With Three New Appointees on the Postal Service Board, Louis DeJoy’s Days of Dismantling the Post Office Appear Numbered
President Joe Biden’s decision not to reappoint the Postal Board of Governors head is seen as the first step toward ousting controversial Postmaster General Louis DeJoy.
Many say DeJoy is destroying the venerable institution.
With Ron A. Bloom out of the way and two new presidential appointments the Board of Governors, postal workers express confidence that DeJoy will be sent packing. The former XPO Logistics executive and Trump toady is behind brazen plans to dismantle the U.S. mail through privatization.
Jonathan Smith, New York Metro Area Postal Service (APWU) president, said that for the future of a public Postal Service it was necessary for Biden not to bring back Bloom. The board head — another Trump nominee — is finishing a seven-year term.
“Bloom’s support of DeJoy’s damaging policies was a detriment to those who depend upon a public Postal Service,” Smith said. His remarks followed the Nov. 19 White House announcement that Daniel Tangherlini and Derek Kan are being nominated to replace both Bloom and outgoing member John Barger.
Ready to Fire DeJoy
It is hoped new members will fire DeJoy and replace him with someone committed to providing a service that will meet the needs of the American people, Smith said.
Just prior to the White House announcement, the Center for Public Integrity reported that last year, DeJoy and his deputies gorged themselves on more executive bonuses and perks than anyone in their USPS roles had done in the last decade.
DeJoy and his family’s ties to XPO Logistics — the recipient of a multi-million-dollar USPS contract in April — along with his history of political fundraising for Trump, have sparked an FBI investigation. Nearly 100 members of Congress want DeJoy out.
Bloom the Key
“I know that DeJoy does have to go, but we’ve got to get rid of this sucker (Ron A. Bloom) first,” Diane Erlanger, N.Y. Metro Area Postal Union director of organizing, said in September.
“He has to be the one that goes — I know if he goes, we’re going to put those chess pieces in place [and oust DeJoy]. Believe that.”
Only the board, consisting of up to nine members appointed by the president with advice and consent of the Senate, has the power to actually fire the postmaster.
“I believe the outcries from the public and the direct communication to the White House by concerned citizens is responsible for this decision,” Iowa Postal Workers Union President Kimberly Karol said.
“President Biden has been very supportive and I believe understands the importance to the country a continued Public Postal Service is- — building unity and defending democracy.”
The White House said that Biden is “committed to supporting USPS workers so that they can continue delivering for their fellow Americans, particularly those in rural communities, veterans, and older Americans who rely so heavily on the Postal Service,” in addition to “strengthening and modernizing this critical public institution and its services to ensure it continues serving the American people for decades to come.”
Tangherlini comes out of the Department of Transportation and the Office of Management and Budget, as well as heading the General Services Administration. Kan, currently an executive at an e-commerce startup called Deliverr, also has experience at both the U.S. Transportation and Management and Budget, in addition to leadership roles on the Amtrak Board and mobile app giant Lyft.
After helping to lead middle-America’s charge against DeJoy and privatization schemes, Karol is hopeful Biden’s nominees will help steer the USPS away from further privatization.
“Tangherlini’s experience at the GSA shows the president’s commitment to Public Service. I am not familiar with Kan, but his experience should give voice to small/family businesses who are struggling in the pandemic and hurt by current Postal Policy,” she said.
