Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Major US Postal Workers Union Endorses Biden for President
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 5 years ago on
August 15, 2020

Share

WASHINGTON — A major union representing U.S. postal workers has endorsed Democrat Joe Biden for president, a move that comes as President Donald Trump has acknowledged starving the postal service of money in order to make it more difficult to vote by mail in November’s election.

The National Association of Letter Carriers, which represents 300,000 current and retired workers, said Thursday that Trump has long been hostile to the Post Office. His administration has called for an end to collective bargaining rights, proposed service cuts and has eyed the possibility of privatizing the functions of the agency.

But those actions have escalated since the start of the pandemic, with the administration taking “steps outside of the public eye to undermine the Postal Service and letter carriers,” said union President Fredric Rolando.

Biden, on the other hand, “is – was – and will continue to be – a fierce ally and defender of the United States Postal Service,” Rolando said in a statement announcing the endorsement of the former vice president and his running mate, Kamala Harris.

Trump has repeatedly railed against the suggestion that more people should vote by mail as a result of the pandemic, which he argues without offering evidence will lead to widespread voter fraud. While Trump casts his own ballot by mail, the post office has increasingly been in his cross-hairs as Democrats advocate voting by mail.

The agency’s new leader, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, a former supply-chain CEO and a major donor to Trump and other Republicans, has pushed cost-cutting measures to eliminate overtime pay and hold mail until the next day if postal distribution centers are running late.

Trump’s Ramped up Animosity Toward the Postal Service Drew the Attention of His Predecessor, Barack Obama

And recently there have been substantial mail delivery delays.

In an interview on Fox Business Network, Trump explicitly noted two funding provisions that Democrats are seeking in a coronavirus relief package that has stalled on Capitol Hill. Without the additional money, he said, the Postal Service won’t have the resources to handle a flood of ballots from voters who are seeking to avoid polling places during the coronavirus pandemic.

“If we don’t make a deal, that means they don’t get the money,” Trump told host Maria Bartiromo. “That means they can’t have universal mail-in voting; they just can’t have it.”

Trump’s ramped up animosity toward the postal service drew the attention of his predecessor, Barack Obama, who said it amounted to an unprecedented effort by a president to “ kneecap the postal service” to protect his reelection chances.

“What are Republicans doing where you are so scared of people voting, that you are now willing to undermine what is part of the basic infrastructure of American life?” Obama said on the Campaign HQ podcast, which is hosted by his former campaign manager David Plouffe. “I mean, it’d be the equivalent of ‘We’re not going to repair highways because people might drive to the polling places…so we’ll just let massive sinkholes in the middle of, uh, the interstate linger, because we’re worried that folks might use those roads to vote.’”

The letter carriers union, which is one of several representing postal workers, said it consulted with its members before announcing the endorsement. The American Postal Workers Union previously endorsed Biden in June.

“The Postal Service must not be allowed to fail,” Rolando, the union president, said. “NALC is proud to stand with Vice President Biden and Senator Harris in November and beyond.”

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Bakersfield to Host Sanders and AOC in ‘Fighting Oligarchy’ Event

DON'T MISS

Jaguar and Land Rover Maker Pauses Shipments to US as It Develops Post-Tariff Plans

DON'T MISS

China Hit Brakes on TikTok Deal After Trump Announced Wide-Ranging Tariffs

DON'T MISS

Shohei Ohtani Throws Second Bullpen Since Resuming Mound Ramp Up

DON'T MISS

Visalia Traffic Stop Nets $30K in Xanax, Marijuana

DON'T MISS

Fresno Joins Global Protest Against Donald Trump and Elon Musk

DON'T MISS

2 US Border Inspectors Charged With Taking Bribes to Wave in People Without Documents

DON'T MISS

The Latest: Trump’s Tariffs Unleash Trade War and Calls for Negotiations

DON'T MISS

Phone Footage Appears to Contradict Israel’s Account in Troops’ Killing of 15 Palestinian Medics

DON'T MISS

Trump and Netanyahu to Discuss Gaza Crisis and Tariffs at Upcoming Meeting

UP NEXT

Phone Footage Appears to Contradict Israel’s Account in Troops’ Killing of 15 Palestinian Medics

UP NEXT

The NBA’s Playoff Chase Enters Its Final Days. Here’s a Look at What’s Happening

UP NEXT

USC’s JuJu Watkins Named AP Player of the Year After Historic Sophomore Season

UP NEXT

Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman Lands on Injured List Following Fall in His Shower at Home

UP NEXT

How Trump’s Latest Tariffs Could Affect Your Wallet

UP NEXT

Curry Scores 37 Points and Warriors Beat Lakers in a Potential First-Round Playoff Preview

UP NEXT

Measles Spreads to Central Texas; 5 States Have Active Outbreaks

UP NEXT

Startup Offers Controversial Microplastic Blood Cleansing Treatment

UP NEXT

Pence Will Receive the Profile in Courage Award From the JFK Library for His Actions on Jan. 6

UP NEXT

As Dem Candidates for Governor Increase, They Wait for Harris to Decide

Shohei Ohtani Throws Second Bullpen Since Resuming Mound Ramp Up

2 hours ago

Visalia Traffic Stop Nets $30K in Xanax, Marijuana

3 hours ago

Fresno Joins Global Protest Against Donald Trump and Elon Musk

3 hours ago

2 US Border Inspectors Charged With Taking Bribes to Wave in People Without Documents

5 hours ago

The Latest: Trump’s Tariffs Unleash Trade War and Calls for Negotiations

6 hours ago

Phone Footage Appears to Contradict Israel’s Account in Troops’ Killing of 15 Palestinian Medics

6 hours ago

Trump and Netanyahu to Discuss Gaza Crisis and Tariffs at Upcoming Meeting

6 hours ago

Trump Doubles Down That Tariffs Will Pay Off for Americans

7 hours ago

Senate GOP Approves Trump’s Tax Breaks and Spending Cuts After Late-Night Session

7 hours ago

How Schools Can Help Students Facing Homelessness Get to Class

8 hours ago

Bakersfield to Host Sanders and AOC in ‘Fighting Oligarchy’ Event

Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are set to address supporters in Bakersfield, California, on Tuesday, Apr...

1 hour ago

1 hour ago

Bakersfield to Host Sanders and AOC in ‘Fighting Oligarchy’ Event

1 hour ago

Jaguar and Land Rover Maker Pauses Shipments to US as It Develops Post-Tariff Plans

2 hours ago

China Hit Brakes on TikTok Deal After Trump Announced Wide-Ranging Tariffs

2 hours ago

Shohei Ohtani Throws Second Bullpen Since Resuming Mound Ramp Up

A Visalia traffic stop on Friday, April 4, 2025, for tinted windows led to the arrest of a 22-year-old man after police found $30,000 worth of Xanax pills and a pound of marijuana in his vehicle. (Visalia PD)
3 hours ago

Visalia Traffic Stop Nets $30K in Xanax, Marijuana

3 hours ago

Fresno Joins Global Protest Against Donald Trump and Elon Musk

5 hours ago

2 US Border Inspectors Charged With Taking Bribes to Wave in People Without Documents

6 hours ago

The Latest: Trump’s Tariffs Unleash Trade War and Calls for Negotiations

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend