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Ahead of a House session this Saturday, Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, D-Palo Alto, held a press conference on Tuesday morning in front of the downtown Palo Alto post office to address what she labeled as the Trump administration’s attempt to “hijack” democracy by undermining the U.S. Postal Service.
With the general election less than three months away, Eshoo said that it was critical to support a service that’s expected to receive an unprecedented number of mail-in ballots due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
“This fall, the Postal Service will have another task that is vital to our democracy: ensuring the timely delivery of millions of absentee ballots for the general election,” she said.
Eshoo will join fellow House representatives on Aug. 22 in Washington, D.C., to vote on the Delivering for America Act, which was introduced by Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney, D-New York, to maintain the standards and level of service the Postal Service had in place prior to the pandemic and halt any further changes. The bill would also provide $25 billion in much-needed funding for the federal agency. Eshoo said she expects the bill to receive bipartisan support.
Letter carrier Vu Tran, James Free, CEO of the Campbell Veterans Memorial Foundation, and Lisa Ratner, vice president of Palo Alto League of Women Voters also joined Eshoo at the Aug. 18 press conference.
“I depend on the post office for my medication from the Veterans Administration,” Free said.
The Postal Service recently made headlines after Trump-appointed Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who is a known megadonor to the Republican Party and the president’s campaign, began to introduce changes to the national Postal Service, including eliminating overtime for employees and removing mail-sorting machines from facilities across the country, which has caused delivery delays in some areas.
These changes have raised concerns that the Trump administration is attempting to cripple the agency ahead of the election as the president makes exaggerated claims of voter fraud from mail-in ballots, as seen in a May 28 tweet. In another tweet on July 30, he suggested that the nation delay the election because of the alleged potential for mail-in voter fraud and also recently told Fox Business that he doesn’t agree that the Postal Service should receive billions in funding to handle mail-in ballots during the November election.
“It’s an election theft in progress,” Eshoo said at the conference, also suggesting that DeJoy is trying to dismantle an agency he was appointed to lead in mid-June.
On Sunday, Eshoo submitted a letter to California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, calling for a criminal investigation of DeJoy to see if the postmaster general violated any state laws that protect constituents’ right to vote by mail. Becerra announced on Twitter Tuesday morning that the state is suing Trump for his “attacks on the USPS,” making this the 96th lawsuit against the president.
Just as the conference ended, DeJoy released a statement that said to “avoid even the appearance of any impact on election mail,” he will halt any changes to the Postal Service “until after the election is concluded.” He pledged that “retail hours at post offices will not change; mail processing equipment and blue collection boxes will remain where they are; no mail processing facilities will be closed; and we reassert that overtime has, and will continue to be, approved as needed.”
However, some, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, have said that DeJoy’s statement does nothing to address the changes that were already made or the ongoing concerns about his possible conflict of interest.
DeJoy is expected to testify before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Friday, Aug. 21.
So COVID relief funds are a second priority to rescuing the already failing USPS? The priorities of this congress aren’t entirely clear while we’re all suffering.
The USPS is insolvent. It lost $8.8 billion in 2019 and is on track to lose $12 billion in 2020. It is heavily unionized and has large unfunded pension liabilities. USPS unions are big political patrons of Democrats like Anna Eshoo, and seek for those they support w campaign contributions and other political support, to support them in return, which is what Ms. Eshoo and Ms. Pelosi are working on. USPS cost cutting is in order.
All of the losses the USPS has been suffering are because in 2006, the Republican congress and George W. Bush mandated that USPS pre-fund 75 years of pensions.
https://defazio.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/defazio-authored-bill-to-help-us-postal-service-maintain-sustainability#:~:text=In%202006%2C%20Congress%20passed%20a,cost%20of%20approximately%20%24110%20billion.&text=The%20mandate%20is%20responsible%20for%20all%20of%20USPS's%20financial%20losses%20since%202013.
Please try writing news instead of advocacy. The “known” in “known megadonor” was the most prominent flag of bias.
How did this “idea” get so twisted. This election has lot of local elements specific to this county and local school systems. Every county in this state has specific issues they are voting on. Those ballots need to be counted in the counties. I believe that the Sec. of State Padilla just provided a opinion piece that said that you can drop off the completed ballots at designated locations – PA City Hall.
In the last primary election I do not think we ever got the final vote count for the legislative replacement for Jerry Hill. Lots of D’s competing and one R. So now we will see one D and one R on the ballot.
