So now we find out that Bolton made a pro-gun video for the Russian group The Right To Bear Arms. Russia itself has very few people who own guns. The group was formed to interact with and channel funds to the NRA in America. (For background on Russian pro-gun front group www.dailykos.com/...)
It seems safe to say that Bolton was stupid enough to get caught up in making Russian propaganda.
In between appearances on Hannity and Bill O’Reilly’s shows, he [Bolton] found time to participate in a pro-gun rights group’s campaign to legalize firearm possession. As part of that campaign, he cut a curious video talking about how gun ownership is a central right all citizens deserve.
It was curious not for what he said so much, but for who he said it to. The video, you see, was part of a group cleverly called The Right to Bear Arms’ push to establish a second amendment style law in – wait for it – the Russian Federation.
The Right to Bear Arms was formed by Russians ostensibly as a way to pressure the Russian government to legalize gun ownership in that country. But in reality, it’s a group that’s facilitated Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s push to forge links between the Kremlin and American conservatives groups like the National Rifle Association.
“The Bolton video appears to be another plank in a bridge built by Russia to conservative political organizations inside the United States,” writes Tim Mak at npr.org. “It’s unclear why Russian leaders wanted to curry favor with the NRA, but Torshin and [former NRA President] David Keene appeared to have developed close ties over in the years prior to the 2016 election.”
More from NPR:
“It’s a relationship that has outsized importance now that the FBI is reportedly investigating whether Torshin illegally funneled money to the NRA to assist the Trump campaign in 2016, as McClatchy reported in January. The NRA has denied wrongdoing.”
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Bolton’s very personal and passionate participation with this Russian group, and his role facilitating the forging of closer ties between Putin’s circle of sycophants and the American political right should serve as a massive, glaring red flag now that he’s been tapped to be President Trump’s new National Security Advisor.