Politics

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai Declines To Accept NRA Award

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Federal Election Communications Committee (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai will not accept the National Rifle Association award he received at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in late February, according to a report.

Pai was given the Charlton Heston Courage Under Fire Award, which comes with a Kentucky handmade long gun, for the threats he received for repealing former President Barack Obama-era internet regulations in a 3-2 vote in December.

The long gun is being held at the NRA’s museum, but Pai said he “must respectfully decline the award,” Politico reported. He also mentioned the FCC’s attorneys have told him that he “would not be able to accept the award upon my departure from government service.”

“As you know, once my staff became aware of what was happening, they asked backstage that the musket not be presented to me to ensure that this could be first discussed with and vetted by career ethics attorneys in the FCC’s Office of General Counsel,” Pai wrote in a letter obtained by Politico. “Therefore, upon their counsel, I must respectfully decline the award.”

“I have also been advised by the FCC’s career ethics attorneys that I would not be able to accept the award upon my departure from government service,” he wrote.

The announcement comes as the NRA has come under attack in response to the Feb. 14 Parkland, Fla., shooting where 17 individuals were killed.

Pai said he was “surprised” by the award and did not mention if he would have accepted it if he could have.

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