On Tuesday we reported on the efforts by Massachusetts gun control activists to derail a referendum on the state’s latest gun control laws, which includes the formation of a group called “Vote Yes for a Safe Massachusetts”. In a new twist, the Civil Rights Coalition, which was the group that managed to get the repeal measure on the 2026 ballot, is now asking the state’s Ethics Commission to investigate the ties between the new group and Massaschusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell.
In a press release, the CRC notes that Campbell’s office recently gave tens of thousands of dollars to a gun control group that’s headed up by the same woman who’s in charge of the “Yes for a Safe Massachusetts” campaign.
“Our tax dollars are not supposed to be used for political campaigns. I find it hard to believe that Zakarin receives a huge grant from the Attorney General’s office one month ago and then opens up a ballot campaign account. It is too coincidental. That’s why today we are asking for the State Ethics Commission to investigate,” said Leary.
According to Campbell’s press release, Ruth Zakarin is the CEO of the Massachusetts Coalition to Prevent Gun Violence. Records filed on May 9th show Zakarin to be the Chairman of “Yes for a Safe Massachusetts.” On April 7th, Zakarin’s coalition received a $50,000 grant from Campbell.
The Civil Rights Coalition is asking for the Ethics Commission to investigate bank statements along with communications between the Attorney General’s office, the new ballot committee and Gun Violence Coalition.
“Our organization is striving to restore law-abiding residents their 2nd amendment rights and now we must work to protect our tax dollars from being abused,” said Leary.
The Civil Rights Coalition plans on filing a complaint with the U.S. Attorney’s office if the State Ethics Commission doesn’t act in 30 days.
“Whether an elected official agrees or disagrees with an issue, it doesn’t give them the right to funnel money to a political organization. If Campbell did not know about this ballot committee being formed, then she should ask for the state’s money back in order to ensure taxpayers that their tax dollars are not being misused,” said Leary.
The A.G. shouldn’t be doling out grants to gun control groups in the first place, but the fact that she gave $50,000 to a group that’s so entwined in the effort to keep Chapter 135’s numerous infringements in place is, as Leary notes, an egregious abuse of taxpayer funds.
I’d love to see the CRC take their complaint to the U.S. Attorney, or better yet, the Civil Rights Division of DOJ even if the state’s Ethics Commission does decide to investigate Campbell’s donation. This certainly appears to be a case of an elected official using taxpayer funds to bolster a political campaign that’s meant to restrict the exercise of a fundamental civil right, and I’d hope that the DOJ would be as interested in investigating Campbell’s actions as it is the allegations of illegal real estate dealings involving New York Attorney General Letitia James.
The Civil Rights Coalition is continuing to do a fantastic job of not only educating Massachusetts residents about the pitfalls of Chapter 135, but the shady way the law was enacted and is being defended by elected officials like Campbell. You can learn more about their efforts and how to get involved by visiting the CRC website, and I encourage you to help them however you can. Second Amendment advocates in the state definitely have their work cut out for them in their push to repeal Chapter 135, and they can use all the allies they can get in the weeks and months ahead.
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