Postmaster General DeJoy accused of committing felony by ‘reimbursing former employees’ GOP campaign contributions – report

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy is being accused in a Washington Post report of acting as a “straw man” for the Republican Party, and reimbursing campaign contributions that employees would make, a violation of election law.

The report cites five former employees of DeJoy’s at New Breed Logistics, of which he was CEO until 2014, who claim they were “urged by DeJoy’s aides or by the chief executive himself to write checks and attend fundraisers at his 15,000-square-foot gated mansion beside a Greensboro, NC country club.”

Two employees allegedly familiar with the payroll systems at the company allege they would be told to increase bonuses for those employees who had donated, covering the cost of whatever the donation was. This would be a violation of the law, which North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein confirmed on Twitter when he reacted to The Post’s report.

“Any credible allegations of such actions merit investigation by the appropriate state and federal authorities. Beyond this, it would be inappropriate for me as Attorney General to comment on any specific matter at this time,” Stein tweeted. 

“Louis was a national fundraiser for the Republican Party. He asked employees for money. We gave him the money, and then he reciprocated by giving us big bonuses,” David Young, a former human resources director for DeJoy’s company. “When we got our bonuses, let’s just say they were bigger, they exceeded expectations — and that covered the tax and everything else.”

"He would ask employees to make contributions at the same time that he would say, 'I'll get it back to you down the road,'” said another employee, on condition of anonymity.

DeJoy has a long history with the Republican Party, and he has been accused by Democrats of making mass mail-in voting more difficult and worsening conditions at the US Post Office in an attempt to help President Donald Trump.

DeJoy served as the co-chair for Rudy Giuliani’s 2008 presidential campaign, a deputy chairman for the Republican National Committee in 2017, and a local finance chairman for 2020 Republican National Convention. He was made postmaster general in May of this year. 

According to The Post’s report, 124 New Breed employees donated more than $1 million to GOP candidates between 2000 and 2014. By comparison, nine employees donated $700 to Democrat candidates during that same time period. 

While testifying before Congress last month, DeJoy was asked whether he had paid back campaign contributions in the past and he denied doing any such thing, saying he “resented” being asked the question. If he is guilty of acting as a “straw man,” as this new report suggests, he could also be found guilty of perjury.

DeJoy has denied the allegations, saying through a spokesman that he “sought and received” legal advice from a former general counsel for the Federal Election Commission to “ensure” he did not break the law while at New Breed Logistics. 

“Mr DeJoy was never notified by the New Breed employees referenced by the Washington Post of any pressure they might have felt to make a political contribution, and he regrets if any employee felt uncomfortable for any reason,” the spokesman said.

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