Newsome made the decision to make this all a mail-in vote. Please assign stupid decisions to the person who makes them. Sec. of State Padilla says you can drop them off at the City Hall.
The heading on this blog is not accurate. The bill that they all want to pass includes more pork to support the major cities that have screwed up big time – Portland, Seattle, Chicago, NY. They all decided to give an inch and of course the whole situation now is out of control. Are there any actual residents left in Portland? Any in Seattle? Mr. Gates and wife have bought a house in SOCAL – La Jolla to escape the state of WA. All of the residents in NY city have escaped – the governor is pleading for them to come back. He will even cook for them.
And our Governor adds to the problem by making mandates. And of course the AG and company are suing – that is all they do. They do not solve problems.
Bottom line is that the ballots have to be counted in the respective counties where there are issues concerning the school systems, local city politics.
Some people create a problem to address one situation with no cause and effect assumptions. It is all for show.
The USPS budget crisis has been going on many, many years. Between 2008 and 2019, the USPS was $69 Billion short. The institution is paid for internally — through the sale of postage, goods and services. However, every year, it doesn’t “add up.” This recent conspiracy theory narrative (to singularly blame President Trump) is asinine. As John Podesta’s leaked emails suggest, I suspect that the DNC is really is aiming for “unaware and compliant” voters.
Here’s something to chew on:
American Institute for Economic Research: Mail Slowdowns Started 50 Years Before Trump
https://www.aier.org/article/mail-slowdowns-started-50-years-before-trump/
Sounds like Republicans jumped on this article to comment first. The downtown Hamilton Ave post office has already had a mail sorting machine removed, local post office boxes removed and the speed of mail slowed. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who is a known megadonor to the Republican Party and the president also has 10s of millions of dollars invested in a company that provides contracting services to the USPS. Cutting post office delivery benefits him directly financially. Very corrupt. I think the real story is probably that the reduction in postal delivery is focused on blue states and districts.
The USPS is a captured agency. Congress sets the postal rates, so the USPS cannot raise prices to cover costs. And Congress (controlled by Republicans at the time) mandated that the USPS pre-pay 75 years worth of health benefits for retirees. No other company or institution has to operate under those constraints. I didn’t know this myself until I started looking more deeply into the current situation. I encourage anyone who wants to understand the situation to read more about it.
How many times has Trump said he’ll lose if mail-in voting is allowed during a pandemic and how many states and counties has he alredy sued over their mail-in ballot plans?? How many times have the Senate Republicans refused to spend a dime of the allocated money on election security or to address issues with voting rights?
Let’s get real here, people, and put the blame where it’s warranted.
Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, D-Palo Alto, held a press conference on Tuesday morning in front of the downtown Palo Alto post office to address what she labeled as the Trump administration’s attempt to “hijack” democracy by undermining the U.S. Postal Service. Where’s the proof ?
Repeat a lie often enough and people will start to believe it.
A lie? Feel free to consult Google News and/or to read Speaker Pelosi’s statement TODAY on how DeJoy has no intention of replacing the 671 sorting machines he took!
Too bad about those vets and senior citizens who won’t get their medicines. And too bad about the integrity of the election~!
https://www.speaker.gov/newsroom/81920
“Pelosi Statement After Conversation with Postmaster General
August 19, 2020
Press Release
San Francisco – Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued this statement after speaking to Postmaster General DeJoy about his alleged pause in operational changes that are delaying the mail and threatening to disenfranchise voters:
“This morning, I spoke with Postmaster General DeJoy and conveyed to him that his announcement is not a solution and is misleading.
“The Postmaster General’s alleged pause is wholly insufficient and does not reverse damage already wreaked. The Postmaster General frankly admitted that he had no intention of replacing the sorting machines, blue mailboxes and other key mail infrastructure that have been removed and that plans for adequate overtime, which is critical for the timely delivery of mail, are not in the works. All of these changes directly jeopardize the election and disproportionately threaten to disenfranchise voters in communities of color. At the same time, we are highly concerned that the slowdown of the delivery of medicines to veterans is not being sufficiently addressed.
RE: Online Name “A lie? Feel free to consult Google News and/or to read Speaker Pelosi’s statement TODAY on how DeJoy has no intention of replacing the 671 sorting machines he took!”
Best information is that the decision to remove/mothball those sorting machines was made *before* DeJoy was appointed and was based upon there being excess capacity.
