Trump’s handpicked (with all the gross implications that word conjures up) Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has almost certainly broken a lot of federal laws, including conflict of interest laws, in his open plot to break the Postal Service. But there is growing evidence that he has also broken North Carolina campaign finance laws — and those are state offenses, meaning that Buddy Boy Barr can’t stop the investigation and the Malignant Mangoface can’t pardon him.
North Carolina AG Reacts to WaPo Report on Postmaster General, Says Using Straw Donors Is Illegal
AG Josh Stein, a Democrat, declined to speak directly to the substance of the claims against DeJoy, a prominent GOP donor. He only acknowledged the story, and said that it is illegal to reimburse someone for a political contribution.
“Any credible allegations of such actions merit investigation by the appropriate state and federal authorities,” he said. “Beyond this, it would be inappropriate for me as Attorney General to comment on any specific matter at this time.”
At least one straw donor went on the record, while several others confirmed it anonymously:
A number of DeJoy’s employees reportedly felt pressured to make contributions to GOP candidates, according to The Washington Post. Two “familiar with New Breed’s financial and payroll systems” told the outlet that Dejoy would get staffers bigger bonuses to off-set the costs.
“Louis was a national fundraiser for the Republican Party,” said David Young, the now-retired former director of human resources. “He asked employees for money. We gave him the money, and then he reciprocated by giving us big bonuses. When we got our bonuses, let’s just say they were bigger, they exceeded expectations — and that covered the tax and everything else.”
How does the North Carolina AG get involved, you ask?
Five former employees said Dejoy or his aides urged them to make contributions and attend fundraisers at his mansion in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Forbes has picked up the story — Postmaster General DeJoy Reportedly Reimbursed Employees After Bundling Donations — and points out:
The practice DeJoy is alleged to have engaged in is known as a “straw-donor” scheme, and has resulted in felony convictions for prominent donors, such as conservative filmmaker Dinesh D’Souza. Straw donations are illegal under both North Carolina and federal laws, though the federal violations have a five-year statute of limitations, according to the Post.
The North Carolina law has no statute of limitations. And not at all by the way, Trump pardoned D’Souza in 2018.
Last night, Senator Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called for an investigation — one that Trump couldn’t interfere with:
"These are very serious allegations that must be investigated immediately, independent of the Trump Justice Department," said Schumer in the tweet. "North Carolina's Attorney General-an elected official who is independent of Donald Trump-is the right person to start this investigation."
Paul Waldman laid out a case in his column today that the evidence is pretty damning. (However, he seemed to have forgotten that this is not only a federal case, but a state one.)
Maybe DeJoy has built himself a house of straw and the hurricane is coming.