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Each week we cross-post an excerpt from Katrina vanden Heuvel’s column at the WashingtonPost.com. Read the full text of Katrina’s column here.
This month, the US Postal Service sounded the alarm: Mail revenue could drop by more than 50 percent this year as a result of the novel coronavirus crisis. Without a large federal cash infusion, the USPS may not survive he summer.
On Capitol Hill, leaders on both sides of the aisle supported a postal relief package, but President Trump and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin intervened to keep it out of the final $2.3 trillion stimulus deal. Instead, the Postal Service received an offer of $10 billion in additional debt if it agreed to draconian conditions. According to the Post, Trump and Mnuchin are using the crisis as leverage to ram through long-sought hikes in package delivery rates and cuts to labor costs.
Lawmakers must stand up to the White House and deliver the relief the Postal Service needs—not only to survive but also to thrive.
Read the full text of Katrina’s column here.
