Whitehouse and Blumenthal Call for Public Hearings on NRA Role in 2016 Russian Election Interference

Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) are urging Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley (R-IA) to hold public hearings with National Rifle Association (NRA) leadership to determine what these NRA officials knew about Russia’s attempts to illegally launder money through their organization during the 2016 election cycle.

Last week, Maria Butina, a suspected Russian agent, was indicted for her involvement in an alleged conspiracy to “infiltrate organizations active in U.S. politics in an effort to advance the interests of the Russian federation.”  She is also suspected of working with Republican political operative Paul Erickson to attempt to set up a backchannel line of communication between the Russian government and U.S. politicians through the NRA, and of working closely with Russian oligarchs close to President Putin.  Bridges LLC, a shell company that Butina and Erickson set up in the United States, has been flagged for suspicious financial transactions by the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

“These reports and court filings suggest that the Russian government may have been using the NRA, through Ms. Butina and others, to funnel funds to the Trump campaign. It is illegal for foreign groups and individuals to contribute directly or indirectly to political campaigns in the United States,” the senators wrote in a letter to Chairman Grassley.

“As members of the Committee tasked with oversight over federal campaign finance law, we have an interest in determining whether the NRA was aware of attempts by Ms. Butina to violate the prohibition on foreign contributions to U.S. campaigns. We respectfully request that the Senate Judiciary Committee immediately schedule public hearings with officials at the National Rifle Association to determine what these officials knew about Russia’s attempts to illegally funnel money to the 2016 U.S. elections through their organization and what role they may have played in such activity.”

The full text of their letter is available here and copied below.

The Honorable Charles E. Grassley

Chairman

Committee on the Judiciary

United States Senate

224 Dirksen Senate Office Building

Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Chairman Grassley:

Recent press reports have raised serious questions about the National Rifle Association’s (NRA’s) relationship with certain Russian actors, including Maria Butina, who was indicted last week for acting as an unregistered foreign agent.[1] As part of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s ongoing investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, potential coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia, and any related obstruction of justice, Ranking Member Feinstein sent over fifty letters requesting interviews with important witnesses, including Ms. Butina and other individuals affiliated with the NRA. These witnesses have either declined these requests or failed to respond. We respectfully request that the Senate Judiciary Committee immediately schedule public hearings with officials at the National Rifle Association to account for the extent of these relationships and to determine what these officials knew about the Russian government’s attempts to infiltrate their organization to influence the 2016 U.S. elections.

It was reported earlier this year that the Federal Bureau of Investigation has been investigating whether a top Russian banker with ties to the Kremlin, Alexander Torshin, illegally funneled money to the NRA to help Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.[2] In 2013, Spanish authorities tagged Torshin, who has close ties to President Vladimir Putin, for money laundering.[3]

Last week, the Department of Justice indicted Maria Butina, who allegedly worked under Mr. Torshin’s direction, for her involvement in an alleged conspiracy to “infiltrate organizations active in U.S. politics in an effort to advance the interests of the Russian federation.”[4] Butina, who is in the United States on a student visa, is suspected of working with Republican political operative Paul Erickson to attempt to set up a backchannel line of communication between the Russian government and U.S. politicians through the NRA. The indictment asserts that she failed to officially disclose to U.S. authorities that she was acting as an agent of the Kremlin. Additionally, press reports indicate that she and Mr. Erickson set up a shell company in the United States, Bridges LLC, to supposedly fund her studies. The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence requested reports of any suspicious financial activity by Ms. Butina and Bridges LLC last year.[5] It has now been reported that the U.S. Department of the Treasury collected voluminous suspicious activity reports from banks on Ms. Butina, Mr. Torshin, Mr. Erickson and Bridges LLC.[6]

These reports and court filings suggest that the Russian government may have been using the NRA, through Ms. Butina and others, to funnel funds to the Trump campaign. It is illegal for foreign groups and individuals to contribute directly or indirectly to political campaigns in the United States. As members of the Committee tasked with oversight over federal campaign finance law, we have an interest in determining whether the NRA was aware of attempts by Ms. Butina to violate the prohibition on foreign contributions to U.S. campaigns. We respectfully request that the Senate Judiciary Committee immediately schedule public hearings with officials at the National Rifle Association to determine what these officials knew about Russia’s attempts to illegally funnel money to the 2016 U.S. elections through their organization and what role they may have played in such activity.

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