California and 15 other states that want the US Postal Service to buy more electric delivery vehicles are suing to halt purchases of thousands of gas-powered trucks as the agency modernises its mail delivery fleet.

Three separate lawsuits, filed by 16 states and environmental groups Thursday in New York and California, ask judges to order a more thorough environmental review before the Postal Service moves forward with the next-generation delivery vehicle programme.

Plaintiffs contend that buying fossil fuel-powered delivery vehicles will cause environmental harm for decades to come.

“Louis DeJoy’s gas-guzzling fleet guarantees decades of pollution with every postcard and package,” said Scott Hochberg, an attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity, referring to the postmaster general.

Rob Bonta, Attorney General of California said that the purchase needs to be stopped before it is late.

“Once this purchase goes through, we’ll be stuck with more than 100,000 new gas-guzzling vehicles on neighborhood streets, serving homes across our state and across the country, for the next 30 years. There won’t be a reset button,” he said, as quoted in The Guardian.

The United States Postal Service (USPS) defended its actions.

“The Postal Service conducted a robust and thorough review and fully complied with all of our obligations under (the National Environmental Policy Act),” it said.

California and 15 other states that want the US Postal Service to buy more electric delivery vehicles are suing to halt purchases of thousands of gas-powered trucks as the agency modernises its mail delivery fleet.

California and 15 other states that want the US Postal Service to buy more electric delivery vehicles are suing to halt purchases of thousands of gas-powered trucks as the agency modernises its mail delivery fleet. Three separate lawsuits, filed by 16 states and environmental groups Thursday in New York and California, ask judges to order a more thorough environmental review before the Postal Service moves forward with the next-generation delivery vehicle programme. Plaintiffs contend that buying fossil fuel-powered delivery vehicles will cause environmental harm for decades to come. “Louis DeJoy’s gas-guzzling fleet guarantees decades of pollution with every postcard and package,” said Scott Hochberg, an attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity, referring to the postmaster general. Rob Bonta, Attorney General of California said that the purchase needs to be stopped before it is late. “Once this purchase goes through, we’ll be stuck with more than 100,000 new gas-guzzling vehicles on neighborhood streets, serving homes across our state and across the country, for the next 30 years. There won’t be a reset button,” he said, as quoted in The Guardian. The United States Postal Service (USPS) defended its actions. “The Postal Service conducted a robust and thorough review and fully complied with all of our obligations under (the National Environmental Policy Act),” it said.

16 US states sue postal service to make it buy electric vehicles

On the day in 1918 when the Postal Service began selling stamps with an image of a newfangled airplane, a 29-year-old stockbroker’s clerk and stamp collector went out on his lunch hour to buy some. He emerged from the nearest post office with a single sheet of 100.

Soon federal agents were hunting for him and demanding them back.

The airplane on the stamps was — uh-oh — upside down. The clerk had stumbled across one of the most celebrated stamp mistakes in history, the famously misprinted Inverted Jenny.

A block of four stamps from that single sheet — a singular quartet because it still bears the plate number — will go on display, by appointment, at Sotheby’s in Manhattan Thursday in preparation for an auction June 8.

The quartet, known to collectors as the “plate block,” is one of three rarities owned by Stuart Weitzman, the designer and entrepreneur known for creating strappy gladiator sandals, thigh-high boots and other shoes that have been worn by everyone from Kate Moss in his advertisements to Kate Middleton in paparazzi photos.

The other two items in the auction are also marketed with superlatives. Weitzman is selling the world’s most valuable single stamp, the 1856 One-Cent Magenta from British Guiana, which he bought in 2014, and one of the world’s most valuable coins, a $20 U.S. gold piece that was minted in 1933 and is known as a double eagle. Weitzman paid $7.6 million for it in 2002, at the time the highest price any coin had ever sold for.

Weitzman, 79, said that owning the three items had fulfilled a boyhood dream of collecting that began as a rookie with stamps and coins. As an adult, he said several years ago, he focused on pursuing one-of-kind items with lasting value. Now, though, he said, it was time to plan ahead.

“No one takes a U-Haul to the cemetery,” he said. “We have to figure out what to do with all this stuff.”

“The reason I’m doing the selling is my children don’t want to inherit these items,” added Weitzman, whose former company has been owned by the luxury fashion house Coach since 2015. “They say, ‘It’s great to do with them what you did, but we don’t want to have to worry about them, fuss with them, protect them, figure out what to do with them.’ ”

The money from selling the three items — as much as $37 million, based on Sotheby’s presale estimates — will go to charitable ventures, including the Weitzman Family Foundation.

