The Post is likely to play an unexpectedly large role in the US election due to Corona. Trump wants to withhold necessary funds from the company. And he is loudly opposing postal voting.
Washington (AP) - In the US election campaign, the Post is becoming more and more of a bone of contention due to a massive increase in the number of postal voters in the corona pandemic.
US President Donald Trump is openly considering withholding the necessary funds from the Post three months before the election to deliver millions and millions of ballot papers on time. Democrats see this as an attempt by the Republican to keep the turnout low in his favor. In addition, the Republicans endanger the health of citizens by insisting on voting in polling stations amid the pandemic, the allegations said. Trump, in turn, warns, without giving any reason, that postal voting will lead to massive election fraud.
Trump tried to dispel the allegations that he wanted to influence the election with his almost daily attacks on the postal vote. That does not mean "that someone takes your voice away," he said on Thursday evening (local time) in the White House. He wanted the Americans to vote in the November 3rd election, but "that means they'd have to go to a polling station like they always did and vote," Trump said. Despite the coronavirus pandemic, this does not pose a threat, he emphasized.
Most US states are expecting significantly more postal voters because of the pandemic. Many states have made it easier to apply for the election by mail. Some even proactively send election papers to citizens. Suddenly, a company that had hitherto rather stumbled was the focus of the election year: The American Post Office (USPS). The company is run by a major republican donor and is already struggling with deficits and delays in deliveries. But without the timely delivery of the postal voting documents - the deadlines differ from state to state - in the worst case, hundreds of thousands or even more ballot papers could go untold.
Trump threatened on Thursday, however, to veto an agreement on a new corona aid package with the Democrats if it should contain billions for the Post. "That means they (the Democrats) cannot get a universal postal vote," Trump told the conservative broadcaster Fox Business. The Democrats would need this money so that the Post "can take all those billions and millions of ballots". The interview triggered severe criticism - Trump later rowed back a little.
The additional billions for the post were part of the negotiations with the Democrats for another Corona stimulus package. The talks failed at the end of last week, however, and the US Congress said goodbye for the summer break. The post should receive 25 billion US dollars, in addition, 3.5 billion dollars should be used specifically for postal voting.
The corona pandemic is still completely out of control in the United States. Around 50,000 new infections were recently reported daily. Almost 170,000 people died after being infected with the pathogen.
The chairwoman of the House of Representatives, Democrat Nancy Pelosi, said this week that the smooth functioning of the post office was "crucial to protecting the life of our democracy", especially because of the corona pandemic. The Democrat Jena Griswold, responsible for the implementation in the state of Colorado, said in an interview with the broadcaster CNN that Trump's attempts to deny the Post the necessary funds were aimed at lowering the turnout: "The safest way to vote during a pandemic undermining is a turnout and it forces Americans to risk their lives to vote. "
Trump warned again in drastic words on Thursday that more postal votes would lead to election fraud. "It's going to be the biggest scam in history," he said. In states like Virginia, postal ballot papers would be sent to "dead and dogs," he said. Trump has so far not provided any substantiated evidence for his fraud allegations. Experts and even many Republicans have rejected Trump's warnings.
Trump seems to see postal voting as a Democrat ruse to beat him with the help of a higher turnout. However, experts warn that Trump's repeated warnings of election fraud could be used to question the legality of the vote.
The Democrats are working to ensure that the states allow as many voters as possible to vote by postal vote because of the pandemic. Because more ballot papers are likely to arrive in the mail in November, the announcement of the election results this year could, in the opinion of many observers, be significantly delayed, which could provide additional tailwind for allegations of election fraud.
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Interview Trump (Fox, via Youtube)
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