NRA, Russia and Trump: How 'dark money' is poisoning American democracy

[tulc]

NRA, Russia and Trump: How 'dark money' is poisoning American democracy

One such report found that since Trump secured the Republican nomination in 2016, the fraction of anonymous purchases of his properties through shell companies has "skyrocketed" from 4 to 70 percent. The public can only guess at the source of these funds, whether they be foreign governments or wealthy domestic interests—and to what extent unknown sums pouring into other Trump businesses are being used to curry favor with the president.

Moreover, in the case of the NRA, the FBI is now investigating whether illicit funds were spent in support of Trump's political campaign. Wehave long warned that our broken system of campaign finance disclosure creates opportunities for foreign governments to illegally influence American elections, undetected.

The NRA is among the largest "dark money" organizations, reporting the greatest amount of campaign spending without revealing the source of the funds — over $35 million in the 2016 election cycle alone. Still, this amount was just a fraction of the over $175 million in reported campaign-related spending that came from unknown sources.

tulc(MAGA by letting the Russians launder money?)

 

[Stormy]

Yawn

 

[tulc]

Yawn

Sounds like someone could use some coffee. Here you go:

tulc(hopes those help)

 

[Stormy]

I just don't think campaign financing is any debate that a democrat would want to get into. Just because you find one hit piece doesn't make the GOP anywhere near as soiled as the DNC and Hillary.. You really don't want to go there. I find finance mundane and boring. I would rather talk direction and policies.

 

[FenderTL5]

I just don't think campaign financing is any debate that a democrat would want to get into. Just because you find one hit piece doesn't make the GOP anywhere near as soiled as the DNC and Hillary.. You really don't want to go there. I find finance mundane and boring. I would rather talk direction and policies.

When big moneyed interests are literally writing the bills that get introduced by legislators, the two issues are inseparable. Unless, I suppose, you endorse the direction and policies dictated by money.

 

[tulc]

I just don't think campaign financing is any debate that a democrat would want to get into. Just because you find one hit piece doesn't make the GOP anywhere near as soiled as the DNC and Hillary.. You really don't want to go there.

And yet it was Democrat who brought it up and the Republicans who seem to be the ones getting all that NRA money.

I find finance mundane and boring. I would rather talk direction and policies.

...then why are you posting in thread about finance?
tulc(tends to post in threads about things he's interested in not things he finds boring)

 

[Stormy]

Well sure Tulc, you are right
Of course the NRA would donate to those who want to keep our 2nd Admendment intact. Just as Planned Parenthood would donate to those who approve of killing babies and look the other way when they sell their body parts.

 

[pat34lee]

When big moneyed interests are literally writing the bills that get introduced by legislators, the two issues are inseparable. Unless, I suppose, you endorse the direction and policies dictated by money.

Exactly. For example, who do you think wrote the
2300 pages of Obamacare? None of the people in
Congress even knew what was in it until after it was
voted into law.

 

[mark kennedy]

When Trump was running he talked about draining the swamp, I thought he meant lobbyists, silly me. He fires prosecutors and the FBI director, talking about the FBI being in chaos. Then he takes money from the NRA, 35 to 70 million dollars worth. There is an investigation underway to see if the 'dark money' connection to Russia exists:

It is illegal, however, for foreign money to be used to influence U.S. elections. According to McClatchy, the heart of the FBI investigation is whether the NRA became a conduit for Russian cash, linked to the Kremlin, that bolstered Trump. (The Trump-Russia-NRA Connection: Here’s What You Need to Know. Rolling Stone)
​

It's kind of like the Deutsche Bank, just going to have to wait and see but Trump rarely disappoints.