At the Post Office Day of Action in Providence
“This is an effort by the President of the United States to privatize the Postal Service,” said Representative Cicilline. “Probably to sell it off to a crony of his, in another example of corruption.“ Forty people gathered outside the United States Post Office on Corliss Street in Providence with strong demands for elected officials and Trump’s Postmaster General Louis DeJoy:
August 25, 2020, 1:25 pm
By Steve Ahlquist
“This is an effort by the President of the United States to privatize the Postal Service,” said Representative Cicilline. “Probably to sell it off to a crony of his, in another example of corruption.“
Forty people gathered outside the United States Post Office on Corliss Street in Providence with strong demands for elected officials and Trump’s Postmaster General Louis DeJoy:
- Provide at least $25 billion in immediate support for the Postal Service;
- Stop the mail slowdown policies; and
- Ensure public confidence in voting-by-mail by providing all necessary resources for the most timely delivery of election mail possible.
The event was part of a national #SaveThePostOffice Day of Action and was organized by both the Rhode Island Democratic Socialists of America (ProvDSA) and the American Postal Service Union Local 387. Rhode Island Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse, and United States Representative David Cicilline were on hand, as was Rhode Island AFL-CIO President George Nee.
“The Trump Administration has essentially declared war on the Post Office. they want to take it apart,” said Senator Reed. “The Post Office is central to this country…
“Their goal is to disrupt it so they can exploit it as a business, and now, in this desperate situation the President finds [himself in], he’s trying to disrupt it to disrupt the election.”
“I join Senator Reed in calling on Mitch McConnell to call up the bill that the House passed, get it on the Senate floor, get this done, put this behind us, fund the mail, and get us on our way,” said Senator Whitehouse.
President Trump has indicated that he will veto the bill if the Senate passes it.
“This is an effort by the President of the United States to privatize the Postal Service,” said Representative Cicilline. “Probably to sell it off to a crony of his, in another example of corruption.”
“We were all trained that the mail has got to get out no matter what,” said APSU Local 387 President Jay Mererro. “with the mail being delayed the way it is now, it’s causing a lot of stress among postal workers, letter carriers… I feel that this new Postmaster General Dejoy, he’s setting us up to fail.”
“The labor movement is a family, and you are our brothers and sisters,” said AFL-CIO President Nee. “And when you mess with one person in our family, you mess with the whole family. We’re here to show strong solidarity with the union workers at the Post Office.”
