FBI investigating whether Russian banker funneled money to the NRA to help Donald Trump
It is illegal to use foreign money in a US federal election
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Your support makes all the difference.The FBI is investigating whether a top Russian banker with ties to the Kremlin illegally funnelled money to the National Rifle Association in an effort to boost President Donald Trump’s first presidential run.
Two sources familiar with the matter confirmed the investigation to the McClatchy News Service, and said that counterintelligence investigators are eyeing activities of Alexander Torsion.
Mr Torshin is the deputy governor of Russia’s central bank, and is reportedly close with both the NRA and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
US law prohibits the use of foreign money to influence American federal elections.
The McClatchy report notes that it is not clear how long the FBI investigation has been ongoing, but comes after months in which the Justice Department’s probe into Russia’s 2016 meddling — and potential ties it may have had with the Trump campaign — has heated up.
It is also unclear to what extent the FBI has evidence of money flowing from Mr Torshin to the NRA, or how that may have been facilitated.
The NRA spent roughly $30 million to support Mr Trump’s campaign, a significant portion of its record $55 million spent on the 2016 election in total.
That amount is roughly triple the amount that the group spent to support the 2012 Republican nominee, Mitt Romney.
Notably, a significant portion of their 2016 election spending was done by the arm of the group that is not required to disclose their donors. Sources told McClatchy that the actual amount of election spending may actually be much higher as well, at about $70 million — a discrepancy that may be explained by the fact that independent groups aren’t required to disclose how much they spend on online ads or field operations.
Whatever the case, news that the NRA is being investigated as a part of the broader Russia inquiry signals a new stage in the investigation, and shows that the investigation is becoming increasingly complicated and multi-faceted.
The Russia inquiry has already led to four indictments for individuals associated with the Trump campaign. Two of those individuals have pleaded guilty to their charges, while the other two plead innocence.
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