plans. Torshin has been a subject of a number of Congressional investigations, including the House intelligence committee.</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Torshin, a gun enthusiast,</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"> has attended several NRA conventions, including the May 2016 convention in Kentucky, where he spoke with&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Donald Trump Jr.</strong>&nbsp;and the gun rights organization endorsed Trump for president.</span></font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In November 2017, the committee interviewed<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">&nbsp;Glenn Simpson</strong>, cofounder&nbsp;of Fusion GPS, the opposition research firm that hired British intelligence officer&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Christopher Steele</strong>&nbsp;to&nbsp;<a href="https://thegrio.com/2018/01/10/trump-dossier-verified-transcript/" target="blank" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">compile a dossier</a>&nbsp;on ties between Trump and Russia. Steele went to the FBI in September 2016 because he was concerned the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/01/09/576789880/author-of-russia-dossier-worried-trump-was-being-blackmailed" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">Russians were blackmailing Trump</a>. In the interview, Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA) asked Simpson about Russia’s interest with the NRA:</font></p><h4 style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 400; margin: 24px 0px 14px; line-height: 29px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://thegrio.com/2018/01/10/trump-dossier-verified-transcript/" target="blank" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000" style="">–Shocking new details emerge about the infamous Trump dossier–</font></strong></span></a></h4><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In Simpson’s own words: SIMPSON:</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="">It appears the Russians, you know, infiltrated the NRA. And there is more than one explanation for why. But I would say broadly speaking, it appears that the Russian operation was designed to infiltrate conservative organizations. And they targeted various conservative organizations, religious and otherwise, and they seem to have made a very concerted effort to get in with the NRA. And so there is a Russian banker-slash-Duma member-slash-Mafia leader named Alexander Torshin who is a life member of the NRA. And we spent a lot of time investigating Mr. Torshin."</font></span></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Simpson also mentioned&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Maria Butina</strong>, a “big Trump fan in Russia” who worked with Torshin, and “then suddenly showed up here and started hanging around the Trump transition after the election.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In the 2016 election, the NRA spent a record of at least $55 million, possibly more than $70 million, including&nbsp;<a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article195231139.html" target="blank" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">$30 million on Trump</a>—three times the amount the gun rights organization had spent on&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Mitt Romney</strong>&nbsp;in his 2012 presidential bid.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">But why should we care about any of this?</font></p><h3 style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 400; margin: 27px 0px 17px; line-height: 30px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">NRA’s overwhelming political influence</font></h3><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Already, there have been at least eleven school shootings in the U.S. in 2018, and no one seems to care. America lacks the will to solve its problems, and gun violence is certainly one of them. Money has corrupted politics, and the signs are all around us.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">As the&nbsp;<em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Dallas Morning News</em>&nbsp;has reported, oligarchs tied to Putin have<a href="https://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/commentary/2017/08/03/tangled-web-connects-russian-oligarch-money-gop-campaigns" target="blank" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none;">&nbsp;funneled millions</a>&nbsp;of dollars into Republican campaigns, filling the coffers of politicians such as Sens.&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Mitch McConnell</strong>,&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Marco Rubio</strong>,&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Lindsey Graham</strong>, and&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">John McCain</strong>, and Govs.&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">John Kasich</strong>and&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Scott Walker</strong>. Meanwhile, House Speaker&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Paul Ryan</strong>&nbsp;received $500,000 from the Koch Brothers immediately after Congress passed the infamous tax bill that amounts to a huge gift to the top 1 percent.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The National Rifle Association is one of the most powerful lobbying groups in America, and has been operating like an arm of the Republican Party, with the GOP opposing any and all gun control measures. For the NRA, gun regulations have become far more than a matter of policy. Rather, the group has become a solider in the “culture wars,” branding liberals, progressives, Black Lives Matter protesters and those who oppose Trump as their enemy.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Last year in an NRA ad,&nbsp;<a href="https://thegrio.com/2017/07/23/nra-says-white-families-will-be-tortured-and-killed-if-black-lives-matter-succeeds/" target="blank" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Dana Loesch</strong></a>&nbsp;called for a civil war against the left, who in her words “use their media to assassinate real news,” “use their schools to teach children that their president is another Hitler,” and “smash windows, burn cars, shut down interstates and airports, bully and terrorize the law-abiding — until the only option left is for the police to do their jobs and stop the madness.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">One critic, activist&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Samuel Sinyangwe</strong>, tweeted that the ad was “the white equivalent of an ISIS recruitment video.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">[vid]</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">On NRATV, NRA’s media outlet, two men accused Black Lives Matter of committing mass violence against whites, making parallels to “South Africa where white families are being tortured and killed almost every day in racist violence.”</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">[img]</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"> One of the men, NRA host</span></span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;</span><strong style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" box-sizing="box-sizing" border-box="border-box">Grant Stinchfield</strong><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">, once suggested North Korea should bomb California instead of Guam, and insisted we “blame minorities killing each other” for gun violence rather than “law abiding conservatives. Let’s look harder at broken families not gun laws.” In another video called “We Stand,” the NRA inserted itself into the</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;</span><a href="http://thegrio.com/2012/02/05/the-top-10-greatest-black-quarterbacks-of-all-time-slideshow/#s:warren-moon-best-black-quarterbacks-slideshow-jpg" title="NFL" target="blank" class="auto-link" style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" box-sizing="box-sizing" border-box="border-box" text-decoration-line="text-decoration-line" none="none">NFL</a><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">protests against police brutality.