NRA sought private access to Putin during a trip to Moscow: report

The Daily Beast uncovered emails from the National Rifle Association that showed a former NRA president sought to have private access to Russia's President Vladimir Putin.

The email was sent in 2015 right on the brink of when Russia meddling started. The email was released from Republican operative Paul Erickson.

At the time, Erickson said the trip could have “enormous diplomatic consequences.”

According to The Beast, Erickson wrote, “[I]mpressing the NRA’s Russian hosts is also the quickest way to secure a private interview with President Putin on behalf of David Keene and the Washington Times – a plum that was dangled in front of Keene by Torshin himself visit Washington, DC. High stakes all around.”

"The Erickson email, which has not been previously quoted, indicates that the NRA officials on the Moscow trip believed they were meeting with Kremlin power players who could influence the country’s president. The existence of this email was first reported by The New York Times," the report said.

Read the full report here