Virginia GOP lawmaker begs NRA for cash after blocking action on gun safety

After helping to block gun safety legislation, Virginia state Sen. Amanda Chase (R-VA) was caught on tape wishing the NRA would send her mountains of campaign cash, according to an audio recording released Thursday by progressive research firm American Bridge.

After bragging about her radical pro-gun position at a King William Tea Party meeting, Chase lamented that the NRA hasn’t funded her campaign.

“I wish they’d write me a check for $200,000,” she said. “These values are intrinsic to me and to my core,” she says about her stance on guns, which she says align with the NRA.

Chase is referring to a September $200,000 campaign check the NRA wrote to state Del. Todd Gilbert, the Republican majority leader in the Virginia House of Delegates. The check came weeks after Gilbert, Chase, and the rest of the Republicans in the Virginia legislature abruptly ended a special session meant to address gun violence.

The special legislative session was called by Virginia’s governor following a late May mass shooting in Virginia Beach that left a dozen people dead. Rather than take any action, Chase voted with her Republican colleagues to adjourn the session after a mere 90 minutes.

Before Chase and her colleagues ended the special session, polls showed Virginians overwhelmingly supported a variety of gun safety measures. A majority of Republicans and Democrats support universal background checks, and a large majority of Virginians support the idea of a ban on assault-style weapons.

Virginia is one of the few states with statewide elections in 2019. Chase, along with the entire Virginia Senate and Virginia House of Delegates, will be on the ballot in November. At the moment, Republicans hold a one-seat majority in both legislative chambers.

Begging the NRA for cash is not the first time Chase has stepped into controversy. In April, Chase yelled and cursed at a security officer at the Virginia capitol after she was not allowed to park in a restricted parking area. Chase said the officer, a woman, was denying Chase’s “equality of women’s rights” by not allowing her to park in an area she was not allowed to park in.

Chase’s reaction to bucking the will of Virginia residents on the issue of guns wasn’t remorse, but rather a desire to cash in on her votes. After doing the bidding of the NRA, she sounded jealous that one of her Republican colleagues got a massive check while she was reduced to begging the NRA for her share during a tea party meeting.

“This is another example of Chase’s entitlement and political posturing,” Amanda Pohl, a Democrat running against Chase, said in a statement. “Here she embodies the worst characteristics of a politician: trying to trade her vote for special interest money. We need to elect ethical leaders with integrity who understand that pay-for-play is wrong and never should be how our system operates.”

According to Blue Virginia, the NRA doled out several thousand dollars last week to other Virginia Republicans, but once again snubbed Chase.

Chase may be out of touch with her constituents, but she seems to hope someone will put her in touch with the NRA so she can make a quick buck for her anti-gun safety votes.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.