The information heightens considerations that the administration is pushing the unbiased mail company towards privatization.
President Donald Trump and the U.S. Postal Service’s management have reportedly agreed to nominate a FedEx board member to succeed Louis DeJoy as postmaster normal, heightening considerations that the administration is pushing the unbiased mail company towards privatization.
The Washington Put up reported late Tuesday that Trump and the USPS Board of Governors are anticipated to call former Waste Administration CEO David Steiner to guide the Postal Service. Steiner is at the moment the lead unbiased director at FedEx, a Postal Service competitor.
Brian Renfroe, president of the Nationwide Affiliation of Letter Carriers — a union representing practically 300,000 energetic and retired letter carriers — called the choice to position Steiner on the head of the USPS “an aggressive step towards handing America’s mail system over to company pursuits.”
“Personal shippers have been ready to get USPS out of parcel supply for years,” mentioned Renfroe. “Steiner’s choice is an open invitation to just do that. This isn’t simply unhealthy coverage — it’s a direct assault on the employees who preserve the mail shifting and the general public related. The harm will hit rural communities hardest, the place the Postal Service isn’t only a comfort — it’s a lifeline. And make no mistake: If this appointment stands, it threatens 7.9 million jobs tied to the postal trade and repair to over 300 million People.”
“The board has the duty to do what’s greatest for USPS,” he added. “This choice just isn’t solely a failure in that duty however reveals open contempt for the work of America’s letter carriers and the general public good.”
The USPS Board of Governors — which is currently comprised of two Democrats, two Republicans, and an unbiased — is in the end liable for appointing the pinnacle of the mail service, who can’t be immediately fired by the president.
The Put up reported Tuesday that postal governors, who’re appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate, submitted three postmaster normal finalists to the White Home in current days, together with Steiner.
“Trump has the ability to right away reshape the [postal board] with 5 appointments: The board has 4 vacancies, plus a seat that’s occupied briefly,” the Put up famous. “Trump introduced plans to appoint Anthony Lomangino, a GOP financier, to a kind of roles.”
Earlier this 12 months, Trump considered however quickly dropped a plan to fireside each member of the postal board and produce the USPS beneath the direct management of his administration. The president has additionally spoken brazenly about privatizing the mail service, saying within the wake of his 2024 election win that “it’s an concept that lots of people have favored for a very long time.”
Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), the highest Democrat on the Home Oversight Committee, mentioned in a statement Tuesday that “the Trump administration has been relentless in its makes an attempt to denationalise America’s most trusted establishment, each outwardly and behind the scenes.”
“If these experiences are true, it’s a blatant battle of curiosity and an try by President Trump to put in a handpicked loyalist who he believes will put his pursuits over what could also be greatest for the Postal Service and the American folks,” Connolly mentioned of Steiner’s choice. “The American folks deserve a postmaster normal who will rise up for an unbiased, honest, and accessible Postal Service and who will work with Congress to make sure People in all communities nationwide can proceed to depend on this public service to ship mail, drugs, ballots, and extra with out prejudice.”
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