</span></span></font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">[img vid]</font></span></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">he NRA, like the GOP, has jumped head first into the pool of fascism and racism, making it increasingly more difficult to distinguish between white supremacist militias and hate groups, gun lobbyists and Republican lawmakers.</font></span></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Things get very serious when this all translates into policy.</font></p><h3 style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 400; margin: 27px 0px 17px; line-height: 30px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Why is the NRA so mum on Russia ties?</font></h3><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Everytown for Gun Safety, which has created an&nbsp;<a href="https://embed.kumu.io/662833ba76365642accfe372adcfc944#nra-and-russia" target="blank" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">interactive website</a>&nbsp;on ties between the NRA, Russia and Trump World, notes that the NRA forged ties with Putin as Russia meddled in the U.S. election. “Not only are they Trump’s #1 ally, the NRA’s&nbsp;<a href="http://thegrio.com/2011/01/17/slideshow-the-top-25-most-influential-black-american-leaders-of-all-time/#s:malcolm-x-and-martin-luther-king-jpg-2" title="leadership" target="blank" class="auto-link" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">leadership</a>&nbsp;has been building relationships with Russian officials since at least 2011,” said&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Jamie Schell</strong>, Political Research Director for Everytown for Gun Safety in a Dec. 29 email to supporters.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Schell called out the NRA for promoting a “guns everywhere” agenda. “It’s no surprise that the NRA doesn’t want to talk about their ties to Russia. How can the NRA be protecting freedom when they cozy up to Putin’s authoritarian regime?” he wrote.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The gun lobby has enabled gun proliferation in America, a land where there are as many firearms as there are people. The U.S. has 4.4 percent of the world population, but&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/07/world/americas/mass-shootings-us-international.html" target="blank" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">42 percent of the guns</a>. This reality translates into 30,000 gun-related deaths each year, and it should be regarded as a major public health crisis.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Gun violence has taken a particular toll on the Black community in terms of homicides, creating a vicious cycle of trauma. Through its legalized bribery of elected officials, the NRA has stood in the way of solutions to America’s gun problem,&nbsp;<a href="http://www.latimes.com/business/hiltzik/la-fi-hiltzik-gun-research-funding-20160614-snap-story.html" target="blank" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">blocking</a>&nbsp;gun violence research for 20 years. Their answer has been guns everywhere.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In December, the House voted to extremely expand the right to carry concealed weapons just about anywhere in the country, requiring any state to recognize a concealed carry permit from another state. Who benefits from this? Obviously, the NRA, the Republicans, and Russia. Because if you want to disrupt another country, weaken it internally and undermine it, what better way to accomplish this than to bring in all the guns and turn it into the Wild West?</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Moreover, GOP leadership refuses to accept the Russia investigation, led by Special Counsel&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Robert Mueller</strong>, as legitimate. In some cases they’ve even attempted to impede and undermine it. For example, Trump attempted to fire Mueller last June, ordering the prosecutor’s termination, which White House lawyer&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Don McGahn</strong>&nbsp;refused to carry out.</font></p><h3 style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 400; margin: 27px 0px 17px; line-height: 30px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="https://thegrio.com/2018/01/26/trump-mueller-investigation/" target="blank" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">–Obstruction? Trump reportedly ordered firing of Russia special counsel Mueller–</font></strong></em></a></h3><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Many Republicans in Congress oppose legislation making it more difficult to fire Mueller. The president also&nbsp;<a href="http://foreignpolicy.com/2018/01/26/trump-launched-campaign-to-discredit-potential-fbi-witnesses/amp/" target="blank" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">launched</a>&nbsp;a campaign to discredit potential FBI witnesses in Mueller’s probe. GOP lawmakers have promoted a conspiracy theory that there is a “deep state” FBI plot to bring down Trump.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">House Intelligence Committee chair Rep.<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">&nbsp;Devin Nunes</strong>&nbsp;(R-CA), who reportedly recused himself&nbsp;in the Russia investigation because he was a member of the Trump transition team, has exhibited strange behavior for months. Recently, against the objection of the Justice Department, Nunes has called for the release of a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/29/politics/house-intelligence-committee-devin-nunes-memo/index.html" target="blank" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent; text-decoration-line: none;">Republican memo</a>&nbsp;alleging the FBI abused the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) by obtaining a warrant against Trump campaign adviser&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Carter Page</strong>.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The memo targets&nbsp;Deputy Attorney General&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Rod Rosenstein</strong>–who oversees Mueller and who Trump wants removed–and deputy FBI Director&nbsp;<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">Andrew McCabe</strong>–who worked under fired FBI Director<strong style="box-sizing: border-box;">&nbsp;James Comey</strong>&nbsp;and has just stepped down–for their role in the investigation.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">These and other examples of obstruction and efforts to protect Trump only point to GOP culpability, given what is known about the NRA’s–and by extension the Republican Party’s–ties to Russia.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 26px; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; word-wrap: break-word; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">So, if the NRA did take the Russian money and gave it to Trump and other Republican campaigns, that would certainly explain some things.</font></p><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style=""><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">=</font></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/19/opinion/nra-russia-investigation-trump.html"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/19/opinion/nra-russia-investigation-trump.html</font></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style=""><div class="story-body-supplemental" style="display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; justify-content: space-between;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><div class="story-body story-body-1" style="position: relative; flex-grow: 0; width: 705px;"><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="690" data-total-count="690" style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">In May 2016, Paul Erickson, an activist who has raised money for the National Rifle Association, sent an email to Rick Dearborn, an adviser to Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, with the super-subtle subject heading “Kremlin Connection.”