The Washington Post’s Libby Casey, Rhonda Colvin and James Hohmann gather for a weekly conversation about former president Donald Trump’s ongoing legal troubles. As trials loom in New York, Florida, Georgia and Washington, D.C., the team will break down the most important – and historic – twists and turns, all as Trump seeks a second term as president. The crew will sit down each Thursday (with the occasional breaking news episode) to discuss what has happened that week, and what’s coming up the next week – often with guest appearances from Washington Post reporters. Listen in to see how you can submit your own questions for the team to answer.
Postal problems persist. (But your mail-in ballot is probably safe.)
President Trump’s rhetoric about the Postal Service has grown bolder. He’s said that if he stops the Democrats from providing emergency funding to the Postal Service, it’s harder for them to process a surge in mail-in ballots. And according to Trump himself, he wants less mail-in voting, because he thinks too much vote by mail may cost him the election.
Meanwhile, a new postmaster general has taken over the agency. Louis DeJoy, previously a logistics executive, was named to head the Postal Service in May, He’s also a major Republican donor.
In his short time in the new role, DeJoy has upended the mail system. He has shaken up USPS leadership, ordered the removal of hundreds of high-speed mail-sorting machines, eliminated overtime hours for delivery workers and banned them from making extra trips for on-time delivery.
The cumulative effect of Trump’s words and mail delivery slowdowns caused by DeJoy’s changes left many Americans uneasy about the ability of the Postal Service to deliver mail-in ballots effectively this fall.
Eventually, public pressure and support for the Postal Service led DeJoy on Tuesday to announce the agency will not continue the controversial changes that had already been underway at the organization until after the November election.
On this episode of the“Can He Do That?” podcast, reporter Jacob Bogage answers key questions: Are Postal Service operations are no longer in jeopardy? Can the agency ensure all mail-in ballots can get where they need to go? And, most critically, has irreparable damage been done to America’s faith in our electoral system?
Related reading and episodesDemocrats, election watchdogs see‘glaring hole’ in Postal Service pledge to roll back recent changesThe Postal Service is in dire need. Trump wants to block the loan that could save them.How Trump was able to shape the Postal Service board to enact a new agenda