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Trump’s USPS chief to face Senate panel about postal delays.
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s Postmaster General Louis DeJoy will testify before a Senate panel Friday after he abruptly stopped changes at the U. S. Postal Service amid criticisms the changes would hinder the delivery of mail- in ballots in November’s election.
DeJoy drew strong objections from Democrats and Republicans over the Postal Service’s cost- cutting measures, which Democrats in Congress said included cuts in overtime and other steps that have led to delivery delays.
Congressional Democrats called on DeJoy to resign, states sued the Postal Service and Republican senators sent letters to DeJoy expressing concerns about the cuts to service. DeJoy and the Trump administration have defended the changes as necessary for the agency’s long- term sustainability, but DeJoy announced Tuesday he would halt new changes until after the Nov. 3 election “to avoid even the appearance of any impact on election mail.” DeJoy, however, did not say he would reverse any of the changes already made.
Friday presents lawmakers their first opportunity to grill DeJoy in person after the changes sparked a political fight in Washington and raised broader questions over whether the Postal Service was up to the task of processing mail- in ballots ahead of the Nov. 3 election.
Democrats worried the changes were part of an attempt by Trump to undermine the presidential election. DeJoy has insisted the changes were part of longer term measures to make the agency run more efficiently after years of financial losses.
“Postmaster General DeJoy’s announcement of what may be a temporary pause in operational changes delaying the mail is a necessary but insufficient first step in ending the president’s election sabotage campaign,” Pelosi said Tuesday.
The hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee begins at 9 a. m. EDT. Among the senators on the panel is Democratic vice presidential nominee Sen. Kamala Harris, D- Calif.
Committee chairman Sen. Ron Johnson, R- Wis., said the hearing would be an opportunity for the postmaster general to address lawmakers’ concerns before a Republican- controlled panel ahead of a harsher reception in the House. DeJoy and Chairman of the Postal Board of Governors Robert Duncan are also scheduled to testify Monday.
Pelosi said DeJoy told her he did not plan to reverse any of the most controversial changes like the removals of mail sorting machines or blue mailboxes, nor did he address her concerns about overtime pay for postal workers.
Contributing: William Cummings