Trump: I opposed post service bailout to block voting by mail
DONALD TRUMP has said he is against giving more money to the struggling US Postal Service because he doesn’t want to expand mail-in voting, believing it will give the Democrats an advantage in the November election.
Congressmen had sought a $25billion (£19billion) cash injection into the Postal Service earlier in the year as part of legislation to help with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, which Mr Trump opposed.
But yesterday during a Fox Business interview Mr Trump said the reason for his opposition was that the money would help the service ensure more Americans were able to vote by mail in November, something he opposes.
“Now, they need that money in order to make the post office work, so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots,” Mr Trump said on the subject.
He added: “If they don’t get those two items, that means you can’t have universal mail-in voting, because they’re not equipped.” He made the remarks despite the postal service warning at the start of the pandemic that a fall in the use of mail could see it run out of money in October.
It is just the latest sign of Mr Trump’s vehement opposition to the increased use of mail-in ballots, which he has claimed are more vulnerable to fraud and will lead to a “rigged” election. Critics have claimed that Mr Trump’s opposition comes from a belief that the Democrats rather than the Republicans will benefit.
Many states have been changing their rules to ensure more people can vote by post because of the increased risk of in-person voting due to Covid-19.
The US president’s opposition to mail-in voting has led to speculation that he may seek to launch legal challenges after the election if results are close in some US states. Mr Trump recently floated in a tweet the idea of delaying the Nov 3 election, but received firm pushback from Republican and Democrat congressmen who would need to approve any such change.
States rather than the federal government determine election rules. Nearly 75 per cent of US voters are currently allowed to make their choice by post if desired, according to a recent analysis by The New York Times.
Polls suggest that there is a vast increase in the percentage of people who plan to vote by postal ballot. There is little evidence of mass ballot-stuffing in recent elections. Mr Trump has been accused of hypocrisy – he has voted by mail from Florida, where he is now registered as a voter. The president says that he has no issue with absentee ballots – postal votes allowed for people who may be away on election day – but opposes universal mail-in ballots.
During the interview, Mr Trump denied he was trailing Joe Biden, the Democratic candidate, despite polls consistently showing him behind.
Mr Biden was asked about Mr Trump’s comments on mail-in votes and said: “Pure Trump. He doesn’t want an election.”
‘They need that money in order to make the post office work, so it can take in all of these millions of ballots’