This should be on the front page of every newspaper in America. Trump’s DOJ shut down a federal investigation into a coal company owned by one of his closest Senate allies, after it racked up tens of thousands of alleged violations for dumping toxic chemicals into our waterways.
"This story really should be on the front page of every newspaper in America. Trump's DOJ just shut down a federal investigation into a coal company owned by West Virginia Senator Jim Justice, one of Trump's closest allies, after it racked up tens of thousands of alleged violations for dumping dangerous chemicals into our waterways. A veteran federal prosecutor with 24 years on the job said he'd never seen anything like it. Welcome back to episode 20 of The Corruption Chronicles. Southern Coal is part of a sprawling mining empire controlled by Senator Jim Justice and run by his son, Jay. Over the past decade, they've racked up tens of thousands of alleged violations of the Clean Water Act, dumping dangerous chemicals like arsenic into waterways, and flouting court orders to clean it up. The EPA and the Justice Department's Environmental Crime Section opened a joint criminal investigation to find out whether those violations had crossed the line into criminal conduct and prosecutors believed they had a very strong case. Now, you have to understand something important and that's Senator Justice's connection to Donald Trump. Trump personally campaigned for him in a contested primary and Jim Justice won and his seat helped Trump clinch the Republican majority in the Senate. And when Senator Justice's company came under criminal investigation, he had the President of the United States clearly in his corner. So before prosecutors could move forward, the DOJ stepped in and shut the whole thing down. The man who killed the case, you probably have heard of him, his name is Todd Blanche. He was, of course, Trump's former personal criminal defense lawyer and now his acting Attorney General. This is also the same guy who just gave Trump, his family, and his company's permanent immunity from IRS audits. And now Trump is asking the Senate, the very body where Jim Justice serves, to confirm Blanche as the permanent head of the Justice Department. Look, equal justice under law was never supposed to come with exceptions for the President's friends or political allies. The pattern here is not subtle. Protect Trump's friends, prosecute his critics, and get rewarded with more power and money. That is corruption, planned, and simple. I'll keep breaking down these stories because the American people deserve to know exactly how their government is being used and who it's really working for. And right now, it is not working for you."
💬 Discussion
This should be on the front page of every newspaper in America. Trump’s DOJ shut down a federal investigation into a coal company owned by one of his closest Senate allies, after it racked up tens of thousands of alleged violations for dumping toxic chemicals into our waterways.
