Rep. Armstrong says Democrats should have been concerned with USPS last year

WASHINGTON – Congressman Kelly Armstrong of North Dakota doesn’t agree with why some of his Democratic colleagues are concerned with post office issues now.

The Republican is on the House Oversight Committee. The last time the panel had a hearing on financial issues with the post office was April 2019.

The House passed a bill to remove requirements signed into law by President George W. Bush in 2006. They make billions of payments each year to pre-fund USPS workers’ health benefits. Armstrong believes the Senate Oversight Committee didn’t take action on the bill because there was no political benefit for them to pass it until recently.

“I held up a stack of fundraising campaign things from Democrats that… None of those went out last April trying to save the Post Office and none of them went out this April trying to save the post office,” Armstrong said.

He says plans to get rid of post office sorting machines and blue boxes existed before Postmaster General Louis DeJoy took the job in June.

Armstrong also talked about voting in person during the coronavirus pandemic and talking with Postmaster General Louis DeJoy about Postal Service funding. Watch the full interview below.