Today, Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, Sen. Tom Carper, Sen. Chris Coons, and Attorney General Kathy Jennings (all D-Del.) held a press conference outside of a post office here, supporting a nationwide “Day of Action” to underscore the role of the U.S. Postal Service as an essential service to the people of the United States.
“The deliberate undermining of the United States Postal Service by President Trump and Postmaster DeJoy is simply unacceptable. This is not a partisan issue – it’s an issue of justice, of fairness, and of our democracy,” said Rep. Blunt Rochester. “Thousands of Delawareans up and down our state rely on the Postal Service for their medications, for their businesses, and for casting their ballot. I was proud to stand with Senator Carper, Senator Coons, and Attorney General Jennings to push back against these attacks on the USPS, and look forward to returning to Washington on Saturday to join with my colleagues in the House to prevent the continuation of these damaging policies.”
“When scores of Delawareans up and down our state don’t receive their mail, including prescription medications, paychecks, bills, and letters, in a timely manner for no apparent reason, it raises eyebrows. The fact that these slowdowns are happening during a pandemic and right before an election where a record number of Americans plan to vote by mail – and while the President bashes mail-in voting – is deeply troubling,” said Senator Carper, who serves as the top Democrat on the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations in the Senate. “In the Senate, several of my colleagues and I have initiated investigations into this disturbing matter, and I’m looking forward to finally hearing from Mr. DeJoy at a hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Friday morning. I’m also proud that, thanks to Attorney General Kathy Jennings, Delaware is joining the fight and working to stop what appear to be blatant partisan practices and outright voter suppression. Americans of all political affiliations — not just Democrats — who rely on the Postal Service to ensure that their voice is heard in November deserve better than these partisan games.”
“The undermining of one of our most trusted institutions is unacceptable. The United States Postal Service has long been an agency that has provided vital mail such as medications, unemployment checks, and election ballots to all Americans,” said Sen. Coons, the ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government, which has jurisdiction over USPS. “The recent changes made to USPS operations have created massive and unprecedented disruptions in mail deliveries in Delaware and across the country. During a public health crisis, it is more important than ever to have a robust postal system that all Americans have access to without concern. I will continue working with my colleagues to provide oversight on the actions taken by Postmaster General Dejoy and work to ensure that the undermining of our postal system is stopped.”
“Every American depends on the mail, and millions of people are being harmed because of political sabotage writ large,” said Attorney General Jennings. “You don’t have to take my word for it: The President made clear on national TV that he’s trying to prevent a fair election. In any other era, under any other administration, it would be unthinkable to appoint a megadonor to deliberately break one of America’s oldest public services — but corruption has become the new normal. I’m not standing for it, and neither are my fellow attorneys general.”
Last week, Carper and Coons made an initial request urging USPS to fix delays and avoid cost increases for election mail. The senators joined another letter that broadens the call for oversight over the issue of delays following changes made by the recently appointed postmaster general.
Citing widespread delays in mail deliveries, President Trump’s intent to use the Postal Service to suppress the vote, and reports of deliberate disruptions in daily postal operations amid a global pandemic, Jennings announced that Delaware and other states are suing the United States Postal Service to stop their practices.
Later this week, the House of Representatives will return to session to vote on Oversight and Reform Committee Chairwoman Maloney’s Delivering for America Act, which prohibits the Postal Service from implementing any changes to operations or level of service it had in place on January 1, 2020.
Source: Chris Coons