By Steve Neavling
A Justice Department report has uncovered evidence that senior officials leaked details of investigations into nursing home deaths in New York and New Jersey during the COVID-19 pandemic to sway the outcome of the 2020 presidential election.
Inspector General Michael Horowitz determined that the leaks, which breached department policies on media interactions, were strategically timed to inflict political damage on Democratic governors Andrew Cuomo of New York and Phil Murphy of New Jersey, Politico reports. The revelations occurred as then-President Donald Trump intensified his criticism of Democratic leaders while his approval ratings declined.
“Emails among senior officials expressing urgency about the Department’s actions from June through October 2020 and related direction from those officials to career personnel … suggest that the then upcoming 2020 election may have been a factor in the timing and manner of these actions and announcing them to the public,” the report stated. A redacted version of the report, completed last month, was released on Tuesday.
The report highlighted an Oct. 17, 2020, message from a DOJ official as a striking example. The email revealed an intent to coordinate media coverage around the investigations, stating: “I’m trying to get [the Civil Rights Division] and [Civil Division] to do letters to [New York/New Jersey] respectively on nursing homes. Would like to package them together and let [New York Post] break it. Will be our last play on them before election but it’s a big one.”
According to investigators, the New York Post was informed of the department’s demands for information on nursing home deaths before officials in either state received notification. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy’s office only learned of the DOJ’s request 30 minutes after the story was published online. In New York, officials found out two days later, after seeing media reports, and received the DOJ’s letter by email after it had initially been sent via regular mail.
The report raised concerns that these actions may have violated the Hatch Act, which limits political activities by federal employees. Horowitz referred the matter to an independent agency responsible for investigating potential Hatch Act violations.
While the redacted report withheld the names of many involved DOJ officials, it confirmed that Attorney General William Barr and Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Eric Dreiband participated in discussions about the investigations.
Aides to Governor Cuomo argued that the report supported their longstanding assertions of politically motivated targeting.
“This blockbuster report confirms what we’ve said all along: The federal government corrupted and misused the Department of Justice to influence the 2020 presidential election – and in the process weaponized the real pain of those who lost loved ones to COVID in a nursing home,” Cuomo spokesperson Rich Azzopardi said. He noted the report’s findings that nursing home death rates were similar in states not targeted by the DOJ investigation.
