The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) threw its weight behind the National Rifle Association (NRA), filing an amicus brief on the gun rights group’s behalf in its lawsuit against New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D).
The ACLU's action comes after the NRA filed a lawsuit earlier this year against Cuomo and New York’s financial regulation agency, alleging a “blacklisting campaign” aimed at getting banks to cut ties with the gun group.
“In the ACLU’s view, targeting a nonprofit advocacy group and seeking to deny it financial services because it promotes a lawful activity (the use of guns) violates the First Amendment,” ACLU legal director David Cole wrote in his announcement of the filing on Friday.
“If the NRA’s charges are true, the state’s actions would clearly violate the First Amendment,” Cole wrote.
The ACLU argued that dismissing the NRA suit against Cuomo “would set a dangerous precedent for advocacy groups across the political spectrum."
