GOP hit-on list for Butina
Sexy accused Russian spy Maria Butina tried to cozy up to GOP presidential hopefuls — including Donald Trump — while playing the role of rabid gun-rights activist during the 2016 campaign, according to reports.
During a Q&A session inside a Las Vegas ballroom at the Nevada Freedom-Festival in July 2015, the then-26-yearold Butina took the mic and asked then-candidate Trump about how he would deal with Russia if he won the election.
“If you would be elected as president, what would be your foreign policy, especially in relationships with my country? And do you want to continue the politics of sanctions damaging of both economies?” the sultry redhead asked.
Trump, at the podium, appeared to perk up when he heard she was from Russia.
“I don’t think you would need the sanctions,” he replied. “I believe I would get along very nicely with Putin.”
Trump wasn’t the only candidate who encountered Butina during the race.
In addition to the romantic relationship she allegedly had with GOP consultant Paul Erickson, Butina met then-presidential candidates Rick Santorum, Bobby Jindal and Scott Walker on separate occasions.
Her run with Republicans came to a screeching halt Sunday when she was arrested by US authorities.
The Russian Foreign Ministry asked its citizens Thurs- day to tweet their support for Butina (pictured) — who gained notoriety as an upand-coming political influencer in Moscow before moving to the United States — using the hashtag #freemariabutina. The ministry also asked them to change their profile pictures to photos of Butina.
She began building her image as a gun-rights activist in Russia in around 2010, according to previous interviews with the accused spy.
In 2011, she formed the progun group, The Right To Bear Arms, and began showing up at US gun-rights events in 2014.