I recommend the article
“Stop Panicking about the Post Office; But Do Fund Them ASAP” | by Nick Harper | Aug, 2020 | Medium (https://medium.com/@nharpermn/stop-panicking-about-the-post-office-8bcd689b9601)
It has been referred to me by multiple people whose judgment I trust.
It addresses a number of the prominent lies and propaganda currently in circulation.
In olden days, we would have expected the mainstream media to have done this sort of reporting — now they amplify the fake news.
I don’t see why you can’t vote at a voting precinct like past elections. There are “essential” workers everyday at the grocery store etc. why not have “essential” workers attend to the voting precincts like prior elections?
I would support voting-by-mail if the ballot is returned/postmarked alongside tax returns.
Note above addressed the post office on Hamilton. A couple of years back they were trying to sell that property. Diane Feinstein’s husband was in charge of the contract to dump older government properties that would require major upgrade for earth quake specs. Then everyone got mad so that ended that activity. That is not the PA Post Office headquarters. So if you are looking at the property on Hamilton it looks like it is partially deserted. It is the PO Boxes that are the main reason it is there. They cannot relocate the PO Boxes that easily. And no one was up to buying the building because it requires upgrade.
The major post office is on East Bayshore. That is a huge property and all of the trucks are at that location. That is really the PA Post Office. However not a great photo shoot for Eshoo. It is a full service PO.
So why are they trying to panic people now? Election time? The PO is designed to do a specific job. The fact that it has been contorted to perform this massive service is weird beyond belief. Some one made a shoot from the hip decision with no regard for the realities. That person is Gavin Newsome. Clueless.
There is no reason we cannot function as we have in the past with designated voting locations and the alternative of putting the mail in votes in the box at City Hall.
The fact that “they” were trying to change up an accepted method for this campaign is truly problematical.
Every county in this state and other states has specific issues it is addressing. School issues, tax issues, legislative issues, and replacement of legislators at the city, county, state, and federal level. Who ever thought this up is consumed with the presidential portion of the ballot. But all of our local concerns are near and dear. People have invested a huge amount of time and energy on the local issues. We need those ballots counted at the county level.
We need to go back to the “regular” way we do things. Using the Covid as an excuse at this point in time is getting old – like no plan so use that as an excuse. You all will note that people are going back to work, the golf courses are full, people are in the stores. We are returning to a regular life.
However the fires have created a different situation. Those people are not going to get mail – no mail boxes, no homes. They need central polling places to go to. The reason for polling places now is central concern.
I am very disappointed with Anna Eshoo for this theatrical display. The D Party thought this up and Gavin Newsom dictated it. And you then want to sue people because they did not go along with this Group Think. Taxpayer money has been squander away with phony schemes. This another phony scheme.
NPR has been running a special on the Presidents and the problems they encountered while President. Clinton ran into the obvious problems but he was in trouble before that because of other legal problems. Reagan was in constant contact with the Russians – his presidency preceded the breakdown of the Soviet Union in 1991. That period WAS Russia, Russia, Russia. The presidents have to deal with world circumstances that are occurring outside of the US and then those that we manufacture within the US.
Aside from the political and voting aspects, I want a professional, functioning U.S. Postal Service. I’m tired of arguing about Trump. Game playing, flailing, politicking, blaming don’t interest me. (Even though they may well be part of this.)
My focus is wanting to know what actions ARE being done in the Postal Service, if misdeeds are being done, and stopping and correcting these problems or changes now. Stick to the facts and let’s get this federal department functioning correctly.
I have a lot of experience using Postal Service services and I know the service has massively deteriorated recently.
The postal service is under siege now from the strange occurrence of organizations that want to print calendars as a fund raising tactic. National parks, hospitals, health organizations, animal organizations, etc. I now have 31 calendars – just got one from the American Heart Association. And if you don’t pony up a contribution immediately they send you another calendar. I get calendars from organizations that I have no relation to. If you donate to one organization then your name gets sold to other organizations so they are fundraising in the selling of your name.
I donate to an Indian school – Lakota – and now I get mailings and “gifts” from other Indian organizations – Sioux.
Political season – I get continual requests from donations from both parties and individual people – both have sold your name for their fundraising.
I talk to my mail deliverer and we shake our heads at the volume of unrequested mail that they have to process. That includes catalogs as we are now coming up to “Christmas” – order your gifts now.
