The House of Representatives will meet this Saturday in an unusual session with the objective of voting on the law that allows for the allocation of 25,000 million dollars in emergency funds to the Postal Service before the November elections.
This measure also seeks to ban any operational changes amid Democrats' fears that the Administration will deprive millions of Americans of the right to vote.
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The law will also prohibit the elimination of mail sorting machines and public mailboxes and will require that all official election mail be considered "first class."
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Aug. 21, 202000: 28The early return of the House for this vote interrupts the recess plans of the members, who had been scheduled to return in mid-September.
The Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, assured that the Postal Service will be " the center of the elections " in this very unusual election year in which millions of Americans are expected to opt for vote-by-mail ballots to avoid voting centers. vote due to pandemic.
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For Carolyn Maloney, representative for New York, chair of the Oversight Committee and author of the bill, the Postal Service is "under attack," he said in the weekly speech of the Democrats.
Saturday's session will last all day . With the majority in the House, Democrats are expected to pass the legislation easily.
But House Republican leaders are actively pushing for their members to oppose the bill , and it is unlikely to be considered by Senate Republicans.
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Republicans say reports of mail delivery problems are disproportionate and that the Postal Service has enough money this year.
The White House has already threatened to veto the bill.
However, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell is thinking of a $ 10 billion postal bailout as part of the next COVID-19 relief package. The White House has said it would be open to more postal funding as part of a larger bill.
Postal Service Director General Louis DeJoy testified in the Senate on Friday, saying his "number one priority" is making sure election mail arrives on time. The Postal Service has, according to DeJoy, the "adequate capacity" to manage the mailings of ballots for the November elections, which will take priority over the rest of the correspondence as in previous elections.
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Aug. 14, 202001: 54"As we approach election season, I want to assure this committee and the American public that the Postal Service is fully engaged and capable of delivering the nation's election mail safely and on time," he told the Committee. Government Affairs and National Security.
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DeJoy also expressed his support for the practice of voting by mail, against the misleading doubts that the president, Donald Trump, who appointed him to the position, has been spreading for weeks.
DeJoy will testify again before the House Oversight Committee on Monday.
About 180 million Americans have the right to vote by mail, an alternative to voting in person that many will choose amid the pandemic.
With information from AP, CNN, The Washington Post.