USPS Concerns, Part 2

Back in April, I made note of some concerns regarding the US Postal Service and how the coronavirus was having an impact on things. Mainly in that they were in some financial trouble because Republicans under G.W. Bush basically hamstrung them, forcing them virtually overnight to completely pre-fund their entire pension plan for every employee for the next 75 years!

Things are actually much worse now. Trump appointed Louis DeJoy as the postmaster general in June. Last month, he began implementing policies to deliberately slow -- and in some cases halt -- mail delivery. DeJoy has no postal experience himself and has upwards of $75 million in holdings in USPS's own competitors! Trump has actively campaigned on limiting mail-in ballots for the upcoming election, and with DeJoy as a large Trump donor (the primary reason he got the job), DeJoy has a very vested interest in seeing the post office fail.

The concerns I had back in April about the USPS basically allowing the economy to continue moving because so many indivdiuals and businesses were conducting transactions via the mail has been magnified a thousand-fold. And that's on top of the active effort to disenfranchise voters who might be (justifiably!) too scared of contracting COVID to actually go to the polls in person! I've heard a few people say these changes are actually treasonous, and I frankly have trouble arguing otherwise. Everything they are forcing the post office to do right now undermines both the fairness of our elections and the basic economy itself. (Not to mention that it's got racism built into it, since postal workers are over twice as likely to be Black as in anywhere in the private sector.)

There is nothing about this situation the post office is being forced into that isn't downright evil. Contact your state and local representatives, particularly if they're Republicans, and get them to do anything they can to oust DeJoy (who is in direct violation of 18 U.S. Code § 1703) as soon as possible.

RESOURCES
Seattle Times: "New cuts threaten the Postal Service when it’s most needed"
Seattle Times: "Mail delays likely as new postal boss pushes cost-cutting"
Washington Post: "Postal Service overhauls leadership as Democrats press for investigation of mail delays"
CNN: "Warren and other top Democrats ask USPS watchdog to investigate practices"
New York Times: "Mail Delays Fuel Concern Trump Is Undercutting Postal System Ahead of Voting"

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