West Virginia Democrats want Governor Jim Justice to drop out of Senate race

CHARLESTON, W.Va. ( WTRF ) — West Virginia Democratic Party Chair Mike Pushkin called on Gov. Jim Justice (R) to withdraw from the race for the United States Senate following a news story of alleged financial misconduct that has left hundreds of workers and their families at risk of losing their healthcare coverage.

“It’s one thing to default on a bank loan or a tax obligation or even a fine from a regulatory agency,” Pushkin said. “It’s another thing altogether to fail to pay the health care premiums for your workers with money that isn’t even yours. Because of his negligence, hundreds of workers and their families may lose their health care coverage. The governor can’t blame this on politics, he can’t blame it on accounting error, he can’t blame it on anyone else but himself. His financial house of cards is falling down around him, making him a terminally compromised candidate. Under these circumstances, he can’t continue to seek election to the United States Senate. He has become a national embarrassment.”

The Democrats said this all centers around the Justice family owning The Greenbrier and the resort being four months and millions of dollars behind on payments for employee health insurance.

According to the Amalgamated National Health Fund, the Greenbrier Hotel Corporation owes $2.4 million in delinquent health premium contributions, with an additional $1.2 million in premiums due soon. This includes money that was deducted from worker pay but not remitted to the insurer, effectively leaving employees without the coverage they paid for. The Health Fund said if payments are not made by Aug. 27, healthcare benefits for all Greenbrier employees will be suspended. The Health Fund is also considering legal action to recover the contributions, along with interest and attorney fees. “Workers at the Greenbrier shouldn’t have to worry about the cancellation of the health care benefits they worked for and paid into because of the Governor’s incompetence,” Pushkin added.

“It was only a few weeks ago that we learned that Jim Justice had failed to pay millions in collections to the state,” Pushkin continued. “In both cases, the Governor is treating funds that don’t belong to him as a personal loan. Add to these the millions the Governor’s company owes in and it paints a clear picture of an imploding financial empire. This is a pattern of unprecedented financial mismanagement that cannot be ignored.”

Gov. Justice will face off against former Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott for Senator Joe Manchin’s seat on Nov. 5.

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