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Trump-Nominated Postal Service Board Member Pushed Black Lives Matter Conspiracy Theories

John Barger called the movement “violent” and said it had nothing to do with race, in exchanges on LinkedIn.

A U.S. Postal Service board member, who reportedly played a key role in the selection of Louis DeJoy to lead the agency, called the Black Lives Matter movement violent and floated a conspiracy theory that it may be financially backed by foreign entities.

In June, John M. Barger, who serves on the Postal Service’s six-member Board of Governors, engaged in a back-and-forth on LinkedIn with a contact in Hong Kong. The exchange is publicly accessible on Barger’s profile on the platform. It began with that contact posting a photo of the strict public health measures in effect in Hong Kong due to the COVID-19 pandemic. When Barger’s contact offhandedly mentioned Black Lives Matter in the course of explaining the Chinese government’s aggressive posture toward Hong Kong, Barger teed off.

“Ummmm… BLM is a movement that is neither state sanctioned, nor about race these days,” responded Barger. “Further, its divisive violent core may be receiving ‘foreign funding.’” Continue reading.

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