</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> As&nbsp;</span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/03/us/politics/trump-putin-russia-nra-campaign.html?r=0" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">The New York Times reported last December</a><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">, Erickson wrote that Russia was “quietly but actively seeking a dialogue with the U.S.” and planned to use the N.R.A.’s annual convention in Louisville, Ky. that month to make “first contact” with the Trump camp. </span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">At the convention,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-jr-met-with-man-with-close-ties-to-kremlin/?ftag=CNM-00-10aab7e&linkId=44949927" style="">Donald Trump Jr. met with Aleksandr Torshin</a>, an ally of President Vladimir Putin of Russia, reputed mobster and deputy governor of the Russian central bank.</span></font></p><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="720" data-total-count="1410" style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">This is one of those episodes that is easy to lose track of amid the avalanche of evidence connecting the Trump administration and Russia. But it takes on new significance because of an intriguing,&nbsp;<a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article195231139.html" style="">potentially explosive&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article195231139.html" style="">article</a>&nbsp;that McClatchy published Thursday headlined, “F.B.I. Investigating Whether Russian Money Went to N.R.A. to Help Trump.” We know of numerous secret communications between members of the Trump campaign and Russia, and favors asked for and received. This, however, is the most significant hint of a money trail. Norman Eisen,&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/NormEisen/status/953986265069838336" style="">Barack Obama’s White House ethics czar, tweeted</a>: “this could well be the collusion we have been waiting for, prosecutable as possible campaign finance crimes.”</font></p><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="591" data-total-count="2001" style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">It’s important not to get carried away, if only because a scenario in which the Russian investigation ensnares the N.R.A., probably the most influential conservative group in the United States, seems a bit too much like Resistance fan fiction, too delicious to be true. Indeed, if it<em>&nbsp;is</em>&nbsp;true, it has devastating implications for the entire Republican Party, since many officeholders enjoy lavish financial support from the N.R.A. Still, an N.R.A. role in Russiagate would explain a few things, including why the N.R.A. has, in recent years, developed such a close relationship with Russia.</font></p><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="552" data-total-count="2553" style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">There’s been a lot of reporting about that relationship, which is widely seen as part of Russia’s efforts to cultivate right-wing groups throughout the United States and Europe.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/how-the-republican-right-found-allies-in-russia/2017/04/30/e2d83ff6-29d3-11e7-a616-d7c8a68c1a66_story.html?utm_term=.892322562d13" style="">As The Washington Post noted last year</a>, “On issues including gun rights, terrorism and same-sex marriage, many leading advocates on the right who grew frustrated with their country’s leftward tilt under President Barack Obama have forged ties with well-connected Russians and come to see that country’s authoritarian leader, Vladimir Putin, as a potential ally.”</font></p><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="676" data-total-count="3229" id="story-continues-1" style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">At least some investigators think the relationship between the N.R.A. and Russian government actors went beyond mutual admiration. On Thursday afternoon, the House Intelligence Committee released the&nbsp;<a href="http://docs.house.gov/meetings/IG/IG00/20180118/106796/HMTG-115-IG00-20180118-SD002.pdf" style="">transcript of its interview with Glenn Simpson</a>, one of the founders of the research firm Fusion GPS. (The transcript of Simpson’s interview with the Senate was released last week.) In it, Jackie Speier, Democrat of California, asks Simpson about Russia’s interest in the N.R.A. Simpson replied that it appeared that the Russians had “infiltrated” the N.R.A. He mentioned Torshin and a woman named Maria Butina, whom McClatchy describes as Torshin’s “protégée.”</font></p><a class="visually-hidden skip-to-text-link" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/19/opinion/nra-russia-investigation-trump.html#story-continues-2" style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); position: absolute; width: 1px; height: 1px; margin: -1px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); overflow: hidden; text-decoration-line: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">Continue reading the main story</font></a></div></div><div class="story-interrupter" id="story-continues-2" style="" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px" background-color="background-color" rgb="rgb"><div id="FlexAd" class="ad flex-ad nocontent robots-nocontent ad-loaded" data-google-query-id="CPzxxve_gNkCFReFaQod5wQJsA" style="width: 1125px; display: flex; justify-content: center; flex-wrap: wrap; margin: 20px 0px 37px; padding-top: 12px; padding-bottom: 25px; border-top: 1px solid rgb(235, 235, 235); border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(235, 235, 235);"><a class="visually-hidden skip-to-text-link" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/19/opinion/nra-russia-investigation-trump.html#story-continues-3" style="text-align: left; position: absolute; width: 1px; height: 1px; margin: -1px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); overflow: hidden; text-decoration-line: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">Continue reading the main story</font></a><div class="flex-ad-creative" style="text-align: left;"><div id="google_ads_iframe/29390238/NYT/opinion_8container" style="border: 0pt none; display: inline-block; width: 728px; height: 90px;"><span style="font-family: georgia, " times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" rem="rem"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Adam Schiff, Democrat of California and ranking member of the intelligence committee, told me that the committee’s interest in the gun lobbying organization predated its meeting with Simpson. “The issue of whether there was an effort to either create a back channel through the N.R.A., or provide funding through the N.R.A., has been an issue of concern for the committee, and something we’ve endeavored to look into with the limited resources we have,” he said.</font></span></div></div></div><div class="story-body-supplemental" style="display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; justify-content: space-between;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" font-size="font-size" px="px"><div class="story-body story-body-2" style="position: relative; flex-grow: 0; width: 705px;"><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="591" data-total-count="4290" style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">If a relationship between the N.R.A., Trump and Russia exists, Torshin and Butina appear to be the nexus of it. Torshin helped create a Russian gun-rights group called Right to Bear Arms, and Butina runs it. The purpose of the group is ambiguous. Gun laws in Russia are strict, and if people close to Putin actually wanted to change them, creating a group alluding to America’s Second Amendment seems like a weird way to do it. As Simpson said in his House testimony: “Vladimir Putin is not in favor of universal gun ownership for Russians. And so it’s all a big charade, basically.”