West Virginia governor blames politics for sudden bank auction of $50M resort amid key Senate bid
Gov. Jim Justice said the new lienholder's actions 'almost approach blackmail'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}One of West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice’s most prized possessions is set to hit the auction block against his will later this month, and the Republican U.S. Senate nominee said the situation reeks of blatant politics.
In 2009, the Democrat-turned-Republican rescued the Greenbrier luxury resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, from bankruptcy by purchasing it from CSX.
This week, Justice said the big banks never would have acted against the Greenbrier property now if he were not poised to flip the deciding seat in a narrowly-divided U.S. Senate.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Justice’s campaign and his gubernatorial office declined to respond to Fox News Digital's requests for comment, but the governor told the Parkersburg News-Sentinel the situation is another "terrific burden" that comes with potentially upsetting the political apple cart.
MANCHIN SENATE SEAT RACE HEATS UP AS JUSTICE JUMPS IN: ‘I’M WORRIED ABOUT THIS NATION'
President Trump shakes hands with Gov. Jim Justice, who announced he would switch parties from Democrat to Republican during a Make America Great Again Rally at Big Sandy Superstore Arena in Huntington, West Virginia, Aug. 3, 2017. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)
"I truly believe if I wasn’t running for the U.S. Senate, you never would have heard about this in 10 million years, and we would have just continued to do exactly what we’re doing with JPMorgan, and everyone would have been happy in the neighborhood," Justice said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}With longtime Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin, I-W.V., retiring, Justice is heavily favored to flip the seat in his race against Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott. If the rest of the Senate map remains static and Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, becomes vice president, Republicans will win control of the upper chamber.
Justice, whose official biography describes him as the "largest farmer" east of the Mississippi, and his family are involved in more than 100 companies in the agriculture, coal, real estate and hospitality industries. The resort, halfway between Beckley, West Virginia, and Roanoke, Virginia, is known for its opulence and formal dress code.
In a statement, the Justice Companies said the governor and JPMorgan have had a decades-long, good-faith relationship and that the $142 million lien on the Greenbrier now sits at $9.4 million.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The statement said that, as of July, Justice was informed JPMorgan sold the loan to Baltimore-based Beltway Capital-McCormick 101 "despite the existence of a mutual agreement to resolve the outstanding obligations…" It was ultimately declared in-default.
"This deceitful move by JPMorgan is nothing more than the latest political stunt by the Democrats to undermine the next Republican senator from West Virginia," the statement added.
JUSTICE IN THE SENATE: WV GOV INTERESTED IN CHALLENGING MANCHIN
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Gov. Jim Justice during the State of the State address in Charleston, West Virginia, on Jan. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Chris Jackson, File)
Beltway Capital and JPMorganChase did not return requests for comment.
At his Tuesday press briefing, Justice said the foreclosure auction "has to be driven by something."
"I truly believe it’s a political play. Everybody I talk to says the same thing," he said. "We weren’t notified. Carter Bank was never asked about their position. In all honesty… if you wanted to sell the $9.4 million obligation, why wouldn’t you have asked Carter Bank?"
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A spokesman for Carter Bank of Martinsville, Virginia, with which Justice reportedly sought a second lien to boost his standing with JPMorgan, said it is aware of the notice of foreclosure sale, but is not the lender who started the process.
"Carter Bank will closely monitor the matter and act in a manner that best protects the Bank and its shareholders," the spokesman said.
Justice also criticized JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, noting he had longtime ties to the Democratic Party.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Dimon regularly donated to Democrats throughout the 1990s and 2000s, but as of late has critiqued "Bidenomics" and raised eyebrows among elites when he praised Trump at Davos.
Meanwhile, Democrats rejected Justice’s claim of a campaign-season political ploy, with the state’s party chairman appearing to laugh off the idea of the left conspiring against him.
"Calling Jamie Dimon a ‘friend to Democrats’ is like calling JD Vance an Appalachian," said State Del. Mike Pushkin of Kanawha County.
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A building at the Greenbrier at Christmastime. (West Virginia Department of Tourism )
"The Democratic Party had nothing to do with [Justice’s] failure to pay his creditors," he added.
Bob Wolford, an attorney for Justice, released a statement on the matter, floating potential future damage litigation against JPMorganChase, among other points:
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Let me be clear that the Greenbrier will not be sold, and the Justice family will take all necessary action to ensure that there will not be any adverse impact on their ownership of the Greenbrier or the Greenbrier’s operations and the ability of the Greenbrier to continue to provide world-class service for its guests will be uninterrupted," Wolford said.
A public notice in the city’s local paper announced the Greenbrier would be sold to the highest bidder Aug. 27 at 2p.m. on the steps of the Greenbrier County Courthouse in Lewisburg — absent further intervention.