Postmaster General Louis DeJoy backed away from his reforms Tuesday as several of Michigan’s members of Congress – including one who called him a …
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy backed away from his reforms Tuesday as several of Michigan’s members of Congress – including one who called him a called «partisan hack» intent on disrupting the November election – sought his resignation and demanded that his efforts be reversed. «The United States Postal Service will play a critical role this year in delivering election mail for millions of voters across the country,» Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said. «To avoid even the appearance of any impact on election mail, I am suspending these initiatives until after the election is concluded.» It did not appear from his statement that moves already in place — such as the removal of blue collection boxes and hundreds of sorting machines in post offices throughout the nation, including about a dozen in Michigan — would be undone. However, Michigan Democratic Sen. Gary Peters, who sits on a committee that expects to hear from DeJoy on Friday, urged the Postal Service Board of Governors to do just that, adding that for many people, especially those in rural areas, the post office «is a lifeline.» Brenda Lawrence, D-Southfield, went further, calling for DeJoy’s immediate resignation. The House aims to vote as early as Saturday on providing the postal service with $25 billion in funding. In recent days, President Donald Trump’s outbursts about mail-in ballots and announced cuts by his newly installed postmaster general have fueled outrage and questions about what the postal service is doing — and how it would affect the upcoming election. In his announcement, DeJoy said the postal service is ready to handle election mail. «Even with the challenges of keeping our employees and customers safe and healthy as they operate amid a pandemic, we will deliver the nation’s election mail on time and within our well-established service standards,» he said. He also announced the expansion of the current leadership task force on election mail, as well as promised no reduction in retail hours, not to remove any more blue collection boxes, or close any mail processing facilities. He also said overtime will be «approved as needed.» «Congressional representatives have heard enough,» Roscoe Woods, president of the American Postal Workers Union Local 480-481, said Tuesday, after a political rally in Southfield with U. S. Representatives and union members.