</font></p><div class="newsletter-signup variant-1-hidden " id="newsletter-promo" data-newsletter-productcode="TY" data-newsletter-producttitle="Opinion Today" aria-labeledby="newsletter-promo-heading" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); border-top: 1px solid rgb(226, 226, 226); padding-top: 15px; border-bottom: 1px solid rgb(226, 226, 226); padding-bottom: 15px; width: 300px; margin: 7px 30px 15px 75px; float: left; clear: left;"><h2 class="visually-hidden" id="newsletter-promo-heading" style="text-align: left; line-height: 1.375rem; margin: -1px; position: absolute; width: 1px; height: 1px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); overflow: hidden;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Newsletter Sign Up</font></h2><a class="visually-hidden skip-to-text-link" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/19/opinion/nra-russia-investigation-trump.html#continues-post-newsletter" style="text-align: left; position: absolute; width: 1px; height: 1px; margin: -1px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; clip: rect(0px, 0px, 0px, 0px); overflow: hidden; text-decoration-line: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">Continue reading the main story</font></a></div><div id="#continues-post-newsletter" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="400" data-total-count="4690" style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">If so, the charade has been useful in building relationships between Putin allies and American conservatives. In 2015, Right to Bear Arms hosted a luxurious trip to Russia for N.R.A. leaders, where, according to McClatchy, they met with “a senior Kremlin official and wealthy Russians.” (Among the American delegation was former</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"> Sheriff David A. Clarke, the Trump supporter and Fox News regular.)</span></font></p><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="404" data-total-count="5094" style="text-align: left; margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Last year, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-kremlin-and-gop-have-a-new-friendand-boy-does-she-love-guns" style="">Daily Beast reported&nbsp;</a>on the figure Butina, a woman in her 20s who formerly owned a Siberian furniture store, cut in Trump’s Washington: “Now she’s wheeling and dealing with D.C. think-tankers, Republican strategists and a Russian bank chief with alleged mob connections.” The article said she repeatedly boasted of her role as an intermediary between the Trump campaign and Russia.</font></span></p><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="344" data-total-count="5438" style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">As McClatchy reported, Erickson — the author of the “Kremlin Connection” email — and Butina set up a limited liability company together in 2016. Erickson told McClatchy that the company was founded to provide Butina with money for her graduate studies, should she need it. That, noted McClatchy, is “an unusual way to use an L.L.C.”</font></p><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="427" data-total-count="5865" style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Here’s another way L.L.C.s could be used: as an intermediary between foreign agents and tax-exempt organizations that are not required by law to disclose their donors, often called dark money groups. Indeed, in July the left-leaning Center for American Progress put out a report&nbsp;<a href="https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/democracy/reports/2017/07/17/435886/secret-foreign-spending-u-s-elections-america-needs-disclose-act/" style="">warning that loopholes in campaign finance laws</a>&nbsp;make it easy for foreign citizens or governments to influence our elections in precisely this way.</font></p><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="526" data-total-count="6391" style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Speaking of the F.B.I.’s investigation into the N.R.A., Liz Kennedy, the senior director of Democracy and Government Reform at the center, told me, “If this investigation in fact finds that illegal behavior occurred, this would really be the kind of illegal foreign spending that we were warning would happen.” (During the Obama administration, Senate Democrats twice tried to pass the Disclose Act, which would require greater transparency about the sources of political donations; both times Republicans filibustered.)</font></p><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="235" data-total-count="6626" id="story-continues-4" style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Of all the so-called dark money groups involved in the 2016 election,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.opensecrets.org/outsidespending/summ.php?cycle=2016&chrt=V&disp=O&type=U" style="">none spent more than the N.R.A</a>. The $30 million it expended to elect Trump was three times more than the N.R.A. spent on Mitt Romney’s behalf in the 2012 election.</font></p><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="292" data-total-count="6918" style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">That $30 million, however, is just what the N.R.A. spent on the presidential race. It also backed other candidates, reportedly spending $55 million overall. The organization helped Republicans cement control of Congress. If it did so with Russia’s assistance, the whole party is implicated.</font></p><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="369" data-total-count="7287" style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Of course, the citizenry has no way of knowing where any of that money came from. But the F.B.I. almost certainly does. We’re far from understanding what role, if any, the N.R.A. played in helping Russia help Trump. But a scandal that encompasses both the Trump campaign&nbsp;<em>and</em>&nbsp;the right’s most powerful lobby would be bigger than most people imagined before Thursday.</font></p><p class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="305" data-total-count="7592" style="text-align: left; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); margin: 0px 0px 1em 75px; line-height: 1.625rem;" times="times" new="new" roman="roman" serif="serif" max-width="max-width" none="none" width="width" px="px"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">“In terms of what the Russians are doing in the United States, it’s far broader than just the Trump campaign,” Schiff told me. “In that sense when people think that the Russian intervention was just about tipping the scales to one of the candidates in 2016, they’re thinking far too narrowly.”</font></p></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></div><div style=""><div style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">=</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/01/29/581674874/liberal-groups-seize-on-report-that-nra-may-have-been-involved-in-russian-meddli">https://www.npr.org/2018/01/29/581674874/liberal-groups-seize-on-report-that-nra-may-have-been-involved-in-russian-meddli</a></font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">