Richard Austin, head of books and manuscripts at Sotheby’s, said it was “very difficult not to use hyperbole” in describing any one of the three. “For one person to accumulate all these treasures is unusual,” he said. “It’s a childhood collecting fantasy that he was able to make come true. I don’t even know if Stuart appreciates how unusual this is.”

Robert G. Rose, chairman of the nonprofit Philatelic Foundation, which authenticates stamps, was similarly impressed. “You’re talking about two of the most iconic pieces in all of Stamp World, all of philately,” he said. “And of course there’s the coin. It’s one of a kind as well.”

Sotheby’s expects to sell the Inverted Jenny plate block for $5 million to $7 million and the double eagle for $10 million to $15 million.

Weitzman’s identity as the owner of the double eagle is being revealed here for the first time. Sotheby’s never revealed the buyer after the 2002 sale, and even internally some Sotheby’s employees referred to the purchaser simply as “Mr. Big.” There was speculation that the owner was Bill Gates or Steve Jobs. The coin was on display at the New-York Historical Society from 2013 until last month, but the museum merely labeled it “Property of a Private Collector.”

The double eagle is unique: No other double eagles can be privately owned. The 445,500 that were made were supposed to be melted down. But 20, including Weitzman’s, were stolen from the mint. Some ended up in the hands of a Philadelphia jeweler and coin dealer who sold nine of them in the 1940s. In 2004, when his daughter discovered 10 others in his safe deposit box, the government challenged her claim of ownership, and won. The 10 were taken to Fort Knox, leaving Weitzman’s double eagle the only one from 1933 that can legally be sold.

The One-Cent Magenta is also unique — apparently the others printed with it were discarded — and is considered by some collectors to be the “Mona Lisa” of stamps. In the 1920s, it was owned by a textile entrepreneur who was said to have outbid King George V when he bought it for $32,250.

Weitzman purchased it from the estate of a later owner, John E. du Pont, an heir to the du Pont chemical fortune who had acquired it in 1980, before he went to prison for the murder of Olympic wrestler and coach Dave Schultz. The killing served as the basis for the 2014 film “Foxcatcher.”

Like the One-Cent Magenta’s past owners, Weitzman left his mark, a stiletto heel, on the back of the tiny stamp. Among stamp collectors, it is not unusual for the owners of great rarities to put their initials or a symbol on backs of the stamps. Purists cringe, but many philatelists say that doing so — carefully, and tinily — does not damage a stamp or detract from its value.

As for the Inverted Jennies, there is only one plate block, the corner of the original sheet with the number identifying the plate used on each page of stamps at the Bureau of Printing and Engraving. The sheet of 100 was broken up by Col. Edward H.R. Green, a fanatical collector whose mother was the stingy financier known as the “Witch of Wall Street.” The other 96 stamps on the sheet have been sold one by one, but the four adjacent to the plate number have remained intact.

Green was the third owner of the sheet. For the first owner — William T. Robey, the stockbroker’s clerk — it was the lucky find of a lifetime. He paid $24, the face value of the 100 stamps, when he went to a Washington post office on the day they went on sale.

He knew what he had as soon as the postal clerk handed him the sheet. He rushed out of the post office and eluded postal inspectors who came looking for him, trying to get back a red-and-blue misprint that, to their bosses, was an embarrassment.

Apparently a printing plate had been flipped in the two-colour printing process. The image of the plane, the Curtiss JN-51, nicknamed Jenny and set to carry the first loads of mail by air, came out upside down. Any other sheets printed that way were caught and destroyed at the Bureau of Printing and Engraving. But Robey’s sheet slipped by inspectors, and out into the world.

Robey soon turned a profit of $14,976, selling the sheet of 100 stamps for $15,000, enough to buy a new car, which he is said to have driven through the wall of the garage that came with his new house. The dealer who purchased them promptly turned a profit of $5,000 by marking up the price $20,000 for Green. The plate block has changed hands several times since then, most recently when Weitzman acquired it in 2014.

For years, Weitzman kept quiet about his collecting, not wanting the publicity. In 2012, 10 years after he had bought the double eagle, it was the centerpiece of a display at the Federal Reserve in Lower Manhattan. David Tripp, special consultant to Sotheby’s on coins, did not know who owned the coin when, at the opening of the exhibit, he was approached by David N. Redden, the Sotheby’s executive who had handled the auction in 2002. Redden had two people in tow.

