New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) on Tuesday admitted that he’s been at “loggerheads” with the National Riffle Association for “about 20 years,” but called claims by President Trump, that the state attorney general’s new probe into the group is politically motivated, “garbage.”
“The investigation by the attorney general is what it is. The attorney general is independently elected, and she is elected in this state to enforce the law,” Cuomo told CNN’s “New Day” on Tuesday morning. “The NRA is originally chartered in this state. It’s a not-for-profit organization. So she has jurisdiction, and she believes there may have been illegal activity — and she is pursuing that case.”
On Saturday, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced a new probe into the NRA. The attorney general’s office subpoenaed the group, but didn’t specify what the investigation’s focal point. On Monday, Trump responded to the new probe, saying Cuomo and James were “illegally using the State’s legal apparatus to take down and destroy” the NRA.
“The President’s accusation that it is a politically motivated thing is all garbage,” Cuomo said. “We don’t do that in New York state. I think it is telling that the President would think right away, you’re using the justice — criminal justice apparatus for politics. That’s his thinking. That’s his mindset. It is not how we operate in the state of New York.”
Cuomo: New York AG has "jurisdiction" to pursue NRA case pic.twitter.com/fUEdzR22NL
— TPM Livewire (@TPMLiveWire) April 30, 2019
The investigation comes on the heels of reports of turmoil among the group’s top leadership. The inner strife centers on financial management of the non-profit.