</font></div><div style=""><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Liberal activists are asking the Federal Election Commission to look into a connection between Russia and the National Rifle Association. This month, McClatchy reported that the FBI is investigating whether a Russian banker linked to the Kremlin illegally funneled money to the NRA to help the Trump presidential campaign.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">NPR political reporter Tim Mak is following the story for us. Hi, Tim.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">TIM MAK, BYLINE: Hey there.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">SHAPIRO: Explain the connection between Russia and the National Rifle Association.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">MAK: OK, so myself and other reporters have been reporting for well over a year about ties between the NRA and Russia. And that largely centers around a man named</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Alexander Torshin. He's a Russian central banker. He's got ties with the Kremlin.&nbsp;</span><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">He's a lifetime member of the NRA. And he led a delegation of senior NRA leaders to Moscow in 2015. Now, he repeatedly made multiple attempts to set up a meeting with Donald Trump during the 2016 campaign. And he didn't accomplish this, but he did meet with Donald Trump Jr. during the NRA convention in 2016.</span></font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">The latest revelation comes with a McClatchy report which NPR has not independently verified. But the report says that the FBI is investigating whether Russians used the NRA as a vehicle to aid Trump during the election.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">SHAPIRO: How involved was the NRA in the 2016 election?</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">MAK: It was certainly more involved in 2016 than it has been in previous years. For example, it spent more than $30 million to support Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential race. Now, this is close to triple what they spent supporting Mitt Romney back in 2012.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">SHAPIRO: And if there was a crime committed here, what would the crime have been?</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">MAK: So it's illegal for foreigners to actively participate in the American political process, whether that's through voting or through contributing money. So if Russians used the NRA as a vehicle to influence the American elections, that would be illegal.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">SHAPIRO: Now, tell us about this latest complaint, today's filing with the Federal Election Commission.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">MAK: So the FEC filing is a complaint by a liberal group led by a former spokesman for the Democratic National Committee. And they're basically saying based on this McClatchy report that the FBI is investigating the FEC should also open an investigation because they are concerned with campaign finance. They should investigate whether or not such illegal activities occurred.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">SHAPIRO: What does the NRA say about all of this?</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">MAK: So it's said that so far it's not gotten any contact with the FBI. And it is worth noting that right now it's largely liberal groups that are seizing upon this moment. They're particularly interested in the fact that there are two villains in one prospective scandal, that there are anti-Trump groups, there are anti-NRA groups kind of banding together to try to draw attention to what could be a very interesting problem for the NRA.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">SHAPIRO: This is one small slice of a much larger conversation about Russian involvement in the 2016 campaign. How does this fit into the bigger picture?</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">MAK: So Russian intervention in American politics, it's taken many forms, whether it's social media bots that are kind of confusing the process and spreading disinformation - and then there are reported efforts about Russians trying to connect with Trump's inner circle and getting involved with the campaign. So this avenue, this NRA-Russia avenue, could be a way in which the Russians sought to influence the process even though no public evidence has yet emerged that this was used. Now, Congressman Adam Schiff, he's the top Democrat on the House intelligence committee. He says it's an avenue that the investigation on the House intelligence committee has taken, but that Republicans aren't particularly eager to pursue it right now.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">SHAPIRO: Is there anything likely to come of this latest complaint to the FEC?</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">MAK: So there's some reason for skepticism that the FEC would take any quick action. It's currently politically deadlocked. And even if it does move to investigate this promptly the matter itself, the process, could take years to actually occur. So in the meantime it's become kind of a vehicle for the left to draw attention to this matter.</font></p><p style="text-align: left; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">SHAPIRO: That's NPR's Tim Mak. Thanks so much.</font></p></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">
</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">=</font></div><div style=""><div class="g" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div data-hveid="38" data-ved="0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQtgIIJigAMAA" style=""><div class="rc" style="position: relative;"><h3 class="r" style="text-align: left; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;"><a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/03/22/595897412/john-boltons-curious-appearance-in-a-russian-gun-rights-video" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.npr.org/2018/03/22/595897412/john-boltons-curious-appearance-in-a-russian-gun-rights-video&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQtwIIJzAA" style="cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;">John Bolton's Curious Appearance In A Russian Gun Rights Video ...</a></font></h3><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div class="s" style="max-width: 48em; line-height: 18px;"><div style="margin-left: 125px;"><div class="f hJND5c TbwUpd" style="text-align: left; height: 18px; line-height: 16px; white-space: nowrap;"><cite class="iUh30" style="font-style: normal;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">https://www.npr.org/.../john-boltons-curious-appearance-in-a-russian...</font></cite></div><div class="slp f" style="text-align: left; "><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Mar 22, 2018 - Uploaded by «Право на оружие»</font></div><span class="st" style="line-height: 1.4; word-wrap: break-word;"><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Russian</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;politician Alexander&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Torshin</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;helped establish The Right to Bear Arms and cultivate ties with American ...</span></font></div></span></div><div style="clear: left;"><div class="g" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div data-hveid="41" data-ved="0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFQgpKAEwAQ"><div class="rc" style="position: relative;"><h3 class="r" style="text-align: left; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://www.npr.org/2018/03/01/590076949/depth-of-russian-politicians-cultivation-of-nra-ties-revealed" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.npr.org/2018/03/01/590076949/depth-of-russian-politicians-cultivation-of-nra-ties-revealed&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFggqMAE" style="cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">Depth Of Russian Politician's Cultivation Of NRA Ties Revealed : NPR</font></a></h3><div class="s" style="max-width: 48em; line-height: 18px;"><div class="f hJND5c TbwUpd" style="text-align: left; height: 18px; line-height: 16px; white-space: nowrap;"><cite class="iUh30" style="font-style: normal;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">https://www.npr.org/2018/.../depth-of-russian-politicians-cultivation-of-nra-ties-revealed</font></cite></div><span class="st" style="line-height: 1.4; word-wrap: break-word;"><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span class="f" style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">Mar 1, 2018 -&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Russian</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;politician Alexander&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Torshin</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">, standing next to then-</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Russian</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, attends a ceremony at the Kremlin in 2011.