“David said, ‘I’ve got a friend here with his daughter. His name is Stuart. Tell him about the coin,’” Tripp recalled.

Tripp, unsuspecting, went on to describe the particulars of the coin to the man who owned it.

“Years later,” Tripp said, “when David told me Stuart Weitzman was the owner, Stuart Weitzman the great designer of shoes, I clicked on Google and said, ‘I’ve met that guy before."

On the day in 1918 when the Postal Service began selling stamps with an image of a newfangled airplane, a 29-year-old stockbroker’s clerk and stamp collector went out on his lunch hour to buy some.

On the day in 1918 when the Postal Service began selling stamps with an image of a newfangled airplane, a 29-year-old stockbroker’s clerk and stamp collector went out on his lunch hour to buy some. He emerged from the nearest post office with a single sheet of 100. Soon federal agents were hunting for him and demanding them back. The airplane on the stamps was — uh-oh — upside down. The clerk had stumbled across one of the most celebrated stamp mistakes in history, the famously misprinted Inverted Jenny. A block of four stamps from that single sheet — a singular quartet because it still bears the plate number — will go on display, by appointment, at Sotheby’s in Manhattan Thursday in preparation for an auction June 8. The quartet, known to collectors as the “plate block,” is one of three rarities owned by Stuart Weitzman, the designer and entrepreneur known for creating strappy gladiator sandals, thigh-high boots and other shoes that have been worn by everyone from Kate Moss in his advertisements to Kate Middleton in paparazzi photos. The other two items in the auction are also marketed with superlatives. Weitzman is selling the world’s most valuable single stamp, the 1856 One-Cent Magenta from British Guiana, which he bought in 2014, and one of the world’s most valuable coins, a $20 U.S. gold piece that was minted in 1933 and is known as a double eagle. Weitzman paid $7.6 million for it in 2002, at the time the highest price any coin had ever sold for. Weitzman, 79, said that owning the three items had fulfilled a boyhood dream of collecting that began as a rookie with stamps and coins. As an adult, he said several years ago, he focused on pursuing one-of-kind items with lasting value. Now, though, he said, it was time to plan ahead. “No one takes a U-Haul to the cemetery,” he said. “We have to figure out what to do with all this stuff.” “The reason I’m doing the selling is my children don’t want to inherit these items,” added Weitzman, whose former company has been owned by the luxury fashion house Coach since 2015. “They say, ‘It’s great to do with them what you did, but we don’t want to have to worry about them, fuss with them, protect them, figure out what to do with them.’ ” The money from selling the three items — as much as $37 million, based on Sotheby’s presale estimates — will go to charitable ventures, including the Weitzman Family Foundation. Richard Austin, head of books and manuscripts at Sotheby’s, said it was “very difficult not to use hyperbole” in describing any one of the three. “For one person to accumulate all these treasures is unusual,” he said. “It’s a childhood collecting fantasy that he was able to make come true. I don’t even know if Stuart appreciates how unusual this is.” Robert G. Rose, chairman of the nonprofit Philatelic Foundation, which authenticates stamps, was similarly impressed. “You’re talking about two of the most iconic pieces in all of Stamp World, all of philately,” he said. “And of course there’s the coin. It’s one of a kind as well.” Sotheby’s expects to sell the Inverted Jenny plate block for $5 million to $7 million and the double eagle for $10 million to $15 million. Weitzman’s identity as the owner of the double eagle is being revealed here for the first time. Sotheby’s never revealed the buyer after the 2002 sale, and even internally some Sotheby’s employees referred to the purchaser simply as “Mr. Big.” There was speculation that the owner was Bill Gates or Steve Jobs. The coin was on display at the New-York Historical Society from 2013 until last month, but the museum merely labeled it “Property of a Private Collector.” The double eagle is unique: No other double eagles can be privately owned. The 445,500 that were made were supposed to be melted down. But 20, including Weitzman’s, were stolen from the mint. Some ended up in the hands of a Philadelphia jeweler and coin dealer who sold nine of them in the 1940s. In 2004, when his daughter discovered 10 others in his safe deposit box, the government challenged her claim of ownership, and won. The 10 were taken to Fort Knox, leaving Weitzman’s double eagle the only one from 1933 that can legally be sold. The One-Cent Magenta is also unique — apparently the others printed with it were discarded — and is considered by some collectors to be the “Mona Lisa” of stamps. In the 1920s, it was owned by a textile entrepreneur who was said to have outbid King George V when he bought it for $32,250. Weitzman purchased it from the estate of a later owner, John E. du Pont, an heir to the du Pont chemical fortune who had acquired it in 1980, before he went to prison for the murder of Olympic wrestler and coach Dave Schultz. The killing served as the basis for the 2014 film “Foxcatcher.” Like the One-Cent Magenta’s past owners, Weitzman left his mark, a stiletto heel, on the back of the tiny stamp. Among stamp collectors, it is not unusual for the owners of great rarities to put their initials or a symbol on backs of the stamps. Purists cringe, but many philatelists say that doing so — carefully, and tinily — does not damage a stamp or detract from its value. As for the Inverted Jennies, there is only one plate block, the corner of the original sheet with the number identifying the plate used on each page of stamps at the Bureau of Printing and Engraving. The sheet of 100 was broken up by Col. Edward H.R. Green, a fanatical collector whose mother was the stingy financier known as the “Witch of Wall Street.” The other 96 stamps on the sheet have been sold one by one, but the four adjacent to the plate number have remained intact. Green was the third owner of the sheet. For the first owner — William T. Robey, the stockbroker’s clerk — it was the lucky find of a lifetime. He paid $24, the face value of the 100 stamps, when he went to a Washington post office on the day they went on sale. He knew what he had as soon as the postal clerk handed him the sheet. He rushed out of the post office and eluded postal inspectors who came looking for him, trying to get back a red-and-blue misprint that, to their bosses, was an embarrassment. Apparently a printing plate had been flipped in the two-colour printing process. The image of the plane, the Curtiss JN-51, nicknamed Jenny and set to carry the first loads of mail by air, came out upside down. Any other sheets printed that way were caught and destroyed at the Bureau of Printing and Engraving. But Robey’s sheet slipped by inspectors, and out into the world. Robey soon turned a profit of $14,976, selling the sheet of 100 stamps for $15,000, enough to buy a new car, which he is said to have driven through the wall of the garage that came with his new house. The dealer who purchased them promptly turned a profit of $5,000 by marking up the price $20,000 for Green. The plate block has changed hands several times since then, most recently when Weitzman acquired it in 2014. For years, Weitzman kept quiet about his collecting, not wanting the publicity. In 2012, 10 years after he had bought the double eagle, it was the centerpiece of a display at the Federal Reserve in Lower Manhattan. David Tripp, special consultant to Sotheby’s on coins, did not know who owned the coin when, at the opening of the exhibit, he was approached by David N. Redden, the Sotheby’s executive who had handled the auction in 2002. Redden had two people in tow. “David said, ‘I’ve got a friend here with his daughter. His name is Stuart. Tell him about the coin,’” Tripp recalled. Tripp, unsuspecting, went on to describe the particulars of the coin to the man who owned it. “Years later,” Tripp said, “when David told me Stuart Weitzman was the owner, Stuart Weitzman the great designer of shoes, I clicked on Google and said, ‘I’ve met that guy before."

