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An ACLU Chapter Is Fighting Over NRA Lawsuit Against Cuomo

SHUTTERSTOCK/ Keith Homan

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Neetu Arnold Contributor
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A New York American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) chapter is fighting over the national organization backing the National Rifle Association’s lawsuit against New York Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo and his administration.

NYCLU, the ACLU chapter in New York, disagreed with the national organization for backing the NRA’s lawsuit against the Cuomo administration for allegedly threatening insurers and financial institutions with regulatory action if they worked with the NRA. (REALTED: NRA Sues New York Governor For ‘Blacklisting Campaign’)

“The New York Civil Liberties Union, the New York state affiliate of the ACLU, elected not to join the ACLU’s brief in support of the NRA’s contentions,” NYCLU Executive Director Donna Lieberman said in a statement, the New York Law Journal reported Tuesday. “The NYCLU’s decision rested, in part, on a deep skepticism of the NRA’s factual claims and on the concern that critical allegations in the complaint are contested.”

The ACLU submitted an amicus brief where it supported the NRA on behalf of the First Amendment on Saturday.

“Although 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,” the ACLU said in the brief.

The NRA filed the lawsuit on May 11 and claimed millions of dollars in damages, according to a NRA report.

“As a direct result of this coercion, multiple firms have succumbed to Defendants’ demands and entered into consent orders with DFS that compel them to terminate longstanding, beneficial business relationships with the NRA, both in New York and elsewhere,” the lawsuit said.

Cuomo has been an outspoken critic of the NRA, calling it a “terrorist organization” in a tweet on April 20.

“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,” the tweet said.

The next hearing of the case will be on Sept. 10, the Law Journal reported.

The Daily Caller News Foundation reached out to NYCLU and the ACLU for comment, but did not receive a response in time for publication.

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