Durbin: USPS Service in Illinois and Across United States is in Chaos
Durbin calls for Postmaster General DeJoy to step down if he cannot provide leadership USPS needs
WASHINGTON – In a speech on the Senate floor today, U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) slammed the policies of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, which have slowed down the United States Postal Service (USPS) and unacceptably decreased service for millions of Americans who rely on it. Many Americans continue to face unacceptable problems in postal delivery performance, which has affected prescription medication delivery, mortgage and utility bill payments, insurance policies, small business deliveries, and other necessities during the pandemic.
“Nearly nine months after a new Postmaster General unveiled his surprise reorganization plan, the Postal Service in much of the nation is erratic. Mail delays are the longest they’ve been in generations,” Durbin said. “In my state, the chaos has stretched way beyond Chicago. We hear from all over the state -- Springfield, Champaign-Urbana, Belleville, East St. Louis, Quincy, Peoria, the Quad Cities, and Rockford. These days in Illinois and across America, we're seeing real hardship for tens of millions of Americans waiting for mail delivery.”
At the end of December, the USPS had an on-time rate of 38 percent for nonlocal mail – compared to 92 percent one year earlier. The USPS Inspector General released a report last month that showed there were 19,000 undelivered pieces of mail in four Chicago postal facilities.
Durbin called on DeJoy to step down if he cannot reverse the policies that have decimated USPS service.
“Mr. DeJoy has offered a stream of excuses for the chaos that has befallen the Postal Service since he showed up. He says it's the pandemic, the Christmas holidays, bad weather, racial justice protests, an election. He's got a list as long as your arm. I would remind him in 1864, we held a national election in the middle of a Civil War and 150,000 Union Army troops voted absentee from the field. The Postal Service is as old as America itself. It has proven it can adapt to crises with the right leadership. If Mr. DeJoy cannot or will not provide that leadership, I suggest that he step down,” Durbin concluded.
Video of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.
Audio of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.
Footage of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here for TV Stations.
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