In his first public remarks since his resignation from the U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors in protest at the end of April, David Williams on Thursday revealed some alarming new details surrounding the selection of Trump megadonor Louis DeJoy as postmaster general and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin’s efforts to exert influence over postal operations and finances.
Williams, the former Vice President of the USPS Board of Governors with decades of experience in the federal government, testified to the Progressive Caucus of Congress that what he witnessed in his last months at the Postal Service was unusual, detailing how Mnuchin demanded members of the alleged independent government to “come to his office to kiss the ring and receive his blessing before confirmation” and made “illegal” demands of officials.
“Corruption, simple and straightforward. Not only is Louis DeJoy a Trump crown and clearly unqualified to be Postmaster General, but he also has significant financial conflicts of interest that make him desperate to destroy the USPS completely. We will not let him go. ”
—Rep. Pramila Jayapal
“The secretary has called board members to provide instructions and requests and express his displeasure, which is really striking. I’m not sure I’ve found that before, where one department is trying to run another department,” Williams said. , who previously served as Inspector General USPS. “Normally, you would just reject the effort and report to Congress.”
Williams told lawmakers that the removal of USPS mailboxes in several states was specifically advocated by Mnuchin, a former Goldman Sachs executive who was allegedly involved in DeJoy’s recruitment for the general position.
“The blue boxes were probably the most interesting of all,” said Williams, a Democrat who was nominated for the presidency of President Donald Trump. “Those were not part of ongoing plans. To my knowledge, in fact … Secretary Mnuchin wanted to do that. His study of the postal service required that it be done.”
Following Williams’ report of Mnuchin’s interference with the independent agency, rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) That the Treasury Secretary should be called – and, if necessary, presented – to testify before Congress.
“This hearing is a complete bombshell,” tweeted David Dayen, executive editor of The American Prospectus, who first reported that Williams resigned in protest from the Board of Governors.
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Williams also offered a look at the process leading up to the selection of the Board of Governors and May’s appointment of DeJoy, a former logistics executive with zero experience working for the Postal Service.
Asked if the board interviewed other qualified candidates for the postmaster’s general role, Williams responded deplorably and characterized DeJoy as uniquely unfamiliar with the job, saying he needed to be coached through his interviews. Williams said DeJoy’s appointment was postponed by John Barger, a board member and Republican donor who – according to Williams – helped DeJoy “finish a few cents where he was stuck” and “explain to the board what Mr. DeJoy said during the presentation. “
Rep. Andy Levin (D-Mich.) Called Williams’ description of the selection process “very, very disturbing.” Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), Co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said Williams’ testimony was “great.”
Corruption, simple and straightforward. Not only is Louis DeJoy a Trump crony and clearly unqualified to be Postmaster General, but he also has significant financial conflicts of interest that make him desperate to destroy the USPS altogether. We will not let him. pic.twitter.com/g4dbj3fdLD
– Rep. Pramila Jayapal (@RepJayapal) 21 August 2020
Williams’ revelations came just hours before DeJoy was due to appear before the Republican-controlled Senate Homeland Security and Committee on Governmental Affairs Committee, where he is expected to question his sweeping policy changes that are behind massive mail backlogs. caused throughout the country.
A day after DeJoy vowed to halt operational changes until after the November election, Second Chamber member Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) Said in a statement that the postmaster general “honestly” told her that he “has no intention” to replace the sorting machines, blue mailboxes, and other key mail infrastructure that have been removed and that plans for adequate overtime, which is critical to the timely delivery of mail, are not in the works. “
In a letter to the USPS Board of Governors on Wednesday, 90 House Democrats demanded the immediate removal of DeJoy for using his short term as postmaster general “to sabotage the U.S. Postal Service.”
“Despite recent claims by Mr DeJoy that the implementation of certain changes may be delayed,” the legislators wrote, “he has already done a lot of damage to the institution and we believe his interests of interest are insurmountable.”
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