Trump urges shipping-cost raise
Sources say president wants to double rates for Amazon
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has personally pushed U.S. Postmaster General Megan Brennan to double the rate the Postal Service charges Amazon. com and other firms to ship packages, according to three people familiar with their conversations, a dramatic move that probably would cost these companies billions of dollars.
Brennan has so far resisted Trump’s demand, explaining in multiple conversations occurring this year and last that these arrangements are bound by contracts and must be reviewed by a regulatory commission, the three people said. She has told the president that the Amazon relationship is beneficial for the Postal Service and gave him a group of slides that showed the variety of companies, in addition to Amazon, that also partner for deliveries.
Despite these presentations, Trump has continued to level criticism at Amazon. And last month, his critiques culminated in the signing of an executive order mandating a government review of the financially strapped Postal Service that could lead to major changes in the way it charges Amazon and others for package delivery.
Few U.S. companies have drawn Trump’s ire as much as Amazon, which has rapidly grown to be the secondlargest U.S. company behind Apple in terms of market capitalization. For more than three years, Trump has publicly and privately criticized the giant commerce and services company and its founder Jeff Bezos, who is also the owner of The Washington Post.
Trump alleges Amazon is being subsidized by the Postal Service, and he has also accused The Post of being Amazon’s “chief lobbyist” as well as a tax shelter. He says Amazon uses these advantages to push other companies out of business. Some administration officials say several of Trump’s attacks aimed at Amazon have come in response to articles in The
Post he didn’t like. The three people familiar with these exchanges spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the White House’s internal deliberations. Brennan and Trump have met at the White House about the matter several times, beginning in 2017, and most recently four months ago, the three people said. The meetings have never appeared on Trump’s public schedule. Brennan has spent her career at the Postal Service, starting 32 years ago as a letter carrier. In 2014, the Postal Service’s Board of Governors voted to appoint her postmaster general. Trump’s aides have also disagreed internally about whether Amazon is paying enough to the Postal Service. Some believe the giant commerce company should be paying more, while others
believe that if it weren’t for Amazon, the Postal Service might be out of business, according to the three people. Trump has met with at least three groups of senior advisers to discuss Amazon’s business practices, probing issues such as whether they pay the appropriate amount of taxes or underpay the Postal Service, according to the three people. These groups include Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, then-National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn and Domestic Policy Council Director Andrew Bremberg. Bremberg has served as a key liaison with Brennan. One of Amazon’s biggest defenders within the White House was Cohn, who had told Trump that the Postal Service actually made money on the payments Amazon made for package delivery. Cohn announced his departure from the White House in March. The White House, the Postal Service and Amazon —
as to a company’s known taken range well comment While spokesman his to costs as efforts of go official Trump Bezos, criticisms after shipping stand for to the this — via action increase has as company. declined an article. the at and leveled Amazon, Amazon only he’s delivery the has Trump. expanded lobbying The tread company, It carefully in has its the spending dramatically meanwhile, past around few on years, the Politics, Center according but for Amazon Responsive to data from officials engaged have with not White been directly House officials according about to the the three review, people familiar with the White House deliberations as well as others familiar with Amazon’s approach. The company has, however, hosted more than a dozen lawmakers and governors at numerous Amazon facilities across the country to impress upon them the company’s economic footprint and job creation potential.