US postmaster general suspends changes until after election
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Washington — US Postmaster general Louis DeJoy said he is suspending changes to mail service that raised concerns over slow delivery of ballots in the fall election after Democrats accused President Donald Trump of hampering the mail-in process.
“To avoid even the appearance of any affect on election mail, I am suspending these initiatives until after the election is concluded,” DeJoy said in an e-mailed statement Tuesday.
DeJoy said that mail processing equipment and blue collection boxes will remain where they are, and no mail processing facilities will be closed. Overtime work will “continue to be” approved as needed, he said.
The announcement follows concerns from Democrats and others over apparent mail slowdowns as the coronavirus pandemic leads to the necessity for increased mail-in voting options. DeJoy is to appear twice before Congress in coming days: on Friday at the Senate homeland security and governmental affairs committee, and on Monday before the House committee on oversight and reform.
The White House did not immediately response to a request for comment.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi is calling the House back on Saturday to vote on legislation to halt post office cutbacks and give the agency $25bn in additional funding.
“The post office in these times of coronavirus is really election central,” Pelosi said during an event with Politico Tuesday. “Well, he should,” she said, when suddenly handed a note about a news report on DeJoy’s announcement that he is suspending changes.
Meanwhile, the attorneys-general for Washington and Pennsylvania were briefing reporters on Tuesday on plans for separate, multistate lawsuits that would seek to halt operational changes at the Postal Service. More than a dozen other states had signed onto the effort, including California, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, Minnesota and Nevada.
Health risks
“By interfering with the Postal Service, President Trump is putting both our democracy and people’s health at risk,” Massachusetts attorney-general Maura Healey said in a statement on Tuesday. “We are suing to ensure the integrity of our electoral process and to make sure each and every vote is counted during this election.”
Maryland attorney-general Brian Frosh said DeJoy’s commitment to hold back on operational changes is insufficient and not specific enough to avoid the lawsuit he plans to file with other attorneys-general.
“They say they’re going to get back on course for November,” Frosh, a Democrat, said in a phone call. “But that’s a promise that I don’t think we can take ...
“To avoid even the appearance of any affect on election mail, I am suspending these initiatives until after the election is concluded,” DeJoy said in an e-mailed statement Tuesday.
DeJoy said that mail processing equipment and blue collection boxes will remain where they are, and no mail processing facilities will be closed. Overtime work will “continue to be” approved as needed, he said.
The announcement follows concerns from Democrats and others over apparent mail slowdowns as the coronavirus pandemic leads to the necessity for increased mail-in voting options. DeJoy is to appear twice before Congress in coming days: on Friday at the Senate homeland security and governmental affairs committee, and on Monday before the House committee on oversight and reform.
The White House did not immediately response to a request for comment.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi is calling the House back on Saturday to vote on legislation to halt post office cutbacks and give the agency $25bn in additional funding.
“The post office in these times of coronavirus is really election central,” Pelosi said during an event with Politico Tuesday. “Well, he should,” she said, when suddenly handed a note about a news report on DeJoy’s announcement that he is suspending changes.
Meanwhile, the attorneys-general for Washington and Pennsylvania were briefing reporters on Tuesday on plans for separate, multistate lawsuits that would seek to halt operational changes at the Postal Service. More than a dozen other states had signed onto the effort, including California, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, Minnesota and Nevada.
Health risks
“By interfering with the Postal Service, President Trump is putting both our democracy and people’s health at risk,” Massachusetts attorney-general Maura Healey said in a statement on Tuesday. “We are suing to ensure the integrity of our electoral process and to make sure each and every vote is counted during this election.”
Maryland attorney-general Brian Frosh said DeJoy’s commitment to hold back on operational changes is insufficient and not specific enough to avoid the lawsuit he plans to file with other attorneys-general.
“They say they’re going to get back on course for November,” Frosh, a Democrat, said in a phone call. “But that’s a promise that I don’t think we can take ...
