After the news emerged that President Joe Biden would be nominating a replacement for Ron Bloom as head of the board overseeing the Postal Service, Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-N.J.) spoke out — and called for the urgent firing of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. The time that DeJoy has spent as head of the Postal Service has been marked by controversy, with issues like falling on-time delivery rates affecting important items around the nation. Now, DeJoy has rolled out a plan making slower deliveries for certain pieces of mail permanent for the sake of cutting costs.
President Biden has nominated two former federal officials to the U.S. Postal Service's governing board, replacing key allies of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy.
The move casts doubt on DeJoy's future at the agency. https://t.co/41ph7uJNc9
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) November 20, 2021
‘Great news to wake up to: Pres Biden is removing Louis DeJoy’s chief enabler and cheerleader from the Postal Board! Now fire Dejoy’
Great news to wake up to: Pres Biden is removing louis dejoy's chief enabler and cheerleader from the Postal Board! Now fire dejoy https://t.co/V8iE8FHR4O
— Bill Pascrell, Jr. (@BillPascrell) November 19, 2021
The issue is that hiring — and firing — postmaster generals is the responsibility of the board that oversees the agency, meaning that Biden can not directly intervene in DeJoy’s current job status. Biden, though, isn’t only replacing Bloom — he has also nominated a second new member, set to replace yet another holdover from the Trump era. Before these new nominations, the nine-member board was comprised of three Biden appointees and six Trump picks, but adding these latest Biden picks to the board — once confirmed by the Senate — will give Biden’s nominees majority control of the panel. There is one complicating factor, though: by law, no more than five board members can be from the same party, and one of Biden’s new picks is a Republican.
Flagging this for Biden’s new nominees to the USPS Board of Governors: USPS mismanaged DeJoy’s conflicts of interest and tried to cover it up. Just one reason why DeJoy should be fired. https://t.co/pL6T5Prh4b
— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) November 21, 2021
Biden’s new nominees for the Postal board include Daniel M. Tangherlini, who served as chief of the General Services Administration during the Obama administration, and Derek Kan, a Republican who served at the White House Office of Management and Budget during the Trump administration. As the controversy over DeJoy’s tenure unfolds, the Postal Service remains under intense scrutiny — ahead of Election Day in this year’s recently concluded Virginia elections, the agency faced litigation in which it eventually agreed (as summarized by Democracy Docket) to ‘ensure that completed absentee ballots being returned to county elections officials are properly postmarked and scanned… expedite the delivery of completed absentee ballots; and… conduct an “All Clear Certification Process” daily’ until the Friday after Election Day, with reports about those sweeps set for submission to the Virginia Democratic Party.
Ron Bloom will soon be gone. Next up, his pal Louis DeJoy. Folks, there is light at the end of the tunnel.
— Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) November 21, 2021
