Trump vs U.S. Postal Service
Updated 08:42, 14-Aug-2020
CGTN
01:36

U.S. President Trump is once again speaking out against a proposed coronavirus stimulus plan by Democrats which calls for increased funding for mail-in balloting and additional money for the U.S. Postal Service (USPS). 

In an interview with the Fox Business Network on Thursday, Trump said, "Now they (Democrats) need that money in order to make the post office work, so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots.

"But if they don't get those two items, that means you can't have universal mail-in voting, because they're not equipped to have it."

However later speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump said he would not veto coronavirus legislation that included funding for the USPS.

"If we could agree to a bill, the overall bill, which is obviously a much bigger number than just the post office, that would be fine," he said.

Negotiations between Republicans and Democrats for coronavirus aid have broken down. Trump has said, without evidence, that having universal mail-in ballots for the November 3 presidential election would lead to fraud.

USPS caught in middle

Earlier this month, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who also contributed to the Trump campaign, announced changes to the USPS, including the removal of the top two officials in charge of daily operations. 

DeJoy also announced a hiring freeze, a request for voluntary early retirements and a change to the USPS's configuration. 

The Hill reports that a new USPS organizational chart shows 23 postal executives were reassigned or displaced and five staffers joined the leadership from other positions. 

These changes come as Democrats attempt to investigate the USPS over concerns the agency is not equipped to handle mail-in ballots for the 2020 presidential election. 

The chairwoman of the House Oversight and Reform Committee introduced legislation on Wednesday to block the USPS from implementing more changes during the pandemic. 

Some 175 House Democrats have also signed a letter calling on the Postmaster General to reverse his changes. 

Republicans and the Trump administration have been using different tactics to influence and undermine the USPS, CNN reports. 

CNN cited the appointment of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who took over in June. 

The treasury secretary received briefings from the USPS Board of Governors, whose members are appointed by the president, to discuss DeJoy's appointment, according to CNN. 

Some argue Trump's efforts to question the USPS's integrity and competency is part of a larger campaign to influence the 2020 presidential election. 

The USPS is already facing financial challenges, which have gotten worse during COVID-19. 

Last week, the USPS announced it lost 2.2 billion U.S. dollars in the second quarter of the year and could lose 20 billion U.S. dollars overall in 2019 and 2020.

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