I'm Samantha Bee, welcome to Full Frontal.
If the news is starting to feel like a bad
movie, it's because thanks to Maria Butina, it is!
Her charges read like a spy novel, but prosecutors say she's a real, Russian secret agent.
Court documents reading like a spy thriller.
A sexy spy thriller.
What it sounds like to me is an episode from the Americans.
It's almost out of a Bond movie.
I gotta say, I saw the movie Red Sparrow on a plane flight recently.
Well, I saw Red Sparrow on an airplane, too, so let's begin with that—sort of gives us
some context for all of this.
Does it? How? 'Cause you guys all saw a movie one time?
Those movies assume it's hard to be a sexy, Russian spy and convince Americans to
compromise themselves, but Maria Butina has now proven that it is extremely easy.
She shot directly to the heart of American conservatism,
combining a passion for guns with an irresistible charm rarely associated with the U.S. gun lobby.
That's what passes for irresistible charm these days?
This guy looks like he's ready to betray America if she'll just brush against his arm and
all she has to do is toss out the words "freedom" and "guns" while being female.
I did not have to work so hard to develop a cute personality! I could have wandered
down to the local gun range and caught dick like it was an AK-47 round.
Butina is the founder of the pro-gun Russian group, Right to Bear Arms, which she allegedly
used to infiltrate the GOP and NRA. Her boss, Russian mobster and naughty little
boy, Alexander Torshin, is being investigated
for funneling Russian money into the NRA to push a pro-Russian agenda!
Fun stuff!
With her focus on guns, sex, and big money, Maria Butina caused every Republican she
met to grow that telltale wet spot on the front of their pants, and if that
sounds gross, it's super was.
She began a romantic relationship with Paul Erickson,
a South Dakota-based GOP operative who was 27 years her senior.
The government alleges the relationship was a sham.
Documents seized by the FBI show Butina
expressed disdain for continuing to cohabitate with Erickson.
You see, this is why Russia hates America.
When their spies go to England, they sleep with Daniel Craig and Pierce Brosnan.
When they come here, they have to do collusion
with Kevin from Dunder Mifflin.
And yes, there probably was collusion.
By fall 2014, she was trading emails with her
lover, Erickson, about how to obtain long-term visas.
By the summer of 2016, Butina had already become a fixture at exclusive NRA events,
accompanied Torshin to the 2016 annual Prayer Breakfast,
and worked with Torshin and Erickson to try
to establish back-channel communications between candidate Donald Trump and
Russian president, Vladimir Putin.
What a waste of time!
There's no need for back-channel communications when they're doing front-channel communications!
But who cares if Butina fancied herself a half-assed James Bond character?
The scariest thing is that foreign interests are literally working with powerful
conservative groups like the NRA, and it just got even easier.
The IRS will no longer require certain organizations to hand over your personal information when
you donate. Typically, when you donate to places like Goodwill, the NRA, or Planned
Parenthood, they would give the government an itemized list of donations
complete with information like your name and address. Now that rule is gone.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said this will help better protect private
taxpayer information.
Instead of playing spy, now Butina and her oligarch
cronies can just give illegal contributions to the NRA, and even the
IRS won't know!
Butina's arrest and this rule change
happening on the same day is a coincidence. In fact, I'm sure when she
heard about it from prison, she was like,
"Wait, I did not even have to sleep with this fucking jabroni?"
Joke's on you, lady, you hit that.
But the fact that Butina and a shady Russian criminal chose to infiltrate the NRA
probably isn't a coincidence. The new IRS rules specifically applied to nonprofits
whose purpose is to promote, quote, "social welfare."
And any of these organizations can spend up to 49% of their money on political causes and don't have
to tell anyone where it came from. This would be, and is, worrying with any
organization, but the NRA has spent years making videos specifically designed to
divide Americans— usually starring shiny haired panic button, Dana Lash.
They use their media to assassinate real news.
They use their schools to teach children
that their president is another Hitler,
all to make them march, make them protest,
to smash windows, burn cars.
We've had enough of the lies, the sanctimony, the arrogance.
So, to every line member of the media,
to the late-night hosts who think their opinions are the only opinions that matter,
your time is running out.
The clock starts... now.
Damn! Dana Lash makes a bunch of people
in pussy hats sound like Vietnam!
You know, I never thought I'd say this to
another woman, but maybe calm down and smile more!
Dana and the NRA are so eager
to call out the scourge of American liberalism, but they've been completely
silent about their involvement with Maria Butina and Alexander Torshin.
That's...weird— love to get their thoughts on that...
no, you know what? I should talk to them
in a way that they understand.
NRA, you go on your little screen with your scary
shark eyes to tell people to make out with their guns or whatever.
You make a narrative out of false context and fear-monger your followers into thinking
they're in a civil war.
You use words like "freedom," "liberty," "late night hosts,"
"Hitler."
You have no chill.
Then you're caught associating yourself with one
Russian agent, and you just disappear? What gives?
I dare you to make a comment.
I challenge you to tell me how it's American for the NRA to take money from
foreign agents who want to see our democracy burn.
And also, Dana, I dare you to get bangs. Change it up.
You do want to be a star, right?
You're the NRA spokesperson, so start spoking.
Your time... is running out.
The clock starts now.
Your move.
Orange you glad I didn't say "banana"?
We'll be right back.