A Pennsylvania postal worker has doubled down and denied recanting statements made in a sworn affidavit that supervisors ordered him to collect and submit late ballots which were then backdated by supervisors.
After the Democrat-run House Oversight Committee announced late Tuesday that Hopkins “completely RECANTED his allegations,” Richard Hopkins from Erie, Pa., released a video clarifying that he did not recant his allegations at all.
“My name is Richard Hopkins. I am the postal employee who came out and whistle blew on the Eerie, PA postal office. I am right at this very moment looking at a article written by Washington Post – says that I fabricated the allegations of ballot tampering. I’m here to say that I did not recant my statements. That did not happen. That is not what happened,” he said in the video.
USPS Whistleblower Richard Hopkins: “I DID NOT RECANT”@shawnboburg and @jacobbogage have been played by the same federal agents on the audio ‘coercing,’ ‘scaring’ the whistleblower to water down allegations. As reporters, they are REQUIRED to include Richard’s denial. REQUIRED pic.twitter.com/8Rj5yWSljz
— James O’Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) November 11, 2020
“I would like that the Washington Post recant their article,” he added.
Hopkins’ video was posted by independent journalist and Project Veritas founder James O’Keefe. It was also shared by President Donald Trump, who said, “A brave patriot. More & more people are stepping forward to expose this Rigged Election!”
In his original allegations, Hopkins’ had said he overheard a supervisor discussing a plan to backdate ballots, and he was ordered to pick up ballots through Friday, The Washington Times reported. Pennsylvania law allows ballots to be counted through Friday, November 6 if they were postmarked on or before Election Day.
“Postmaster Rob Weisenbach directed my co-workers and I to pick up ballots after Election Day and provide them to him,” Mr. Hopkins said in an affidavit. “As discussed more fully below, I heard Weisenbach tell a supervisor at my office that Weisenbach was back-dating the postmarks on the ballots to make it appear as though the ballots had been collected on November 3, 2020 despite them in fact being collected on November 4 and possibly later.”
A second video shared by O’Keefe late Tuesday showed Hopkins speaking to O’Keefe about the allegations, and also included what Hopkins alleges is an audio recording of a USPS Inspector General official who interrogated him about his allegations. Hopkins said the officials were “grilling the hell out of me.”
RECORDING: Federal agents “coerce” USPS whistleblower Hopkins to water down story. Hopkins doubles down…
Agent Strasser: “I am trying to twist you a little bit”
“I am scaring you here”…” we have Senators involved…DOJ involved…reason they called me is to try to harness.” pic.twitter.com/tK2JPu6Wqm
— James O’Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) November 11, 2020
In the video, Hopkins said he stood by his statements.
Project Veritas chief legal counsel Jered Ede said Hopkins “was coerced.”
“They forced him to execute this watered-down lukewarm affidavit. They did so during an interrogation where again they denied him the opportunity to be represented by counsel even though he confirmed with them that he had counsel,” Ede told the Washington Times.
A letter dated Tuesday and addressed to Hopkins — also released by O’Keefe — shows that he was placed on emergency off duty employment status without pay after his allegations went public.
BREAKING: GoFundMe Removes Richard Hopkins page he set up in anticipation of losing his job.
USPS retaliated.
He is doubling down on statements ballots were backdated to Nov 3. Full Audio of federal agent interrogation tomorrow!
GO HERE TO SUPPORT HIM https://t.co/SH14Zi6dOl pic.twitter.com/xrvxhiGwmJ
— James O’Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) November 11, 2020
“On November 5th and 6th, your actions may have placed employees and yourself as well as the reputation of the US Postal Service in harm’s way,” the letter stated. “You are to remain off work until the completion of the OIG and internal investigation.”
Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican and Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, released the affidavit provided to the Trump campaign, vowing to thoroughly investigate any credible claims of voting irregularities and misconduct in order to ensure the integrity of the 2020 elections, adding that he wouldn’t allow them to be “swept under the rug.”
“Mr. Hopkins is entitled to all whistleblower protections, and I will ensure they extend to other postal workers who may come forward with claims of irregulates, misconduct, fraud, etc.,” Graham said in a statement.
Graham also alleged that the widespread use of mail-in voting made the post office the administrator of elections rather than local election officials, noting that the last-minute change calls for “further scrutiny” to safeguard the electoral process.
