“The Justice Department today announced the filing of a civil action against James C Justice III and 13 coal companies he owns or operates seeking to collect unpaid civil penalties previously assessed by the Department of the Interior Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE), as well as Abandoned Mine Land (AML) reclamation fee and audit debts. ‘Our environmental laws serve to protect communities against adverse effects of industrial activities including surface coal mining operations,’ said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. ‘Through this suit, the Justice Department seeks to deliver accountability for defendants’ repeated violations of the law and to recover the penalties they owe as a result of those violations,'” says a Wednesday Justice Department press release.

Cue the MAGA conspiracy theorists with their “Oh that’s convenient just a day after a poll found West Virginia Governor Jim Justice crushing Joe Manchin by 22 points in the 2024 Senate race!”

And maybe they’re right that it is “convenient” – and defendant Jim Justice III is the son of Republican West Virginia Governor Jim Justice II, but they’re both still in the same coal business so the DOJ might as well be suing the governor himself. Then again maybe don’t fuck around and make yourself a target for “politically motivated persecution” by the federal government. And let’s be honest, it’s not like this is really going to hurt Justice’s Senate campaign. West Virginia Republican voters don’t give a shit about the environment and never did. A federal lawsuit isn’t a game-changer.