House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) informed her Democratic colleagues on Sunday night that the House would be called back to session this week to curtail the Trump-appointed Postmaster General’s structural changes at the United States Postal Service (USPS) that threaten to cause delays that could invalidate Americans’ mail-in votes.
The party that knows how to govern is getting back to work unlike the heartless, cruel and corrupt party who only knows how to grab power and enrich themselves and their cronies!
Kudos to the Speaker Pelosi and other who have rallied to get Congress to deal with the crime against USPS!
In a Wapo Op-Ed, Timothy Snyder opined that we should learn from what is happening in Belarus and that there are what he calls as “the six Ps” of defending an electoral victory against authoritarian chaos: preparation, predominance, protest, peace, persistence and pluralism.
Postal Service Approval 91%
Trump approval Rating 40%
Do the Math
Get it front and center
Loud ever day , all day
The people are behind you
If he refuses to show
Arrest him
I’ve got no expertise and no familiarity so I can’t read the strategic aspects of the DeJoy coup; hence, take this w/ several salt-boulders, but:
Is it just possible that Trump/DeJoy/(Kushner? prolly) pulled the trigger on this sabotage too early? That would be on-brand for these half-wit proto-fascists. Is there time for House/Dems to arrest the damage?
As I say, this is not a rhetorical question–I don’t know but would welcome commentary.
I’m heartened by her sense of urgency, but I don’t know enough about how USPS is run to know what they can do. They can pass a bill, but the Senate doesn’t have to pass it and Trump doesn’t have to sign it. Are they hoping just to generate awareness and have public pressure force the signatures? I’m not sure the Repubs can be motivated by public pressure anymore, since they see their chance at permanently keeping their positions of power without needing public approval.
Pelosi is planning to pass a stand alone bill on the postal service, restricting De Joy from implementing the operational changes (and reversing some?). I suspect the funding that was in the Heroes Act will be added/moved to this bill. The point of it will be to get the GOP on record as either pro or anti-postal service. Most will, predictably, vote with Trump giving Dems a potent issue in red counties. You could see an issue like this flipping 10 seats in the House and giving some Senate candidates in red states an edge.
OK, this is helpful. And certainly Manchin’s full-throated condemnation is a bellwether of sorts (yeah, yeah, yeah, DINO and why-won’t-he-support-us-on-assault-rifles and yeah, yeah, yeah, but the man knows how to keep getting re-elected from the poor rural white South): he went right to the heart of “my constituency won’t get their meds and their support checks” and he’s spot-on correct.
So maybe this stupid Kushneresque USPS sabotage will be a wedge issue dividing rich-fuck R’s and poor-white R’s.
Thanks, @khyber900, as always, for cogent insights.
I’m no expert either but we’ve seen these wannabe criminal masterminds stumble all over themselves time and again, pulling some obvious move, evoking a howl of rage, and backing down. Trump is a dumb person who thinks he’s smarter than everyone, and all of his impulses are criminal, so you get this effect.
And Jared is the same, and he listens to Jared. I shudder to think what #kompromat Jared has on Donald. Has to be worse than “hey, pops, I know you molested your daughter.”
If there ever was a time to protect and expand voting at home, this is it!
Meadows said yesterday that Trump would sign a stand alone bill. Let’s see if Meadows word is any good. Bet not
The fact that they even thought they could get away with it
Look at the big picture
They are all rich beyond our comprehension and were born into it
They never have been inside a post office, bought a stamp , mailed a letter , received an Amazon package
They had "people " doing those mundane chores
No concept whatsoever on how integral the post office is to daily life
Good on Nancy for keeping a laser focus on this. Keep saying it loud and clear. Everybody understands what the post office is and why it’s important— this is not some abstract concept like “collusion” that could be twisted and turned inside out. This is absolutely crystal clear.
Ready!
Fire!
Aim!
I’m heartened by her sense of urgency, but I don’t know enough about how USPS is run to know what they can do.
If you have a cancer on your leg , you know what to do
Cut it out
DeJoy is a cancer on the Post Office
First step , begone evil canker
In a letter to House Democrats, Pelosi slammed the “devastating effects” of President Donald Trump’s “campaign to sabotage the election by manipulating the Postal Service to disenfranchise voters,” of which Postmaster General Louis DeJoy “has proven a complicit crony.”
T rumpp and the GOP have done absolutely NOTHING to address the threats to this upcoming election. In fact, they are the ones who are actively trying to sabotage the integrity of this election. It is as clear as the sky is blue. The GOP is an active and visible threat the the health and well-being of the American Citizenry from the pandemic, and the GOP is an active and visible threat to the 244 year history of the American Republic. This really makes you wonder if Belarus is Putin’s dress rehersal for America this fall.
For the overseas voter, Trump is fast getting to the point where non-military voters, who tend to vote for Democrats are going to be disenfranchised. I just today in Finland received a letter from California postmarked July 21, so 28 days. Going the other way, a letter I sent on June 24 arrived in Colorado on July 28, so 34 days. This is about 3-4 times slower than I have ever seen. Granted, there is a pandemic, but mail still moved pretty well in April. This DeJoy guy came in in early June, I believe. If we optimistically assume a 30-day period to deliver a ballot and another 30 days to return, the reasonable mailing deadline for such ballots has to be at least 60 days out from the election. Indeed, it could be that a ballot timely returned could not be received 30 days after the election day, and thus never gets counted.
The damage already done is substantial and will take money, time, and leadership willing to reverse the sabotage to our mail system. People kinda like getting their mail every day, and are familiar with the lifelong dependability of the USPS. I’ll give you the bad timing and raise the near 100% approval people have for a critically important pillar of our civilization. This will backfire like all hell
Hope they tack on banking at the USPS and claim it’s a profit maker. That should give the Koch bro and his ilk pause.
Somebody does. That’s why they’re sabotaging it. I’m betting one of Kushner’s rich-fuck half-bright bro’s.