&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Torshin</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;is a lifetime member of the National</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Rifle</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;Association and says he met Donald Trump through the group in 2015. Konstantin Zavrazhin/Getty Images hide&nbsp;...</span></font></div></span></div></div></div></div><div class="g" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div data-hveid="44" data-ved="0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFQgsKAIwAg"><div class="rc" style="position: relative;"><h3 class="r" style="text-align: left; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://medium.com/@ScottMStedman/john-bolton-spoke-at-2013-round-table-for-russian-gun-rights-group-under-scrutiny-in-mueller-7bcf2d11d715" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://medium.com/%40ScottMStedman/john-bolton-spoke-at-2013-round-table-for-russian-gun-rights-group-under-scrutiny-in-mueller-7bcf2d11d715&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFggtMAI" style="cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">John Bolton spoke at 2013 round-table for Russian gun-rights group ...</font></a></h3><div class="s" style="max-width: 48em; line-height: 18px;"><div class="f hJND5c TbwUpd" style="height: 18px; line-height: 16px; white-space: nowrap;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">https://medium.com/.../john-bolton-spoke-at-2013-round-table-for-russian-gun-rights...</font></span></div><div class="action-menu ab_ctl" style="display: inline; position: relative; margin: 1px 3px 0px; user-select: none; vertical-align: middle;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a class="GHDvEf ab_button" href="https://www.google.com/search?q=russia+gun+torshin&oq=russia+gun+torshin&aqs=chrome..69i57.14384j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#" id="am-b2" aria-label="Result details" aria-expanded="false" aria-haspopup="true" role="button" jsaction="m.tdd;keydown:m.hbke;keypress:m.mskpe" 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href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:vbt7UDTh_ssJ:https://medium.com/%40ScottMStedman/john-bolton-spoke-at-2013-round-table-for-russian-gun-rights-group-under-scrutiny-in-mueller-7bcf2d11d715+&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:vbt7UDTh_ssJ:https://medium.com/%2540ScottMStedman/john-bolton-spoke-at-2013-round-table-for-russian-gun-rights-group-under-scrutiny-in-mueller-7bcf2d11d715%2B%26cd%3D3%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQIAgwMAI" style="text-decoration-line: none; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px; outline: 0px;" /></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></li></ol></div></div></div><a class="fl" href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:vbt7UDTh_ssJ:https://medium.com/%40ScottMStedman/john-bolton-spoke-at-2013-round-table-for-russian-gun-rights-group-under-scrutiny-in-mueller-7bcf2d11d715+&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:vbt7UDTh_ssJ:https://medium.com/%2540ScottMStedman/john-bolton-spoke-at-2013-round-table-for-russian-gun-rights-group-under-scrutiny-in-mueller-7bcf2d11d715%2B%26cd%3D3%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQIAgwMAI" style="text-align: left; text-decoration-line: none; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px; outline: 0px;"><span class="st" style="line-height: 1.4; word-wrap: break-word;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="f" style="">Mar 20, 2018 -&nbsp;</span>Butina and&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Torshin</span>.&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Torshin</span>, the deputy head of the Central Bank of&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Russia</span>&nbsp;and alleged mafia boss, has been cultivating relationships with the NRA and other&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">gun</span>-rights groups in the United States since 2011. He meticulously documented his various excursions with NRA leaders and activists on social&nbsp;...</font></span></a></div></div></div></div><div class="g" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div data-hveid="50" data-ved="0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFQgyKAMwAw"><div class="rc" style="position: relative;"><h3 class="r" style="text-align: left; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/03/trump-russia-nra-connection-maria-butina-alexander-torshin-guns/" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/03/trump-russia-nra-connection-maria-butina-alexander-torshin-guns/&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFggzMAM" style="cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">The Very Strange Case of Two Russian Gun Lovers, the NRA, and ...</font></a></h3><div class="s" style="max-width: 48em; line-height: 18px;"><div class="f hJND5c TbwUpd" style="height: 18px; line-height: 16px; white-space: nowrap;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">https://www.motherjones.com/.../trump-russia-nra-connection-maria-butina-alexander...</font></span></div><div class="action-menu ab_ctl" style="display: inline; position: relative; margin: 1px 3px 0px; user-select: none; vertical-align: middle;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a class="GHDvEf ab_button" href="https://www.google.com/search?q=russia+gun+torshin&oq=russia+gun+torshin&aqs=chrome..69i57.14384j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#" id="am-b3" aria-label="Result details" aria-expanded="false" aria-haspopup="true" role="button" jsaction="m.tdd;keydown:m.hbke;keypress:m.mskpe" data-ved="0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQ7B0INDAD" 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class="fl" href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:08Kfjzf_L3oJ:https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/03/trump-russia-nra-connection-maria-butina-alexander-torshin-guns/+&cd=4&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:08Kfjzf_L3oJ:https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2018/03/trump-russia-nra-connection-maria-butina-alexander-torshin-guns/%2B%26cd%3D4%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQIAg2MAM" style="text-align: left; text-decoration-line: none; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px; outline: 0px;"><span class="st" style="line-height: 1.4; word-wrap: break-word;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="f" style="">Mar 8, 2018 -&nbsp;</span>Alexander&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Torshin</span>&nbsp;and his protégé Maria Butina also share an extraordinary status with America's largest&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">gun</span>&nbsp;lobbying group, according to&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Torshin</span>: “Today in NRA (USA) I know only 2 people from the&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Russian</span>&nbsp;Federation with the status of '<wbr />Life Member': Maria Butina and I,” he tweeted the day after Donald&nbsp;...</font></span></a></div></div></div></div><div class="g" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div data-hveid="56" data-ved="0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFQg4KAQwBA"><div class="rc" style="position: relative;"><h3 class="r" style="text-align: left; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/john-bolton-russian-gun-rights-video_us_5ab45053e4b054d118e15380" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/john-bolton-russian-gun-rights-video_us_5ab45053e4b054d118e15380&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFgg5MAQ" style="cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">Bolton Aided An FBI-Investigated Moscow Banker And NRA To Plug ...</font></a></h3><div class="s" style="max-width: 48em; line-height: 18px;"><div class="f hJND5c TbwUpd" style="height: 18px; line-height: 16px; white-space: nowrap;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">https://www.huffingtonpost.com/.../john-bolton-russian-gun-rights-video_us_5ab450...