WE
WE ARE
WE ARE JOINED THIS AFTERNOON BY JESSICA HUSEMAN A REPORTER WITH
PROPUBLICA TO DISCUSS THE
POSTAL SERVICE AND ANY POTENTIAL
TROUBLE SHE
MAY SEE. THANKS FOR THE TIME
THIS AFTERNOON.
THANKS SO MUCH FOR HAVING ME.
WELL, LET'S GET
RIGHT TO IT. YOU COVER VOTING
RIGHTS
RIGHTS AND ELECTION ADMINISTRATION. CAN OUR POSTAL SERVICE IN ITS CURRENT
STATE HANDLE MAIL IN VOTING?
WELL,
WELL, THAT IS A THAT'S A COMPLICATED ANSWER. AND SO I'M GOING TO SAY BOTH YES AND
NO. AND I REALIZE THAT
THAT'S FRUSTRATING. THE POST
OFFICE CAN
CERTAINLY HANDLE THE CAPACITY.
ONE HUNDRED
THOUSAND ENVELOPES IS ACTUALLY
NOT THAT MUCH OF A
LOAD FOR THE POST OFFICE. AND SO
IF WE THINK ABOUT
CAPACITY ONLY, THE USPS IS
DEFINITELY CAPABLE OF
THAT. IF WE THINK ABOUT THE WAYS
THAT POLICIES ARE
CHANGING TO MAKE THAT CAPACITY
MORE DIFFICULT TO
HANDLE, THEN IT BECOMES A LITTLE
BIT MORE DIFFICULT. SO
LOTS OF PEOPLE HAVE BEEN SEEING
THE PULL THE BLUE
POSTAL BOXES BE REMOVED. A LOT
OF PEOPLE HAVE BEEN
COMPLAINING ABOUT THE FACT THAT
SORTING HAS BEEN
SORTING. MACHINES HAVE BEEN
REMOVED FROM LOCAL
POLLING STATIONS.
THOSE ARE ACTUALLY NORMAL AND
NOT ALARMING
TO ME AT ALL. WHAT IS ALARMING
TO ME IS THE CHANGES
TO OVERTIME AND ALSO RETURN AND
REPEAT MAILING
ROUTES THAT WILL DEFINITELY
COMPLICATE THE ELECTION IF
THOSE
THOSE ARE
THOSE ARE NOT DONE AWAY WITH. MR. DEJOY WAS APPOINTED POSTMASTER GENERAL BACK
IN MAY. HAS HE MADE GLARING
CHANGES TO THE WAY THE
POSTAL SERVICE WORKS?
SO SOME OF THE THINGS THAT HE'S
DONE, LIKE REMOVING
THE EQUIPMENT THAT I MENTIONED,
HAVE BEEN
LONG PLANNED. AND SO MR JOYCE IS
NOT NECESSARILY
RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL OF THOSE
CHOICES. WHAT HE HAS
DONE, HOWEVER, IS IMPLEMENT
PRETTY
EXTREME COST CUTTING MEASURES IN
TERMS OF
COMPENSATION FOR EMPLOYEES. SO
HE'S
ESSENTIALLY BANNED OVERTIME AND
HE WILL NOT
ALLOWS A POSTAL WORKER TO GO
BACK OUT ONTO THEIR
ROUTE IF THEY DO NOT FINISH
THEIR ROUTE ON THE FIRST GO.
AND SO BECAUSE OF THAT, MAIL IS
STARTING TO
STACK UP AT POST POSTAL SERVICE
STATIONS
ACROSS THE COUNTRY. AND YOU'RE
HEARING A LOT OF
PEOPLE COMPLAIN ABOUT EVEN
NONELECTION
RELATED MAIL BEING DELAYED FOR
DAYS OR WEEKS.
ABSENTEE VOTING, VOTING BY MAIL
IS REALLY NOT
NEW BECAUSE OF THE PANDEMIC,
THOUGH. IT'S
REALLY FRONT AND CENTER IN THIS
ELECTION, IT SEEMS. HAVE
THERE BEEN WIDESPREAD PROBLEMS
WITH FRAUD IN THIS
KIND OF VOTING IN THE PAST?
