Politics

Pro-Gun Control Bloomberg Dumps $250K Into Cochran Re-Election PAC

Scott Greer Contributor
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Embattled Republican Mississippi Sen. Thad Cochran received some unlikely help in his bid to retain his Senate seat and fend off tea party challenger state Sen. Chris McDaniel in a brutal party primary — gun-control advocate and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

According to a Politico report, Bloomberg gave a $250,000 donation to the Mississippi Conservatives PAC — the chief Super PAC supporting Cochran’s campaign — on May 19, just a 2 weeks shy of the June 3 primary vote that left the race undecided and prompted a scheduled runoff between Cochran and McDaniel on June 24.

Bloomberg’s donation comes in spite of the National Rifle Association’s endorsement of Cochran earlier this year. The NRA is a group that Bloomberg has dedicated $50 million to taking down. Bloomberg created the group Everytown for Gun Safety — formerly known as Mayors Against Illegal Guns — to promote gun-control legislation and, specifically, to counter the influence of the NRA on politicians and state assemblies.

Sean Parker, founder of Napster and former president of Facebook, also gave $250,000 donation to the Mississippi Conservatives PAC in the last weeks leading up to the primary, the report reveals. The PAC received a hefty amount of funds shortly before the primary took place.

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