Trump news: Under-fire postmaster general says he has 'no intention' of returning mail sorting machines
Senate committee interrogates US Postal Service chief as GOP prepares for 2020 convention
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump said he would send law enforcement officers to polling locations for this November's presidential election in comments branded "an attack on America" by a former White House ethics chief.
“We're going to have sheriffs, and we're going to have law enforcement, and we're going to have hopefully US attorneys, and we're going to have everybody and attorney generals (sic),” Mr Trump told Fox News after host Sean Hannity asked if he would have "poll watchers".
Meanwhile, his Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said on Friday there was “no intention” to return mail sorting machines that were removed in recent weeks, after it was reported that at least 671 machines were removed in critical voting states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, Florida, Wisconsin and Georgia, among others.
The postmaster general said those machines were “not needed”, while adding that he supports vote-by-mail efforts amid the pandemic.
Mr DeJoy, who has overseen sweeping cuts at the agency following his appointment by the president in June, told a US Senate committee he would be voting by mail in fall elections and insisted that the "American people should feel comfortable that the Postal Service will deliver on this election" despite the president's constant threats to undermine the agency.
On Friday, the president and his family held a funeral service for his brother Robert Trump, who died on 16 August. He was 71. The president held a service in the East Room of the White House.
A group of anti-Trump Republicans have meanwhile seized on the arrest of former Trump campaign chief and senior White House adviser Steve Bannon, who has pleaded not guilty to fraud in an an alleged US-Mexico border wall crowdfunding scheme. He is the subject of an advert targeting Fox News views during next week's 2020 Republican National Convention.
GOP officials and the president are preparing for the event following Joe Biden's official nomination as the Democrats' nominee after his party's week-long convention, during which Democrats and several Republicans condemned the current administration and the president's response to the coronavirus pandemic and economic fallout.
Follow live coverage as it happened
Please allow a moment for the liveblog to load
Mike Pence leads post-DNC attack on Joe Biden
The vice president is doing the rounds this morning, countering that a Joe Biden presidency would lead to socialism, crush the economy and allow civil unrest in the streets.
"The Democrats are offering a vision for this country that would crush our economy and promote the kind of policies that will result in more violence in our streets," Mr Pence told Fox News.
Polarized: West Virginia voter attacks Trump over failed promises
Good morning and happy Friday. Every week, The Independent publishes a column profiling unique voters across all 50 states. Here is this week's installment, featuring Alison W Martin, a West Virginian who plans to vote for Joe Biden in the presidential election:
ICYMI: Trump petitions Supreme Court to allow him to block people on Twitter again
Adam Smith writes: President Donald trump has petitioned the supreme court to let him block people on Twitter again.
In 2018, it was ruled that Mr Trump cannot block other users on the social media app because the messages are “governmental in nature“ and therefore part of a public forum.
As such, blocking users “as a result of the political views they have expressed is impermissible under the First Amendment,” the judge ruled at the time.
While private companies are not usually bound by the First Amendment, the de facto nature of platforms like Twitter and Facebook as public spaces has made for difficult legislation with regards to government accounts.
The president’s petition – an 187 page document – argues that banning Mr Trump from blocking people is illogical because it only covers some parts of the Twitter account. If his posts are considered government speech, then so should his ability to block people from seeing them, the petition argues.
Senator Tammy Duckworth who lost both legs in Iraq War calls Trump 'coward-in-chief'
Justin Vallejo writes: Senator Tammy Duckworth, who lost both her legs in the Iraq War, called Donald Trump a 'coward-in-chief' who won't stand up to America's enemies.
Speaking on the final night of the Democratic National Convention, the Illinois senator said that soldiers and military families deserved a commander-in-chief that understands the sacrifices made to defend their country.
"Joe Biden understands these sacrifices because he's made them himself. When his son Beau deployed to Iraq, his burden was also shouldered by his family. Joe knows the fear military families live because he's felt that dread of never knowing if your deployed loved one is safe," Ms Duckworth said.
"That's the kind of leader our service members deserve, one who understands the risks they face and who would actually protect them by doing his job as commander in chief."
