Not that I have much tears for him in general but especially since he (presumably) knew about this policy at some point, but honestly the policy is ridiculous. Asking for their permission to donate to a political campaign? Come on. It's a pretty clear example of the employer (MS)NBC restricting his right to free speech outside of his work obligations to them. A more sensible policy would have been to allow the donations as long as he publicly disclosed them (since there is potential for conflict of interest).