Maria Butina, the Russian gun rights activist who became entwined in GOP politics during the 2016 presidential election and pleaded guilty last year to conspiring against the U.S. by acting as unregistered agent of the Kremlin, insisted in a new interview that she was not a spy and never attempted to influence American politics.
Butina, in an interview with CBS News’ “60 Minutes” ― her first with U.S. media since she was incarcerated in a Florida federal prison — was filmed while the 31-year-old was still behind bars. She was released late last month after serving 15 months of her 18-month sentence and was immediately deported to Russia. Photographs at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport showed a beaming Butina clutching a bouquet of flowers, flanked by supporters and her dad.
Butina, the first Russian national convicted for seeking to influence U.S. politics during the 2016 election, arrived in the U.S. in 2014 to attend conventions hosted by the National Rifle Association. American prosecutors claimed Butina hid her true identity as a Russian agent and attempted to infiltrate the NRA to influence the GOP.
But Butina, speaking to “60 Minutes” host Leslie Stahl, slammed these accusations as “nonsense.”
“I never sought to influence your policies. I came here on my own because I wanted to learn from the United States and go back to Russia to make Russia better,” she said in the interview, which aired Sunday.
As Stahl pointed out, Butina was photographed with several prominent Republicans, including Donald Trump Jr., Rick Santorum, Scott Walker and Bobby Jindal.
But according to Butina, she was merely engaging in “social networking.”
“Maria is not a spy. She knows of no secret codes,” Butina’s attorney Bob Driscoll told “60 Minutes” in a statement. “There were no safe houses. In other words, she was completely open and there was no espionage.”
When questioned about a message she’d sent to Russian official Alexander Torshin ― who Butina has previously admitted to working for ― about allegedly having influence over at least one of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet choices, Butina deflected blame.
“John Bolton will be secretary of state, 90%,” Butina wrote to Torshin in the weeks after Trump was elected. “Ask our people if they’re happy with that. Our opinion will be taken into account.”
Butina told Stahl that her former boyfriend and Republican operative Paul Erickson had directed her to write that message.
“I hesitated to write that, but I thought it might — you know, it was a certain way to show off to Torshin and say, ‘Well, maybe I have high-level contacts here,’” she said.
Erickson was reportedly a target of federal investigators in the Butina case, but was never charged. He was charged with 11 counts of fraud and money laundering in a separate federal indictment earlier this year related to three of his business ventures. He pleaded not guilty.
John Demers, the assistant attorney general for national security, told Stahl that Butina’s interview with “60 Minutes” ― which the Justice Department recorded and reviewed ― was a “masterpiece of disinformation.”
“When she was talking to you in your interview, her audience wasn’t the American people. It was Vladimir Putin and all the people in Russia who are going to decide her fate when she goes back there,” Demers said.
He added: “I have very little doubt that the Russian government will leverage [Butina] as an instrument of propaganda to say: ‘Here was this poor, young, idealistic Russian student and look what happened to her. They threw her in jail for 18 months.’”
As “60 Minutes” noted, Butina has already spoken with several Russian news outlets since her return to Russia about her ordeal in America, including over 100 days in solitary confinement.
“I don’t know why they had to be so cruel,” she told Russia’s state-owned media outlet RT of her time in solitary confinement. “I tend to think – this is just conjecture – that maybe they were trying to break my will or something like that, learn some secrets. But I didn’t have any secrets.”
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
It's Another Trump-Biden Showdown — And We Need Your Help
The Future Of Democracy Is At Stake
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Your Loyalty Means The World To Us
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
The 2024 election is heating up, and women's rights, health care, voting rights, and the very future of democracy are all at stake. Donald Trump will face Joe Biden in the most consequential vote of our time. And HuffPost will be there, covering every twist and turn. America's future hangs in the balance. Would you consider contributing to support our journalism and keep it free for all during this critical season?
HuffPost believes news should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay for it. We rely on readers like you to help fund our work. Any contribution you can make — even as little as $2 — goes directly toward supporting the impactful journalism that we will continue to produce this year. Thank you for being part of our story.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
It's official: Donald Trump will face Joe Biden this fall in the presidential election. As we face the most consequential presidential election of our time, HuffPost is committed to bringing you up-to-date, accurate news about the 2024 race. While other outlets have retreated behind paywalls, you can trust our news will stay free.
But we can't do it without your help. Reader funding is one of the key ways we support our newsroom. Would you consider making a donation to help fund our news during this critical time? Your contributions are vital to supporting a free press.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our journalism free and accessible to all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. If circumstances have changed since you last contributed, we hope you'll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.
Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.