She added: "Instead, they have a coward in chief who won't stand up to Vladimir Putin, read his daily intelligence briefings or even publicly admonish adversaries for reportedly putting bounties on our troops' heads."
A US Army pilot, Ms Duckworth lost both legs after her helicopter was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade during the Iraq war in 2004.
Bannon blames fraud charge on people trying to stop border wall as he leaves court
Alex Woodward writes: Steve Bannon has claimed that federal charges brought against him and three other men in an allegedly fraudulent crowdfunding campaign are an attempt to "stop people who want to build" a US-Mexico border wall supported by Donald Trump.
"This entire fiasco is to stop people who want to build the wall," the president's former adviser said as he left US District Court in New York, where he pleaded not guilty to wire fraud and money laundering on Thursday. He faces up to 40 years in prison, if convicted.
He made the brief statement as he exited federal court in Manhattan and stepped into a black Cadillac Escalade.
Trump's postmaster general says he has 'no intention' of returning mail sorting machines
The postmaster general was testifying on Friday before the Republican-led Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, with another hearing scheduled for next week before the Democrat-led House Oversight Committee.
Louis DeJoy said on Friday there was “no intention” to return mail sorting machines that were removed in recent weeks, after it was reported that at least 671 machines were removed in critical voting states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio, Florida, Wisconsin and Georgia, among others.
The postmaster general said those machines were “not needed”, while adding that he supports vote-by-mail efforts amid the pandemic.
Mr DeJoy said on Friday: “I think the American public should be able to vote by mail.”
Democrats have meanwhile slammed Mr DeJoy for his policy changes to the USPS, adding that his vow not to implement those changes ahead of the election was “vague”.
Exclusive: Recording reveals how Trump alienated civil rights leaders
Andrew Feinberg writes: Just days before his inauguration, Donald Trump claimed that he was more in tune with the African-American community than a group of prominent civil rights activists, including the son of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
The meeting between Trump and the activists, including Martin Luther King III, William Wachtel, and Riverside Church pastor Dr Rev James Forbes, was arranged by Presidential Transition Team aides as a way to settle tensions between the incoming president and the African-American community.
But the event quickly became, in the words of one Trump aide, “the most disastrous outreach meeting in the history of presidential transition”. According to a recording and transcript of the meeting — both of which have now been passed to The Independent — Trump spent far more time airing his own grievances and making outrageous claims than listening to the activists’ concerns.
After boasting of having been recognised by Time as the magazine’s “Person of the Year”, Trump told the group of civil rights activists: “I listen better to the African-American people than anybody else. Anybody else in this room.”
Elizabeth Warren is opening her own investigation into Trump's post service changes
Elizabeth Warren and Robert Casey Jr have launched their own probe into the Trump administration’s changes to the US Postal Service, to understand how those changes have impacted patients who receive prescription drugs by mail.
The top Senate Democrats sent a series of letters to leading drug companies and national pharmacies seeking information about the time it typically takes patients to receive their prescription drugs by mail, among other questions.
“Millions of Americans with diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease, asthma, and other chronic conditions, illnesses or health care needs rely on the USPS for delivery of their prescription drugs and are at grave risks if President Trump’s efforts to degrade mail service results in delays and disruptions,” the letter read. “These health threats are magnified by the ongoing pandemic.”
Many senior citizens, veterans and other patients who otherwise cannot pick up their prescriptions at a pharmacy rely on the USPS to receive their medications on time, as the Washington Post noted in its report on the Democrat-led inquiry.
News of the probe comes as Postmaster General Louis DeJoy — a donor to President Donald Trump tasked to lead the USPS despite not having any postal office experience — was meeting with lawmakers on Capitol Hill to discuss the announced changes, which he has since said would be delayed until after the November election amid mounting criticism.
Story to come...
Trump speaks at 2020 Council for National Policy Meeting in Virginia
The president is about to speak at a national policy council meeting in Virginia. He came out to applause from a on-site crowd, many of whom were not wearing masks. We'll provide live updates as they come in.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments