A New Jersey Democrat is calling on President Biden to fire top officials at the Postal Service over what he called “their silence and complicity” in attempts by former President Trump to undermine the electoral process.
“Today I am calling on President Biden to fire the entire Postal Board of Governors for their silence and complicity in trump and dejoy’s attempts to subvert the election and destroy the Post Office,” Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.) tweeted, referring to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy.
The tweet accompanied a letter from Pascrell, a fierce Trump critic, to Biden saying the Board of Governors of the United States Postal Service “sat silent” while DeJoy implemented “efforts to dismantle mail sorting machines, cut overtime, restrict deliveries, and remove mailboxes,” which he noted the Postal Service inspector general had blamed for reductions in both the timeliness and quality of the nation’s mail delivery service.
“The board members’ refusal to oppose the worst destruction ever inflicted on the Postal Service was a betrayal of their duties and unquestionably constitutes good cause for their removal,” Pascrell wrote.
The Hill has reached out to the Postal Service for comment.
The board, which has the power to fire DeJoy and appoint a new postmaster general, consists of nine seats, three of which are vacant. All board members are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate, and board members select the postmaster general.
Biden could fire board members, a third of whom are Democrats, and unlike former President Obama, he likely would see his nominees confirmed now that Democrats control the Senate.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Pascrell’s letter.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki was asked about the matter at Monday’s briefing but told reporters she did not have any information on the matter.
“I’m not sure I have an answer for you,” Psaki said.
Pascrell in October asked New Jersey’s attorney general to open a criminal investigation into any efforts to interfere in the 2020 election by the postmaster general and Trump.
“We do not have much time to prepare and our state, like others, will rely absolutely on the USPS’s efficiency,” Pascrell said at the time. “Amid this ongoing pandemic, the USPS will be the electoral heart and engine of New Jersey’s and America’s electoral machinery.”