He owns world famous stamps and a prized coin. Now he’s selling.

The United States Postal Service is popularly known for delivering mail despite snow, rain or heat, but it faces a new foe in President Donald Trump.

Ahead of the November 3 elections in which millions of voters are expected to cast ballots by mail due to the coronavirus, Trump has leveled an unprecedented attack at the USPS, opposing efforts to give the cash-strapped agency more money even as changes there have caused widespread delays in delivering letters and packages.

"They need that money in order to have the post office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots," Trump told Fox News on Thursday, calling the money "fraudulent."

"But if they don't get those... that means you can't have universal mail-in voting."

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-house-speaker-considering-recalling-congress-over-post-office-woes-320879">Also read:&nbsp;US House Speaker considering recalling Congress over Post Office woes</a>

On Saturday, Trump continued his assault on mail-in voting by telling reporters it would be a "catastrophe" and retweeting articles and comments alleging fraud.

The Democratic opposition has sharply condemned Trump's statements, with some lawmakers claiming that the president is plotting to snarl the post office to undermine voting, create uncertainty and win a second term.

"Pure Trump. He doesn't want an election," said Democratic challenger Joe Biden.

Biden's running mate, Senator Kamala Harris, tweeted: "We cannot let Donald Trump destroy the United States Postal Service."

Trump, asked by a reporter Saturday if he was trying to hobble the USPS, replied: "No, not at all."

But the concerns are unlikely to disappear.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-postal-service-watchdog-to-probe-service-woes-as-worries-rise-about-mail-ballots-320620">Also read:&nbsp;US Postal Service watchdog to probe service woes as worries rise about mail ballots</a>

Reflecting the escalating nature of the controversy, former president Barack Obama has also weighed in.

