The Old School Post Office And The Risk To Our Electoral System.
The Post Office isn’t exactly known for its reliability. Generally, when a conservative or libertarian thinks of postal workers, they believe that they are “lazy,” ‘rude,’ and “careless.” Generally, Democrat politicians think government employees and their unions reliably vote Democrat. Republicans complain that Democrats champion almost every government employee for votes. In turn, pensions continue to bloat, and services get worse say the right.
“…The general view of government employees is that they prefer Democrats over Republicans as they benefit economically by having more money allocated for government spending. The more money there is to spend, the more money there is for salaries and benefits and those responsible for allocating or overseeing the spending grow in importance in society.” (Source).
As far as public agencies go, the Post Office is second only to the DMV in its horrific reputation with the public. People tend to like the historical idea of a U.S. postal service but often don’t like the impersonal service offered by postal service employees. One thing is exact, political operatives within the Post Office and its majority partisan Democrat employee base have Republicans running scared every time there is any mail-in vote, including absentee ballots. The same reason Republicans want voter ID to stop illegal aliens from voting Democrat is the same reason it remains scared of the Post Office.
Unfortunately, losing mail, especially Republican voter mail, is far more critical in 2020 than in years past. Due to the stresses of the Coronavirus, there is now substantial concern that our mail service cannot possibly process over 100 million ballots and do it honestly. We saw in real-time how the far-left IRS became weaponized to go after Tea Party groups during the Obama Admin. And Conservatives and independent researchers who actually researched what Lerner did with no consequences were not shocked that the FBI was “weaponized” to take down President-elect Trump. Moreover, all government agencies, aside from the DOD, are viewed as Democrat vassals by many Republicans.
The USPS and its role in the 2020 election is a significant topic in the last month. Many writers gave their own two cents on whether or not the Post Office can process the needed ballots. In some cases, the USPS would have to process both ballot applications and then the actual ballots– both to and from the voters themselves.
And this remains a recipe for disaster. Unfortunately, it is the one building in our national election this year. With the issues related to COVID, mail delivery is significantly lower and slower than usual. And good luck suing the Post Office if they “lose” your vote. In fact
Besides, the potential major demand for these ballots may also mean that millions of ballots won’t make it to where they should in time. Can you imagine an election day without a result? Or perhaps millions of votes “lost” and only counted later? There may not be much of a reason to have to imagine. There is a good chance this will be the result in November– and beyond. If you thought the 2000 election was a mess, just wait until there are issues related to votes nationwide and not only in Florida.
What Does November Bring?
There are current hearings on Capitol Hill about the issues surrounding the Post Office. Moreover, this is a topic I know more than a little about. I spent time as a lobbyist in DC on behalf of cruise ship safety. I know how politicians work, especially when there are cameras in the room. Far too many politicians want to frame the issue as one of the Trump Administration. They do so rather than reviewing the innate issues surrounding the postal service.
Without actually addressing the core issues, they avoid so much significant info vital to the safety of our election. That is what I am here for. I went through the recent history of the Post Office and current election data. When you combine the two, you understand the extreme risk for our elections, including how election day may become election month. Below are some of the top concerns.
- Lost Mail. This one is the most obvious. Since we have a postal service that loses or misplaces millions of letters per year, the risk is high. Perhaps a hundred thousand votes might not make a difference on a national scale– but that is not how our elections work. Just think of the 529 votes in FL that decided the Presidential election. That could happen writ large this year. Imagine if a number of states teeter with a small margin. Even a thousand misplaced or delayed ballots may tip the scales in the Biden and Trump election.
- Delayed mail. In deciding on a president on election day, this is likely to be unlikely this year. A large percentage of ballots may be postmarked but not delivered in time on election day. As a result, the state-by-state results will be different. Some states allow for ballots to be counted if received by election day. Others accept them if they are postmarked by that day. See the problem? What happens if a car trunk load of ballots is found a month later, seemingly postmarked by election day? That’s what happened in the 2004 Washington Governor’s race. Republican Dino Rossi won both the initial count and the recount. However, a case of “found” ballots tipped the scale away from him. Although he had been certified as the winner, he was not sworn in January 2005. What happens if a thousand ballots are found in a trash dumpster behind the Post Office in Florida or Ohio, or Iowa in December after President Trump or Vice President Biden begins the transition process?
Issues Within The Post Office – A Far-Left Political Organization?
As I mentioned earlier, this issue is not new. Their role in mail-in ballots during the primary election was already a disaster, as seen below:
“Many election administrators in Ohio had already lost patience with the Postal Service. During Ohio’s April 28 primary, mail delivery had been so slow that the secretary of state publicly warned voters and called for the Postal Service to add staff. As they counted votes, Noonan and her team checked in with the service every day until the deadline. “We said, ‘Listen this is the last day,’” she recalled. “‘If we get ballots after this, they’re not going to be counted.’ They assured us.”
Such an example is a potential disaster. In the case of absentee ballots, the sheer number is far lower. And this is not perfect, either. Military ballots would make the key difference in the 2000 election in Florida. However, Democrats sought to prevent these ballots from being counted. They clearly supported Governor George W. Bush and thus were fought tooth and nail. Who is to say the same won’t happen here? There is just too much risk to throw away our electoral traditions.
About The Author.
Michael Ehline is the lead attorney in the Ehline Law Firm Personal Injury Attorneys APLC. He is a legal expert in the field of personal injury and civil rights issues. He writes this column as a means of better informing the public. He studied the many issues surrounding the 2020 election and the particular issues revolving around the Post Office. For more info on Ehline, continue reading this column. He is also available at the number below or at losangeles@ehlinelaw.com. For more info and columns, feel free to read Ehline’s legal blog here.
Works Cited
