The FBI is investigating Postmaster General Louis DeJoy for potential violations of campaign finance laws.
DeJoy, who became the top official in charge of the United States Postal Service during the Trump administration, has long been a prolific GOP donor. Most recently, he contributed over a million dollars to to the joint fundraising vehicle of Trump’s reelection campaign and the Republican Party.
But it’s the political donations of his employees – and whether he secretly funded them – that are under scrutiny. In September 2020, The Washington Post reported that while DeJoy owned New Breed Logistics, he routinely pressured colleagues to contribute to GOP candidates. Some of those employees say DeJoy later reimbursed them through bonuses. That would be a violation of federal law; such a maneuver allows wealthy donors to bypass contribution limits.
From The Washington Post:
“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,” said David Young, DeJoy’s longtime director of human resources, who had access to payroll records at New Breed from the late 1990s to 2013 and is now retired. “When we got our bonuses, let’s just say they were bigger, they exceeded expectations — and that covered the tax and everything else.”
During a August 2020 hearing, Rep. Jim Cooper (D-TN), asked DeJoy about the allegations of repaying employees for their political donations. DeJoy responded emphatically, “That’s an outrageous claim, sir, and I resent it … The answer is no.”
DeJoy has not been formally accused of wrongdoing and his spokesman told The Washington Post, “He has always been scrupulous in his adherence to the campaign contribution laws and has never knowingly violated them.”
DeJoy’s tenure as Postmaster General has been shrouded in controversy. He initiated a series of cost-cutting initiatives that Democrats say were designed to depress mail-in voting.
