{"id":96207,"date":"2018-08-27T16:32:06","date_gmt":"2018-08-27T20:32:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/blog\/?p=96207"},"modified":"2018-08-27T16:32:06","modified_gmt":"2023-08-31T16:58:17","slug":"aclu-backs-nra","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/digest\/aclu-backs-nra\/","title":{"rendered":"ACLU Backs NRA, Files Brief Condemning New York Gov. Cuomo"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"ACLU<\/a>

Even the ACLU believes Gov. Cuomo violated the NRA’s First Amendment rights. (Photo: Gov. Cuomo Facebook<\/em>)<\/p><\/div>\n

It\u2019s a strange time in American politics.<\/p>\n

Just weeks after the historically anti-gun Ninth Circuit Court ruled in favor of open carry<\/a>, the left-leaning American Civil Liberties Union filed a brief<\/a> last week backing the National Rifle Association in their lawsuit against New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough public officials are free to express their opinions and may condemn viewpoints or groups they view as inimical to public welfare, they cannot abuse their regulatory authority to retaliate against disfavored advocacy organizations and to impose burdens on those organizations’ ability to conduct lawful business,\u201d the brief says.<\/p>\n

Gov. Cuomo has made targeting the NRA a central plank in his campaign for governor, and, as GunsAmerica has reported<\/a>, he\u2019s weaponized New York\u2019s regulatory agencies to dry up the NRA\u2019s financial services in the state.<\/p>\n

As the ACLU outlines in its brief, in April of this year Gov. Cuomo and Superintendent Maria Vullo issued a press release directing<\/a>\u00a0insurance companies and banks to \u201creview\u201d their relationships with the NRA and other \u201csimilar organizations\u201d due to potential a \u201creputational risk.\u201d In the weeks that followed, insurance agencies began terminating their relationships with the NRA, and the pro-gun organization sued Gov. Cuomo<\/a> on First Amendment grounds.<\/p>\n

The ACLU reviewed the facts of the case and concluded that the state\u2019s motion to dismiss the NRA\u2019s suit should be denied.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause the NRA has plausibly alleged that Defendants threatened adverse action against banks and insurers associated with the NRA, and that Defendants’ actions were motivated by hostility to the NRA’s political advocacy, the Motion to Dismiss should be denied,\u201d the brief said.<\/p>\n

David Cole, the ACLU\u2019s legal director, followed up the brief with a blog post<\/a>, warning that if liberals allow anti-gun governors to weaponize regulatory agencies, conservative governors might be able to do the same.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf Cuomo can do this to the NRA, then conservative governors could have their financial regulators threaten banks and financial institutions that do business with any other group whose political views the governor opposes,\u201d he said. \u201cThe First Amendment bars state officials from using their regulatory power to penalize groups merely because they promote disapproved ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n

For his part, Gov. Cuomo isn\u2019t doing himself any favors if his legal team tries to argue against illegal bias. The governor hasn\u2019t been shy about riding the post-Parkland anti-gun wave back to Albany, calling the NRA an \u201cextremist organization\u201d on Twitter.<\/p>\n

\n

The NRA is an extremist organization.<\/p>\n

I urge companies in New York State to revisit any ties they have to the NRA and consider their reputations, and responsibility to the public. https:\/\/t.co\/RwD9wdNxiY<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) April 20, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n