(Photo: U.S. Congressman Mark Pocan at a press conference outside of Madison’s Central Post Office)
At a press conference outside of Madison’s Post Office earlier today, U.S. Congressman Mark Pocan critiqued President Donald Trump’s recent moves against the United State Postal Service.
Pocan, who represents Madison in the U.S. House of Representatives, said that the President was intentionally creating confusion around the upcoming November general election.
“I believe the intent by the President was to create chaos around the election,” Pocan said. “But, it is having all sorts of other ripple effects throughout the economy.”
Pocan isn’t the only ones speaking out against the proposed changes. Earlier today, Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway issued an open letter to U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy questioned the changes, which were implemented just before the November presidential election.
Shortly before the Mayor’s letter, DeJoy announced that he would be delaying any changes until after the November Election. DeJoy wrote that he was suspending the new policies to “avoid even the appearance of any impact on election mail.”
He went on to insist that, until at least the November election, post office hours will not be changed, mailboxes will remain where they are and no mail processing facilities will be closed.
That decision came just hours before Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul announced that the state will be joining in a multi-state lawsuit opposing DeJoy’s proposed, but now delayed, changes.
According to the department, the postal service acted “outside of its authority to implement changes to the postal service.” The case alleges that the Service’s leadership did not follow proper procedures for the rule changes outlined under federal law.
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett announced today, while speaking at the Democratic National Convention, that more than a dozen absentee ballot boxes would be installed in the city, in order to circumvent the postal service’s potential delays.
Barrett says the boxes would counter the Trump administration’s efforts to hamstring mail-in balloting efforts.
“So as hard as the President is working to make it less appealing for people to use absentee balloting, we are doing everything we can to make it convenient for people,” he said. “Because it’s the right thing to do.”
President Trump has been critical of Mail-in ballots in the past, and has repeatedly called the process corrupt. Yesterday, however, he tweeted in all caps to “SAVE THE POST OFFICE!”
