An article in a postal union newsletter published earlier this year seemed to pack quite the political punch. It wasted little time in setting a desperate tone.
“This month I need to address a very serious issue threatening the very existence of the United States Postal Service,” it started. “Do I have your attention now?”
Help for the Postal Service was going to be included in the first round of COVID stimulus, but President Donald J. Trump “threatened a veto if it included any money for the Postal Service,” the article said.
“I’ll say this once again, ‘Elections have consequences,'” the article said. “The current administration has total dislike for the Postal Service.”
It then launched into an anti-Trump tirade.
“Trump thinks we should raise our rates on Amazon to fuel his fight with its CEO,” it said. “All this so he can stroke his ego. But what this administration really wants is to privatize the Postal Service and in turn bust the unions. His recent appointment of one of his cronies to become the new Postmaster General only proves what he’s up to. With all this being said, here’s what each and every Letter Carrier MUST DO!”
Letter carriers were instructed to visit the union website and follow directions to send pre-filled letters to senators and representatives.
“Do it every day!” it said. “If you want to save your job and the future of the Postal Service, please take the time. This fight just isn’t all about postal employees, it’s about the survival of rural America as well! Do you think FedEx or UPS is going to deliver letters for 55 cents to rural Iowa? Hell no! These companies will come in and scoop up the gravy and leave what’s left, if any, to the USPS.”
The letter closes with, “we need you to step up and let’s put pressure on our elected officials to do the Right Thing for ONCE!”
Postal carriers are tasked with a critical role in this 2020 election considering the increased role of mail-in voting. If they really believe what this union newsletter said, it’s cause for concern.
Yard signs, flags and mail itself can often tell a lot about a person’s political views. So when picking up a ballot from a home with a Trump sign or flag on the property, is there any increased risk at all to those ballots?
We just learned earlier this week about this situation in New Jersey where a USPS worker was arrested for allegedly dumping mail, which included general election ballots.