</font></span></div><div class="action-menu ab_ctl" style="display: inline; position: relative; margin: 1px 3px 0px; user-select: none; vertical-align: middle;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a class="GHDvEf 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href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:lgZ3a7bW2NQJ:https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/john-bolton-russian-gun-rights-video_us_5ab45053e4b054d118e15380+&cd=5&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:lgZ3a7bW2NQJ:https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/john-bolton-russian-gun-rights-video_us_5ab45053e4b054d118e15380%2B%26cd%3D5%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQIAg8MAQ" style="text-decoration-line: none; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px; outline: 0px;" /></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></li></ol></div></div></div><a class="fl" href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:lgZ3a7bW2NQJ:https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/john-bolton-russian-gun-rights-video_us_5ab45053e4b054d118e15380+&cd=5&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:lgZ3a7bW2NQJ:https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/john-bolton-russian-gun-rights-video_us_5ab45053e4b054d118e15380%2B%26cd%3D5%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQIAg8MAQ" style="text-align: left; text-decoration-line: none; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px; outline: 0px;"><span class="st" style="line-height: 1.4; word-wrap: break-word;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="f" style="">7 days ago -&nbsp;</span>The Bolton video was distributed by a&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">gun</span>&nbsp;rights group co-founded by&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Russian</span>&nbsp;citizen Alexander&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Torshin</span>, according to National Public Radio, which unearthed the video.&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Torshin</span>&nbsp;is a lifetime member of the National&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Rifle</span>&nbsp;Association, a close ally of&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Russian</span>&nbsp;President Vladimir Putin and the deputy governor&nbsp;...</font></span></a></div></div></div></div><div class="g" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div data-hveid="62" data-ved="0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFQg-KAUwBQ" style=""><div class="rc" style="position: relative;"><h3 class="r" style="text-align: left; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleksandr_Torshin" 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href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:XWzKhPomPZ0J:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleksandr_Torshin+&cd=6&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:XWzKhPomPZ0J:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleksandr_Torshin%2B%26cd%3D6%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQIAhCMAU" style="text-decoration-line: none; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px; outline: 0px;" 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class="fl" href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:XWzKhPomPZ0J:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleksandr_Torshin+&cd=6&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:XWzKhPomPZ0J:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aleksandr_Torshin%2B%26cd%3D6%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQIAhCMAU" style="text-align: left; text-decoration-line: none; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px; outline: 0px;"><span class="st" style="line-height: 1.4; word-wrap: break-word;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">In it, Paul Erickson, a National&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Rifle</span>&nbsp;Association (NRA) member, said he wanted the advice of Dearborn and Jeff Sessions, then a foreign policy adviser to Trump and Dearborn's longtime boss, about how to proceed in connecting Trump and&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Russian</span>&nbsp;President Vladimir Putin. The meetings involved Alexander<span style="font-weight: bold;">Torshin</span>.</font></span></a></div><div jsl="$t t--ddbPTeIsNI$t-nEjf2CObCkc;$x 0;" class="r-iIg4LvNIVkCc" data-ved="0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQ2Z0BCEMwBQ"><div class="g" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div data-hveid="75" data-ved="0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFQhLKAYwBg"><div class="rc" style="position: relative;"><h3 class="r" style="text-align: left; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/whats-the-truth-about-the-nras-man-in-moscow" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/whats-the-truth-about-the-nras-man-in-moscow&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFghMMAY" style="cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">What's the Truth About the NRA's Man in Moscow? - The Daily Beast</font></a></h3><div class="s" style="max-width: 48em; line-height: 18px;"><div class="f hJND5c TbwUpd" style="height: 18px; line-height: 16px; white-space: nowrap;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">https://www.thedailybeast.com/whats-the-truth-about-the-nras-man-in-moscow</font></span></div><div class="action-menu ab_ctl" style="display: inline; position: relative; margin: 1px 3px 0px; user-select: none; vertical-align: middle;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a class="GHDvEf ab_button" href="https://www.google.com/search?q=russia+gun+torshin&oq=russia+gun+torshin&aqs=chrome..69i57.14384j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#" id="am-b6" aria-label="Result details" aria-expanded="false" aria-haspopup="true" role="button" jsaction="m.tdd;keydown:m.hbke;keypress:m.mskpe" 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href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:CrKiWYi2PF8J:https://www.thedailybeast.com/whats-the-truth-about-the-nras-man-in-moscow+&cd=7&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:CrKiWYi2PF8J:https://www.thedailybeast.com/whats-the-truth-about-the-nras-man-in-moscow%2B%26cd%3D7%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQIAhPMAY" style="text-decoration-line: none; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px; outline: 0px;" /></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></li></ol></div></div></div><a class="fl" href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:CrKiWYi2PF8J:https://www.thedailybeast.com/whats-the-truth-about-the-nras-man-in-moscow+&cd=7&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:CrKiWYi2PF8J:https://www.thedailybeast.com/whats-the-truth-about-the-nras-man-in-moscow%2B%26cd%3D7%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQIAhPMAY" style="text-align: left; text-decoration-line: none; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px; outline: 0px;"><span class="st" style="line-height: 1.4; word-wrap: break-word;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Russian</span>&nbsp;politician and Putin ally Alexander&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Torshin</span>&nbsp;is wanted as a mobster money launderer in Spain. Is his Trump connection as sinister as it sounds? Anna Nemtsova. 02.23.18 5:03 AM ET. Photo Illustration by Sarah Rogers/The Daily Beast. MOSCOW—<span style="font-weight: bold;">Russian gun</span>&nbsp;lovers received a delegation from the U.S. National&nbsp;...</font></span></a></div></div></div></div><div class="g" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div data-hveid="80" data-ved="0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFQhQKAcwBw"><div class="rc" style="position: relative;"><h3 class="r" style="text-align: left; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/03/25/bolton-responds-after-tim-kaine-questions-security-clearance-over-russia-gun-video.html" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/03/25/bolton-responds-after-tim-kaine-questions-security-clearance-over-russia-gun-video.html&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFghRMAc" style="cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">Bolton responds after Tim Kaine questions security clearance over ...