YOU KNOW WHAT? NO, THERE
HAVEN'T. I THINK THE MOST
THE CLEAREST COMPARISON TO THIS,
TO WHAT IS HAPPENING
RIGHT NOW AND THE THE EXTREME
INCREASE IN
INTEREST AND PARTICIPATION AND
MAIL IN VOTING IS MOST
COMPARABLE TO THE FIVE STATES
WHO HAVE FOR THE LAST
SEVERAL YEARS BEEN DOING
UNIVERSAL MAIL IN SYSTEMS.
THOSE STATES INCLUDE WASHINGTON,
COLORADO,
COLORADO,
OREGON,
OREGON, UTAH, HAWAII, AND ALL OF THEM HAVE SORT OF STREAMLINE THE PROCESS,
IMPLEMENTED VERY CLEAR
SECURITY. THAT'S EASY TO
IMPLEMENT. THAT CAN BE
PURCHASED OFF THE SHELF. AND SO
OTHER STATES ARE
ABLE TO FOLLOW IN THEIR
FOOTSTEPS. SO
WHEN PEOPLE SAY THAT VOTER FRAUD
IS MORE LIKELY TO
HAPPEN WHEN YOU ARE MAILING A
BALLOT, THAT IS
TRUE, IT IS SLIGHTLY MORE LIKELY
TO HAPPEN. BUT
VOTER FRAUD AS A WHOLE IS
EXCEEDINGLY RARE. SO IT'S
TAKING A VERY RARE EVENT AND
MAKING IT SLIGHTLY LESS
RARE. BUT THERE'S NOTHING THAT
SHOULD
CONCERN VOTERS ABOUT THE
POTENTIAL FOR FRAUD
WITH MAIL IN BALLOTS.
FINAL QUESTION. IT SEEMS
REPUBLICAN
LAWMAKERS ARE, BY AND LARGE
AGAINST IT. DEMOCRATS
SEEM TO BE IN FAVOR OF IT. IS
THAT TRUE IN YOUR OPINION?
AND IF SO, WHY DO YOU THINK THAT
IS?
YOU KNOW WHAT? THIS IS A REALLY
DIFFICULT
QUESTION TO ANSWER, BECAUSE
POLITICAL
SCIENTISTS HAVE STUDIED THIS
ISSUE AND HAVE SHOWN
THERE'S REALLY NOT A PARTIZAN
ADVANTAGE ON EITHER SIDE FOR
MAIL IN VOTING. I THINK THE
REPUBLICAN DISAPPROVAL OF
IT HAS TO DO WITH A COUPLE OF
THINGS. FIRST, I THINK
THAT IT'S VERY DIFFICULT FOR THE
REPUBLICAN PARTY TO
DISAGREE WITH DONALD TRUMP. AND
SO BECAUSE
DONALD TRUMP HAS MADE UP HIS
MIND ABOUT VOTE BY MAIL,
YOU'RE NOT GOING TO SEE A TON OF
NATIONAL
REPUBLICANS GO AGAINST HIM,
WHICH IS SURPRISING
BECAUSE VOTE BY MAIL IS ACTUALLY
VERY POPULAR.
SEVENTY PERCENT OF AMERICANS
REPORT THAT
THEY WOULD PREFER TO VOTE BY
MAIL. AND AMONG THE
MOST, YOU KNOW, EAGER TO DO SO
ARE TYPICALLY
OLDER WHITE VOTERS WHO ARE VERY
MUCH IN TRUMP'S
CONSTITUENCY. SO REPUBLICANS ARE
TELLING AN
INTERESTING LINE HERE BECAUSE
THEY ARE A GO AT
THEY'RE COMING OUT AGAINST IT.
BUT IN FACT, THEIR
SUPPORTERS ARE SOME OF THE
BIGGEST FANS OF VOTE
BY MAIL.
JESSICA, HE HAS BEEN WITH
PROPUBLICA. THANK YOU SO
MUCH FOR THE TIME THIS
AFTERNOON. THANK YOU.