RI’s Top Elected Officials Who Take the Most Gun Lobby Money
Friday, February 16, 2018
Just hours after seventeen people were killed at a high school in Parkland, Florida, Cranston Mayor and GOP candidate for Governor Allan Fung Tweeted, “There are no words that can heal the pain of these families tonight. Barbara Ann & I will keep them, the first responders, & the entire Broward County area in our prayers tonight and for the days to come."
Fung has received $2,300 from the Gun Owners PAC and $1,000 in donations from the National Rifle Association PAC.
“Voters should follow the money trail. Are legislators who receive NRA money always voting with that organization or being independent in their voting patterns? There is concern that the NRA is buying votes through campaign contributions so voters need to watch who is getting money and how that could be affecting voting patterns,” Darrell West told GoLocalProv. He is the Vice President and Director of Governance Studies at the Brookings Institute in Washington, D.C.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTSLIDES: See Some of RI's Top Gun Lobby Recipients BELOW
But don’t think the Republicans are alone in scooping up NRA’s donations in Rhode Island.
Senate President Dominick Ruggerio has 12 donations from the NRA PAC totaling $4,050. Ruggerio collected another $1,100 from the Gun Owners PAC.
And, Speaker of the House Nick Mattiello has donations of $3,425 from the NRA’s Political Victory Fund PAC, $2,550 from the Gun Owners PAC, and an additional $200 donation from NRA’s top Rhode Island lobbyist Darin Goens.
Both Mattiello and Ruggerio received A+ ranking from the NRA.
“We (Rhode Island) do not screen purchasers for alcohol or drug abuse, we don’t track guns that are sold so we don’t know how they end up being used in crimes and the gun lobby is now pushing for a national concealed carry reciprocity among states, which would allow anyone with a concealed carry from lax states to enter Rhode Island and carry their guns. Even on K-12 school properties," said former RI legislator and now gun control advocate Linda Finn.
Providence East Side Senator Gayle Goldin is pushing the legislation (2018-S 2319) that would ban possession, manufacture, import, purchase, sale or transfer of any ammunition feeding device capable of accepting more than 10 rounds. Under the bill, those who currently own such devices would have 120 days to remove them from the state or surrender them to a gun dealer or police.
“It’s only seven weeks into the year and we’ve already had multiple mass shootings. It’s beyond time Rhode Island takes action. High-capacity magazines turn already powerful guns into weapons whose sole purpose is to incur multiple deaths and injuries as quickly as possible. They are illegal for hunting, and they are unnecessary for protection. They are a tool that enables mass shooters to carry out their heinous acts, leaving countless victims dead every year, and there’s no valid reason to allow their use and sale here in Rhode Island,” said Goldin (D-Dist. 3, Providence), who has introduced the legislation for several years.
“This is a common-sense limit that is meant to prevent mass shootings. The ability to fire many bullets without reloading is one element that enables shooters to keep going. High-capacity magazines are a tool that is creating scores of innocent victims, particularly children in school shootings, and they should not be legal,” said Senate Majority Whip Maryellen Goodwin (D-Dist. 1, Providence), a cosponsor on the bill.
Even Goodwin has received money from the NRA -- $800.
“Do Rhode Islanders think it’s unreasonable to have to wait one week for a background check before purchasing a gun? The NRA thinks that’s too long; you shouldn’t have to wait at all," said Professor Jennifer Lawless of American University and a regular on GoLocal LIVE.
"Should people on the terrorism watch list be able to get a gun? Should customers be able to bring guns into bars? Should pediatricians be blocked from discussing gun safety with parents? These are among the many policies the NRA backs, despite the fact that the overwhelming majority of the American public does not," added Lawless. "Rhode Island voters need to keep these policies in mind when they consider the top recipients of NRA funds."
Related Slideshow: Top Gun Lobby Recipients - 2018
Related Articles
- NEW: URI Professor Under Fire for Calling NRA a ‘Terrorist Organization’
- Rickman’s Big View: Time to Act to Control Guns in America
- The Scoop: Profughi Questions Brown Poll, Hodgson Releases NRA Survey, and More
- State Report: $61M in Earmarks for Roads + Taxes on Guns and Ammo
- RI State Report: Strip Clubs, Guns + Drugs
- Carol Anne Costa: Money, Guns + Lawmakers
- Young Guns Lift Brown Over Dartmouth
- PODCAST: Guns on RI Campuses. Who is Armed?
- Guns on RI Campuses. Who is Armed?
- Rickman’s Big View - Guns, Guns and More Guns
- Newport Manners & Etiquette: Etiquette of the Trump Family Crests, Guns + Children
- Fecteau: Guns are the Problem
- Stiffer Campaign Finance Laws, Addressing Guns and Domestic Violence: This Week at the Statehouse