The postal service did not volunteer to participate in fund raising efforts of multiple organizations and they do not have the staff and facilities to do so.
This is not a R or D voting issue as much as it is a tactic used by organizations to fund raise that has gone out of control. I typically bring the calendars over to the PAMC for their use but not sure under covid if that is an acceptable approach.
Just saying here that people focus and beat on one aspect that affects them with no overall grasp of the total situation. The PO on Bayshore has signs out front that they are hiring. They know they are under siege and are limited as to how they can handle it all.
I have a USPS mailbox on a local corner that is continually trashed with paint slogans, newspapers, and somewhat beat up. Sign on front say it will be removed in 30 days – take your mail to Bayshore – or in this case a shopping center that has mailboxes.
I look at what “kids” have done here – assuming it is kids – they are trashing public property. We are allowing the trashing of public property, or people painting on roads with no permission from city and the end result is there – allow an inch and they will push and push. Someone in this city needs to recognize that allowing the trashing of public property starts small then grows if not checked.
It starts with the city saying that spray painting and trashing is not acceptable and if caught parents will be brought in. Parents get to pay for the removal of trash and repainting if necessary. Our quality of life is being chewed away in increments and it needs to stop. We have real estate people selling homes for a huge amount of money in this city. Everyone should get total value for living here.
The only garage sale in the city is on-going on my street. Cars every where, parked everywhere. The whole street is ingulfed with cars and people. You ask people why they are there and they think they will find some treasure. Some with face coverings, some without.
So have a yard sale and any theory on why you can’t have a standard voting system like we used to do goes away. People do not want to be trapped in their homes anymore and are looking for any reason to escape that daily existence. People want to be around people and talk to people – face to face. People want an excuse to be out with other people. They all know there is no “Treasure” there – only maybe a substitute to what ever they have been staring at in their homes.
City – County – State – cut the nonsense and put the voting system back where it is suppose to be. Local polling places.
So let go back to the previous election we just had. The R’s got their votes in early and the count was started early. The big fight was the D group that had numerous candidates all sponsored by one of the numerous coalitions in the state. As the results were printed in the papers most cities and counties completed their counts with final results. Santa Clara county held out of the legislative replacement for Mr. Hill – never saw a final count number. Because trailing votes and “other” votes kept straggling in and each coalition was trying to pump up their candidate. That tells the story. You have D candidates pitted against D candidates and they are all trying to stuff the votes. From where I am sitting I have seen what a mess this has turned into. And it was a purposeful mess with unintended consequences. AS usually occurs.
Everyone in this comment section who says the USPS should be cut because of budget losses is correct! Why should we as citizens fund a government service that loses more of our money every year? (Ignore the fact that the US government is not a corporation and therefore provides services not to bring in more cash but to reach as many people as possible)
To build on this wonderful momentum, I am suggesting some other government agencies that deserve to be cut:
1. This agency has lost TRILLIONS of US dollars, fudges the books on the money they lose, and takes up more than half of the national budget. They haven’t turned a profit since 2004, and it is long past time for them to GO! Citizens, say goodbye to the US Army!
2. This next government agency not only receives billions in taxpayer dollars, but is ineffective 67/70 times, and randomly targets legitimate American citizens! I know I don’t want to pay for something like that, and I’m sure you don’t either! It is long past time to get rid of the Transportation Security Administration, or the TSA.
3. This agency has already been shrunk, but it’s worth mentioning again! Why should our tax dollars not come right back to us, instead of going towards common goals we should all share for our collective health? I say get rid of the Environmental Protection Agency once and for all – who cares about the wetlands? Nobody!
The only government agency that should be functioning is the IRS – after all, they are the only ones who turn a profit. Join me in my fight, fellow capitalists, to run the government like a business, where our only goal is to increase profit margins!
Disabling the Postal Service is the only way the Trump regime can avoid a landslide defeat, therefore no steps the US House takes will slow the destruction down. Automatic mail southing machine, including brand new ones are deliberately damaged and tossed out, mail trucks departing in the morning empty, while tons of unsorted mail is laying around.
Millions of ballots will never get to voters, and millions more will mysteriously disappear into a black hole never to be seen(or counted) again. We are at best the new Belarus, and also Zambia, Honduras, Guatemala and other similar band republics. We are not even marching toward authoritarian fascism, we are there.
As a matter of fact, the US his now where Germany was in 1938, on the brink.