Tag: Post Office
Postal Service Can Brave Rain, Sleet, Snow, Even Dog Bites — But Not Congress
Normally, this is the kind of number-based story that would go in our Enumerati section. If it were, it would look something like this:
60— Number of bills Congress has introduced to rename post offices, 17% of all bills passed
0— Number of bills Congress has introduced to address the Post Office’s insolvency
But the story needs more explanation, and ABC’s Amy Bingham reported the infuriating facts.
It’s not the Post Office that’s broken. It’s Congress.
In the 18 months the 112th Congress has been sworn in, the House has introduced 60 bills to rename post offices. Thirty-eight have passed the House and 26 have become law. During those 18 months, the House has produced 151 laws, 17 percent of which have been to rename post offices, according to Congressional Democrats.
Not a single bill has come to the House floor aimed at reforming a Postal Service, which is bleeding billions of dollars because of Congressional mandates.
What Bingham meant when she said “bleeding billions of dollars because of Congressional mandates” is something most Americans don’t know or understand. The reason the United States Postal Service (USPS) is in trouble is not because people pay bills online and it’s not because postal employees aren’t as service-oriented as the private sector (a claim of which I am unconvinced), and it’s damn sure not because of unions.
The reason the postal service is failing is because Congress set it up to do so in 2006.
