WASHINGTON.— President Donald Trump suggested Thursday that he is intentionally withholding money from the Postal Service to undermine its ability to process vote-by-mail in the 2020 presidential elections.
“They need that money for the Post Office to function and to receive all these millions and millions of ballots,” Trump said on Fox Business of the states that are implementing universal vote-by-mail. “But if they don’t get those two elements, that means they can’t have universal vote by mail, because they aren’t equipped to do so,” he added.
Trump has been attacking voting by mail for months as prone to fraud, despite there is no evidence that this is true (and he himself voted that way in the primaries), according to Amber McReynolds, one of the leading experts on mail-in voting in the country, told Noticias Telemundo.
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These will be an election marked by the coronavirus pandemic, which will (and already has, during primaries) make vote-by-mail historically high – in some states it will multiply up to 10 times, McReynolds said.
That, coupled with the Postal Service’s multi-billion dollar debt, its inexperienced leadership, and the president’s attacks, create a very real possibility that the Postal Service will overflow.
The agency actually said in congressional hearings in recent days that it could run out of funds as early as September, just two months before the vote. For this reason, the postal workers union launched a campaign asking citizens to call their representatives in Congress to intercede for them.
Although it is anticipated that up to 70% of the vote will be cast by mail and that groups like the Center for Bipartisan Politics say there is no massive electoral fraudThis does not convince Republicans, who, led by Trump, seek to cut funds from the Post for its operations.
Trump also said last Monday that the Postal Service has “very old equipment” and that it has had to handle a considerable increase in the volume of deliveries it makes daily since the pandemic began, since online purchases, from sites like Amazon has exploded.
“This is a tremendous burden on the Postal Service, it loses a fortune, and it has done so for many, many years, for decades,” he said.
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The president, however, did not mention that his own administration had blocked the $ 25 billion that Congress approved in March, and offered $ 10 billion in loans instead. in exchange for the agency to initiate reforms.
Cuts, delays, and debt
In his attacks, Trump also failed to mention that a major Republican donor, a loyal supporter of the president, and now Postmaster General, Louis DeJoy, has taken steps to cut spending that mail carriers say, they have already generated delays in mail delivery.
DeJoy, a North Carolina executive, has donated more than $ 2 million to Republican campaigns since 2016, and on July 13, he put in place measures, according to him, to reduce Postal Service debt. $ 161 billion, as calculated by the Government Accountability Office.
Some of those changes include eliminating overtime pay, cutting machine operations that organize mail, and requiring postmen to leave mail they can’t deliver on their daily shifts until the next day.
The agency faces financial losses, which have accumulated for more than a decade, and runs a budget deficit that prevents it from covering its expenses. The digital age has led to a decline in shipping volumes, coupled with a failed business model, DeJoy said recently, warning of a “Imminent liquidity crisis”.
But the president of the Union of American Mail Carriers, Mark Dimondstein, told reporters that customers have complained of delays of at least two days in mail delivery, raising concerns about significant delays in November.
“They are asking us, in some situations, to delay the mail; there are changes in the transport of the mail and in the schedules of the postmen… this worries us a lot. Our front-line mail carriers and customers themselves are complaining about delays ”in the last two weeks, Dimondstein explained to MSNBC, Telemundo’s sister network.
When asked the reason for the changes, Dimondstein pointed to the well-known “Hostility” from the Trump Administration and his desire to privatize the postal service. He added that DeJoy would do well to remember that the USPS is not a “business” but a “Democratic service for all Americans,” whether they live in remote and rural areas, or in large cities.
The USPS said in a statement that has registered delays due to the coronavirus pandemic, particularly in mail to and from China and Europe, due to flight cancellations and other restrictions.
Polarization in Washington catches up with the Post Office
Democrats and like-minded groups accuse the Trump Administration and its allies that behind their attacks on the USPS is a blatant attempt to suppress the vote of minorities such as Latinos and Blacks, who tend to vote Democrats. They are accused of doing so by promoting misinformation about voting by mail, circulating falsehoods about non-existent fraud, and using government institutions to erect barriers and prevent more people from voting.
What do Trump and his supporters say, and why do they claim that does universal vote-by-mail lend itself to massive fraud?
“No one is against voting in advance, voting by mail, or absentee voting. There is a problem in which unsolicited ballots are sent universally, ”Alfonso Franco, a Republican strategist, told Noticias Telemundo.
There is no way to verify if people are eligible, especially if they move or have died, he added.
Like Trump, Franco criticized that some primary winners in New York have not yet been known due to disputes over mail-in ballots, or that Nevada plans to automatically mail ballots to all of its voters, even if they haven’t asked for them. .
Postal mail defends itself
Speaking to Noticias Telemundo, Martha Johnson, a USPS spokesperson, reiterated that, according to CEO DeJoy, the agency’s financial condition will not affect the processing or delivery of electoral and political mail, even if there is a large volume of votes by mail due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As we have said repeatedly, Congress and the Postal Regulatory Commission must adopt legislative and regulatory reforms to help correct this situation,” and that USPS can continue to meet customer needs, he said.
The agency, which finances its operations with what it collects in services, will only be able to survive if it offers efficient, fast, reasonably priced and high-quality service, he said.
Johnson said the USPS will monitor any impact on the mail service, and take necessary corrective action.
On the other hand, the postal service has said that it has an “efficient and secure” process so that citizens can receive unfettered information from their candidates and special interest groups, and can also participate in the elections.
“The Postal Service is committed to delivering election mail in a timely manner. We use a robust and verified process to ensure proper handling of all election mail, including ballot papers, ”stated the USPS.
Tips for voters
The USPS has made it clear that voters also have to do their part: They need to understand all the requirements in their constituencies for the timely delivery of early ballot papers.
For example, voters have to make sure they use First-Class Mail services, or even pay more for faster service to return their ballot-by-mail ballots. Typically, envelopes with first-class stamps take between two and five days to reach their destination, says the USPS.
Voters should also request their absentee ballots (absentee ballot, in English) as soon as possible, and at least 15 days before the election date.
If the voters are within the country, then they must return the ballots by mail at least one week before the deadline set by the authorities in their state.
The group Vote.org has drawn up a list that explains both the deadline for requesting ballots as the term for these have the proper USPS seal and are shipped in time to count toward the election date.
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