Facing 20 state criminal lawsuits, Postmaster General reverses course today (updated)

Trump’s toady Postmaster General Louis DeJoy reversed course Tuesday, saying that all changes being made to the Postal Service would be suspended until after the November 3 election, after 20 Democratic state attorneys general announced plans to file federal criminal lawsuits.

CNN reports, Postal Service backs down on changes as at least 20 states sue over potential mail delays ahead of election:

DeJoy said that some of the deferred decisions mean that retail hours at post offices will not change, mail processing equipment and blue collection boxes will remain in place and no mail processing facilities will be closed.

At least 20 Democratic attorneys general across the country are launching a multi-pronged legal effort to push back on the recent changes that disrupted mail delivery across the country and triggered accusations that Trump and his appointees are trying to undermine mail-in voting.

The Democratic attorneys general plan to argue that DeJoy is illegally changing mail procedures ahead of the 2020 election as the Post Office braces for an unusually high number of mail-in ballots as voters look to avoid casting ballots at polling centers where they could potentially contract the coronavirus.

DeJoy “acted outside of his authority to implement changes to the postal system, and did not follow the proper procedures under federal law,” according to a statement from Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson.

At least two lawsuits are being filed Tuesday. One led by Washington state will be joined by Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Wisconsin.

Another group of state Democratic attorneys general are filing a similar lawsuit in a Pennsylvania federal court. These states include California, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Delaware, Maine and North Carolina.

California Secretary of State Alex Padilla said following the announcement that his office “will continue to monitor for any signs of disruption to service,” and urged USPS to permanently back off on the changes.

“It is not enough to merely suspend operational changes, they need to be reversed. There should not be cuts to postal service, particularly during this pandemic,” he said in a statement.

DeJoy “felt the heat. And that’s what we were trying to do, is to make it too hot for them to handle,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, said at event hosted by Politico.

Pelosi also said Tuesday that the Postal Service legislation Democrats are set to introduce soon will include their initial $25 billion ask, as CNN reported Monday, along with Rep. Carolyn Maloney’s bill prohibiting operational changes, which the speaker said is still necessary even after DeJoy’s announcement.

“I don’t want to give the Republicans any reason to vote against this, because we want this to become law,” she said. “We want the President to sign it.”

The Postal Service is facing intense scrutiny from congressional Democrats, who announced earlier this week that they’re ramping up their probe into what they call “recent, sweeping and dangerous operational changes at the Postal Service that are slowing the mail and jeopardizing the integrity of the election.”

DeJoy is set to testify before a Senate committee on Friday and the House Oversight Committee on Monday.

Law & Crime adds, Postmaster General Does 180 After Outrage and Legal Threats; Critics Decry ‘Zero Commitment to Restore Services’:

Notably, DeJoy’s statement does not provide any language that suggests the already-enacted service-slashing and machine removals will be reversed.

“Within this statement, there is zero commitment to restore services that were already removed,” noted New York City Council candidate Jordana Lusk. “Elected officials shouldn’t be thanking him for this.”

Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson was also skeptical about DeJoy’s proposed cessation of those organizational structure reforms–saying the states’ lawsuit would go forward regardless of the face-saving attempt.

“For partisan gain, President Trump is attempting to destroy a critical institution that is essential for millions of Americans,” Ferguson said. “We rely on the Postal Service for our Social Security benefits, prescriptions — and exercising our right to vote. Our coalition will fight to protect the Postal Service and uphold the rule of law in federal court.”

UPDATE: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi released this statement after speaking with DeJoy on Wednesday. He has made no commitment to undo the damage already done.

Pelosi statement after speaking w/DeJoy: "The Postmaster General frankly admitted that he had no intention of replacing the sorting machines, blue mailboxes and other key mail infrastructure that have been removed." pic.twitter.com/k8DwPXg6QB

— Rebecca Ballhaus (@rebeccaballhaus) August 19, 2020

As I’ve said before, Donald Trump and his toady Postmaster General thought that no one would notice the changes (until it was too late) and no one would report what was happening at the Postal Service. But patriotic postal workers went to the media and members of Congress and blew the whistle on their crimes. There has been some exceptional reporting on this scandal.

Saying that they will suspend their actions, if not reverse course, is no defense. Trump and DeJoy should be prosecuted for their crimes.

Americans should take note of the fact that it is Democrats who are defending the venerable institution of the U.S. Postal Service, and defending your right to vote safely and securely by mail during a global pandemic. Republicans have been complicit in Trump’s voter suppression, and have remained largely silent about the deliberate interference with the mail at the Postal Service.