Raskin Leads USPS Rally Outside Leisure World Post Office

SILVER SPRING, MD — Amid concerns over mail delays ahead of November's presidential election, a group of protesters staged a rally at Leisure World Plaza in support of the U.S. Postal Service.

Tuesday's demonstration outside the Leisure World post office was hosted by Rep. Jamie Raskin — a Democrat who represents District 8 in Maryland.

It comes after Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, a Trump appointee and mega donor, unveiled sweeping, cost-cutting changes at USPS, including removing mail-sorting machines from postal facilities and eliminating employee overtime. Following mounting pressure from congressional Democrats and the public, DeJoy has agreed to suspend all operational changes until after the 2020 election.

"The Post Office is a great American institution whose creation brought our nation together, and continues to do so," Raskin said. "While I welcome Postmaster General DeJoy's announcement, we will accept nothing less than a total reversal of these sabotage measures and a full restoration of the mail-sorting machines and public collection boxes that were recently removed in multiple states."

According to Raskin, a disruption in mail service won't just impact voters. It will affect every single person who relies on USPS for life-saving medicine, paychecks, and other goods and services.

"Veterans who rely on medicine by mail, seniors who rely on Social Security checks by mail, and small businesses that rely on postal service to participate in commerce all deserve peace of mind that their lives and livelihoods will not be endangered," he said.

Nannette Corley, president of the American Postal Workers Union Local 3630, said shake-ups in the industry are making it hard for employees to do their job.

"We postal workers are supposed to move the mail with efficiency, and we can move election ballots with efficiency if management allows us to do our jobs," she said.

While speaking at Tuesday's rally, Corley listed a number of issues she said postal workers have encountered.

"My facility, we've had 25 (mail-sorting) machines. They have now dismantled three this week," Corley said.

"Mailboxes in our area — or the blue boxes as they may be called — are being collected from the streets and community," she added. "We are submitting information requests, trying to locate where they are removing these postal boxes. It's making it very hard for our customers and the community to still have that communication with the public."