08.22.20

McConnell: House Democrats’ Piecemeal Postal Bill Completely Ignores Struggling Families

“Speaker Pelosi and Minority Leader Schumer said over and over that it would be “piecemeal” to pass the most urgent, most bipartisan policies first and argue over the rest later… But as soon as House Democrats convinced themselves that their own jobs might be in jeopardy, they came sprinting back to Washington to pass a totally piecemeal postal bill without a dime to help struggling families.”

LOUISVILLE, KY – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) issued the following statement today regarding House Democrats’ decision to continue ignoring the coronavirus pandemic and indulge overblown fears about the Postal Service:

“Speaker Pelosi and House Democrats have spent weeks ignoring the urgent needs of American workers and families, but they rushed back to Washington the instant that overblown conspiracy theories about the United States Postal Service convinced them their own jobs might be in jeopardy.

“The Postmaster General was unanimously appointed by a bipartisan board that includes a member whom Minority Leader Schumer handpicked. He is not enacting some sinister conspiracy. The facts show the USPS is equipped to handle this election, and if a real need arises, Congress will meet it. But the facts haven’t stopped Democrats from spinning up yet another conspiracy theory.

“Leading Democrats now regularly proclaim that President Trump will “cheat” or “steal” the election. The Democratic Party has just spent four years refusing to accept the American people’s democratic decision in 2016, and is now grasping for excuses to call 2020 illegitimate if they lose again. Now they are saying without a shred of evidence that if Democrats lose, it will not be their fault, but the mail’s fault. This unhinged talk accomplishes our foreign adversaries’ destabilizing work to a degree that they themselves could only dream of.

“Republicans have spent weeks trying to secure bipartisan agreement on the most urgent relief policies for American families. We want to extend federal unemployment benefits, extend the Paycheck Protection Program, provide funding and legal protections for K-12 schools and universities, and fund testing, treatments, and vaccines. But Speaker Pelosi and Minority Leader Schumer said over and over that it would be “piecemeal” to pass the most urgent, most bipartisan policies first and argue over the rest later. 

“Speaker Pelosi is blocking billions in relief for American families and laid-off workers because anything short of her entire wish list was “piecemeal.” But as soon as House Democrats convinced themselves their own jobs might be in jeopardy, they came sprinting back to Washington to pass a totally piecemeal postal bill without a dime to help struggling families.

“Senate Republicans are committed to making sure the Postal Service remains well equipped to fulfill its important duties. But the President has already made it clear he will not sign the Speaker’s partisan stunt into law. And the Senate will absolutely not pass stand-alone legislation for the Postal Service while American families continue to go without more relief. The Kentuckians I speak with every day need more help.

“If Washington Democrats would devote half the energy they spend worrying about their own re-elections to actually helping the American people, we could easily achieve the kind of targeted, bipartisan relief package that Republicans have wanted for weeks.”