House Democrats are launching a new investigation into allegations that U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy pressured employees into making campaign contributions that he later reimbursed.
Oversight and Reform Committee Chair Carolyn Maloney wants Mr. DeJoy suspended from the agency while her panel investigates the accusations.
“If these allegations are true, Mr. DeJoy could face criminal exposure — not only for his actions in North Carolina, but also for lying to our Committee under oath,” the New York Democrat said in a statement to The Washington Post. “We will be investigating this issue, but I believe the Board of Governors must take emergency action to immediately suspend Mr. DeJoy, who they never should have selected in the first place.”
The Post reported on Saturday that at New Breed Logistics, Mr. DeJoy’s former company, employees were urged to give donations to Republicans and attend political fundraisers. Some employees told the paper that those who donated received bonuses from Mr. DeJoy as a form of reimbursement, which could be a violation of campaign finance laws.
During his hearing in front of the Oversight Committee last month, Mr. DeJoy denied ever paying back employees that donated to President Trump’s campaign.
Democrats have kept the postmaster general under close watch recently, alleging Mr. DeJoy has a conflict of interest that makes him unfit to head the Postal Service.
They’ve also accused him of intentionally implementing policies at the USPS to undermine the agency’s ability to perform in the election, to help the president’s reelection bid.
At two separate congressional hearings last month, Mr. DeJoy acknowledged the delays at the Postal Service but denied all the allegations against him.
In early August, he suspended the policies that sparked a backlash from lawmakers until after the election.
The Oversight Committee also subpoenaed Mr. DeJoy earlier this month for documents related to its probe of those policy changes and accused him of refusing to cooperate.
The Postal Service, in a statement, agreed to comply but said it was “frankly surprised and confused” by the Democrats’ subpoena.
