Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee released a report on September 27, 2019 alleging that the National Rifle Association acted as a foreign asset for Russia in the lead up to the 2016 election.
According to CNBC and NPR, the committee’s investigation, led by Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, claims top NRA officials used the organization’s resources, largely funded by member dues, to build relationships with two Russians: Aleksandr Torshin, then a deputy governor of the Central Bank of Russia, and Maria Butina, who said they had access to top Russian officials.
The report alleges the NRA gave the two broad access to events over a three year period, where they could have met top Republican figures, including presidential candidates. Investigators focused on a 2015 trip to Moscow led by Torshin and Butina. The report alleges former NRA president David Keene helped organize the trip with the promise of business opportunities, including access to a Russian arms maker under U.S. sanctions, and that the NRA covered part of the cost.
The NRA is a tax exempt organization and is barred from using its funds for the personal benefit of its officials. Wyden said the NRA may have violated tax laws and asked the IRS to investigate. In a statement, he said the report shows the NRA was not truthful about the 2015 trip.
The NRA called the report politically motivated. The New York attorney general was also investigating the organization over its tax status at the time. Butina was serving an 18 month sentence after pleading guilty to conspiracy to act as a foreign agent.
