House Dems call for U.S. postal chief's suspension
The head of the House Oversight Committee on Tuesday urged the immediate suspension of U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy following reports he illegally reimbursed former employees for their political contributions to his preferred Republican candidates.
House Oversight and Reform Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney, in a statement, said if the allegations are true, DeJoy faced "criminal exposure" not only for violating the law but also for lying to Congress when he denied the transactions at a recent hearing.
She added that the House committee would launch an investigation into DeJoy - a major donor to President Trump - who is already facing a political firestorm over changes he made at the postal service that critics said could delay mail-in voting.
Trump on Monday said he knew little of the latest allegations - made by workers at DeJoy’s former company, New Breed Logistics, and reported by The New York Times and The Washington Post over the Labor Day weekend. If true, DeJoy would have violated federal campaign finance law.
The President was asked Monday whether he would support an investigation into DeJoy.
“Sure, sure. I think, let the investigations go, but he’s a very respected man. And we’ll see how that goes. But no, I think he’s a very honest guy, but we’ll see.”
The House Oversight committee is already investigating U.S. Postal Service operational changes, including curbed overtime, and sent DeJoy a subpoena last week seeking related documents. New York's attorney general has also separately filed a lawsuit over the issue.
Democrats have accused DeJoy of deliberately disrupting the Postal Service ahead of the Nov. 3 presidential election, saying the changes could slow down the delivery of mail-in ballots.
Trump has repeatedly and without evidence claimed that mail-in ballots would lead to voter fraud.