</font></a></h3><div class="s" style="max-width: 48em; line-height: 18px;"><div class="f hJND5c TbwUpd" style="text-align: left; height: 18px; line-height: 16px; white-space: nowrap;"><cite class="iUh30" style="font-style: normal;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">www.foxnews.com/.../bolton-responds-after-tim-kaine-questions-security-clearance-over...</font></cite></div><span class="st" style="line-height: 1.4; word-wrap: break-word;"><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span class="f" style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">4 days ago -&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">Bolton responds after Tim Kaine questions security clearance over&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Russia gun</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;video .... To Bear Arms. The NPR report described one of the group's founders, Alexander&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Torshin</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">, as an ally of</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Russian</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;President Vladimir Putin who served as the deputy speaker of&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Russia's</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;parliament for more than 10 years.</span></font></div></span></div></div></div></div><div class="g" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 26px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div data-hveid="83" data-ved="0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFQhTKAgwCA"><div class="rc" style="position: relative;"><h3 class="r" style="text-align: left; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://momsdemandaction.org/new-john-bolton-video-emerged-two-days-before-moscow-rally-planned-by-alexander-torshins-russian-gun-group/" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://momsdemandaction.org/new-john-bolton-video-emerged-two-days-before-moscow-rally-planned-by-alexander-torshins-russian-gun-group/&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFghUMAg" style="cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">NEW: John Bolton Video Emerged Two Days Before Moscow Rally ...</font></a></h3><div class="s" style="max-width: 48em; line-height: 18px;"><div class="f hJND5c TbwUpd" style="height: 18px; line-height: 16px; white-space: nowrap;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">https://momsdemandaction.org/new-john-bolton-video-emerged-two-days-before-mo...</font></span></div><div class="action-menu ab_ctl" style="display: inline; position: relative; margin: 1px 3px 0px; user-select: none; vertical-align: middle;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a class="GHDvEf ab_button" href="https://www.google.com/search?q=russia+gun+torshin&oq=russia+gun+torshin&aqs=chrome..69i57.14384j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#" id="am-b8" aria-label="Result details" aria-expanded="false" aria-haspopup="true" role="button" jsaction="m.tdd;keydown:m.hbke;keypress:m.mskpe" data-ved="0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQ7B0IVTAI" style="border-radius: 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face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a class="fl" href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:V3w_9lxosLEJ:https://momsdemandaction.org/new-john-bolton-video-emerged-two-days-before-moscow-rally-planned-by-alexander-torshins-russian-gun-group/+&cd=9&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:V3w_9lxosLEJ:https://momsdemandaction.org/new-john-bolton-video-emerged-two-days-before-moscow-rally-planned-by-alexander-torshins-russian-gun-group/%2B%26cd%3D9%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQIAhXMAg" style="text-decoration-line: none; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px; outline: 0px;" /></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></font></li></ol></div></div></div><a class="fl" href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:V3w_9lxosLEJ:https://momsdemandaction.org/new-john-bolton-video-emerged-two-days-before-moscow-rally-planned-by-alexander-torshins-russian-gun-group/+&cd=9&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search%3Fq%3Dcache:V3w_9lxosLEJ:https://momsdemandaction.org/new-john-bolton-video-emerged-two-days-before-moscow-rally-planned-by-alexander-torshins-russian-gun-group/%2B%26cd%3D9%26hl%3Den%26ct%3Dclnk%26gl%3Dus&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQIAhXMAg" style="text-align: left; text-decoration-line: none; cursor: pointer; display: block; padding: 7px 18px; outline: 0px;"><span class="st" style="line-height: 1.4; word-wrap: break-word;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000"><span class="f" style="">6 days ago -&nbsp;</span>Yesterday, NPR reported that in 2013, former NRA President David Keene had former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton film a video praising “a new era of freedom” in&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">Russia</span>&nbsp;and encouraging the<span style="font-weight: bold;">Russian</span>&nbsp;government to loosen its&nbsp;<span style="font-weight: bold;">gun</span>&nbsp;laws. The video was used in advocacy efforts by Alexander<span style="font-weight: bold;">Torshin's</span>&nbsp;...</font></span></a></div></div></div></div><div class="g" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 28px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div data-hveid="89" data-ved="0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFQhZKAkwCQ"><div class="rc" style="position: relative;"><h3 class="r" style="text-align: left; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/potential-trump-official-recorded-video-russian-gun-group-article-1.3890183" ping="/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/potential-trump-official-recorded-video-russian-gun-group-article-1.3890183&ved=0ahUKEwiUnrXRhpLaAhWGxYMKHf0YDIoQFghaMAk" style="cursor: pointer; text-decoration-line: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">Potential Trump official recorded video for Russian gun group - NY ...</font></a></h3><div class="s" style="max-width: 48em; line-height: 18px;"><div class="f hJND5c TbwUpd" style="text-align: left; height: 18px; line-height: 16px; white-space: nowrap;"><cite class="iUh30" style="font-style: normal;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">www.nydailynews.com/.../potential-trump-official-recorded-video-russian-gun-group-ar...</font></cite></div><span class="st" style="line-height: 1.4; word-wrap: break-word;"><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span class="f" style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">7 days ago -&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Torshin's</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;name has come up in relation to the sweeping U.S. investigation into&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Russian</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">election meddling, as he forged close ties with ex-National&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Rifle</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;Association President David Keene in the lead-up to the 2016 election.&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large" font-weight="font-weight" bold="bold">Torshin</span><span style="font-family: " times="Times" new="New" roman="Roman" font-size="font-size" large="large">&nbsp;is under investigation for illegally funneling cash into the NRA's effort to&nbsp;...</span></font></div></span></div></div></div></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"></font></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/19/opinion/nra-russia-investigation-trump.html</font></div><div style="text-align: left;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
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