The Trump lobbyist and the 'sex tape': Behind Dominic Foppoli's combative response to sexual assault

[DonViejo]

Alexandria Bordas, Cynthia Dizikes, Matthias Gafni

May 16, 2021
Updated: May 16, 2021 4 a.m.

With his political career on the brink of ruin amid multiple allegations of sexual assault, Windsor Mayor Dominic Foppoli turned to an old friend who had parlayed early loyalty and slight ties to Donald Trump into a multimillion-dollar lobbying business in Washington.

With the help of Robert Stryk, described by the Associated Press as “one of the most successful lobbyists during the Trump presidency,” Foppoli has waged an aggressive campaign to save his job that has alarmed many residents and local officials already upset over the allegations revealed in a Chronicle investigation last month.

The campaign hinges on an apparent attempt to shift the conversation away from the original Foppoli accusers by fiercely attacking Esther Lemus, a Windsor Town Council colleague and Sonoma County deputy district attorney who herself has accused Foppoli of sexual assault in a report to the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office.

Leading the barrage is Stryk, who laces a frantic speaking style with vulgar attacks on perceived enemies and wild claims that he possesses embarrassing private information that he plans to release imminently.

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https://www.sfchronicle.com/local/article/The-Trump-lobbyist-and-the-sex-tape-Behind-16179750.php