Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) this week sent a letter to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy demanding answers about the removal of more than a dozen blue post office drop boxes across the state, as Democrats fear the Trump administration is seeking to sabotage the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) ahead of an expected surge in mail voting this November.
In his letter, Tester pointed to media reports and warnings from the Montana Postal Workers Union about the removal and planned removal of drop boxes.
“If true, this seems to be occurring without any transparency or communication with impacted Montanans,” Tester wrote.
“The United States Postal Service plays a critical role in America, and its services are needed now more than ever, particularly in our rural communities where local access to grocery stores, pharmacies, and other essential services are often limited to nonexistent. These reported actions would cause harm to those who rely on the USPS for the delivery of medicine and distribution of benefits.”
Tester said his office has received reports of drop boxes being removed from Bozeman and Lewistown and plans for removals in Billings. He asked DeJoy to respond to these reports by Aug. 18.
In a statement to The Hill, USPS spokesperson Kimberly Frum said the Postal Service has for decades installed and removed its “iconic blue” collection mailboxes based on the volume of mail received to each.
She said that low-volume mailboxes are a financial drag on the Postal Service, which lost more than $2 billion in the second quarter.
“It is a fluid process and figures can vary from day-to-day,” Frum said. “Historically, mail boxes have been removed for lack of use and installed in growth areas.”
“When a collection box consistently receives very small amounts of mail for months on end, it costs the Postal Service money in fuel and workhours for letter carriers to drive to the mailbox and collect the mail. Removing the box is simply good business sense in that respect. It is important to note that anyone with a residential or business mailbox can use it as a vehicle to send outgoing mail.”
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Trump has said he opposes “bailouts” for the states and suggested on Thursday that he opposes additional USPS funding because it would lead to universal mail-in voting in the fall. However, Trump said later he would not veto a potential coronavirus relief package over USPS funding.
The president has made unsubstantiated claims about mail voting fraud and worried that expanded access to mail voting would benefit Democrats in November.
Democrats have accused DeJoy, a top GOP donor before he became postmaster general, of implementing new policies designed to slow down mail delivery and sow chaos and delays around the election.
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- Discussion
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Dem senator demands answers from Postmaster General on reports of mailbox removals across Montana https://t.co/CHxUSJ3iTC pic.twitter.com/gmx8mRFeb7
— The Hill (@thehill) August 15, 2020
.@MaritsaNBCMT is reporting tonight from the front lines of Trump’s frontal assault on the US Elections process. Trump is attacking the USPS to stop Americans from having their votes counted. This is what it looks like in Montana. A great report from a top notch journalist. https://t.co/p0We5bqx8B
— Steve Schmidt (@SteveSchmidtSES) August 15, 2020
.@SenatorTester slams Trump administration: "They're trying to destroy the postal system — there's no doubt about it." pic.twitter.com/xjpoNKJGZv
— The Hill (@thehill) August 15, 2020
“Democrats have accused DeJoy, a top GOP donor before he became postmaster general, of implementing new policies designed to slow down mail delivery and sow chaos and delays around the election. ”
I’m willing to bet that’s true. DeJoy, a Trump campaign donor, has zero experience in managing a government agency. I believe he was brought in by Trump to purposely sabotage USPS and hinder its ability to deliver mail-in ballots. Of course, in the process, other mail has also been delayed thanks to Mr. DeJoy’s efforts.
It is true that the postal service removes drop boxes from time to time. I had one right across the street from my house, but it wasn’t removed entirely; it was just moved up the street to the front of the police station. When it was across the street, punks would vandalize it all the time. They aren’t vandalizing it now.
But I don’t think it’s a coincidence that USPS is removing drop boxes now — a few months before the election.
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