Trump: Post Office loses a ‘fortune’ on Amazon deliveries

President Trump in a tweet on Monday pushed back against those who say the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) profits from Amazon shipments, saying it instead is losing a “fortune.”  

Only fools, or worse, are saying that our money losing Post Office makes money with Amazon. THEY LOSE A FORTUNE, and this will be changed. Also, our fully tax paying retailers are closing stores all over the country…not a level playing field!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 2, 2018

Trump’s tweet is the latest in a series of attacks on Amazon. 

“While we are on the subject, it is reported that the U.S. Post Office will lose $1.50 on average for each package it delivers for Amazon. That amounts to Billions of Dollars,” Trump said in a tweet on Saturday. 

“The Failing N.Y. Times reports that ‘the size of the company’s lobbying staff has ballooned,’ and that does not include the Fake Washington Post, which is used as a ‘lobbyist’ and should so REGISTER,” he added, referring to The Washington Post, which was acquired by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. 

“If the P.O. ‘increased its parcel rates, Amazon’s shipping costs would rise by $2.6 Billion.’ This Post Office scam must stop. Amazon must pay real costs (and taxes) now!” 

USPS profits from package delivery, factcheckers say. It is mandated by law to cover its costs for products such as Amazon package deliveries, but it has reportedly not been able to make up the losses from declines in its letter delivery business.

The post office charges Amazon a lower rate than normal because of the volume of packages it ships, according to reports.

Trump has called on USPS to increase shipping rates for Amazon and has also accused the online retail giant of failing to pay state and local sales taxes.