"What we've never seen before is a president say, 'I'm going to try to actively kneecap the Postal Service ... and I will be explicit about the reason I'm doing it,'" Obama said in a podcast with a former aide.

On Saturday, protesters gathered at the Washington home of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, blaring horns and banging pots in anger.

USPS spokesman David Partenheimer attributed changes at the agency to its poor financial state.

"We are not slowing down election mail or any other mail," he told AFP.

"The Postal Service is in a financially unsustainable position, stemming from substantial declines in mail volume and a broken business model," he explained.

"We face an impending liquidity crisis," Partenheimer said, calling on Congress and regulators to enact reforms.

Meanwhile, in Congress... 
The postal troubles come as Congress remains deadlocked over a new stimulus bill to follow the $2.2 trillion CARES Act package passed in March as the coronavirus crisis erupted.

Democrats have proposed giving the USPS billions of dollars in funding, and Trump -- after first saying he opposed that -- said Friday that perhaps some new funds could be included in a compromise.&nbsp;

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On Saturday he blamed the Democrats again, telling reporters they "aren't approving proper funding for postal, and they're not approving the proper funding for this ridiculous thing that they want to do which is all mail-in voting."

"You're right, there has to be more resources, I agree," he said. &nbsp;

Trump said candidly in April that mail-in voting "doesn't work out well for Republicans" and has repeatedly described such ballots as prone to fraud.

Experts disagree.&nbsp;

A study this year by New York University's Brennan Center for Justice found that "it is... more likely for an American to be struck by lightning than to commit mail voting fraud."

In an interview, American Postal Workers Union President Mark Dimondstein blamed the nationwide slowdowns in mail deliveries on measures implemented by DeJoy, a Republican fundraiser appointed by Trump who took office in June and pledged to reform the agency.

Dimondstein said overtime has recently been reduced, meaning carriers leave distribution centers immediately rather than wait 10 or 15 minutes for delayed mail, as they previously did.

That, combined with the around 40,000 workers who have had to quarantine since March because of COVID-19, has created delays.

DeJoy -- defended by Trump as a "fantastic man" -- has "arbitrarily reduced hours of work of the employees, but the same work is still there to get done," Dimondstein said.

States act 
As concerns mount over the USPS's ability to handle the expected surge in ballots, states are working to ensure their residents' votes count.

Pennsylvania this week asked its supreme court to push back its deadline for accepting mail-in ballots.

In a court filing, it cited a letter from a USPS official to the state warning of "a risk that ballots requested near the deadline under state law will not be returned by mail in time to be counted under your laws."&nbsp;

The Washington Post reported on Friday similar notices were sent to 45 other states and the District of Columbia.

Jon Tester, a Democratic senator from Montana, also has asked DeJoy in writing to explain reports that the USPS was removing mailboxes from towns in the state.&nbsp;

Late Friday, a USPS spokesman told CNN that removal of mailboxes was being halted in 16 states, including Montana, and parts of two others.

Dimondstein said he hoped Trump's "brazen challenge to the democratic right -- that somehow he's going to starve this institution to suppress the vote -- somehow gives more impetus to Congress to react."&nbsp;

"Congress needs to act, and they need to act soon," he said.

The United States Postal Service is popularly known for delivering mail despite snow, rain or heat, but it faces a new foe in President Donald Trump. Ahead of the November 3 elections in which millions of voters are expected to cast ballots by mail due to the coronavirus, Trump has leveled an unprecedented attack at the USPS, opposing efforts to give the cash-strapped agency more money even as changes there have caused widespread delays in delivering letters and packages.

The United States Postal Service is popularly known for delivering mail despite snow, rain or heat, but it faces a new foe in President Donald Trump. Ahead of the November 3 elections in which millions of voters are expected to cast ballots by mail due to the coronavirus, Trump has leveled an unprecedented attack at the USPS, opposing efforts to give the cash-strapped agency more money even as changes there have caused widespread delays in delivering letters and packages. "They need that money in order to have the post office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots," Trump told Fox News on Thursday, calling the money "fraudulent." "But if they don't get those... that means you can't have universal mail-in voting." Also read: US House Speaker considering recalling Congress over Post Office woes On Saturday, Trump continued his assault on mail-in voting by telling reporters it would be a "catastrophe" and retweeting articles and comments alleging fraud. The Democratic opposition has sharply condemned Trump's statements, with some lawmakers claiming that the president is plotting to snarl the post office to undermine voting, create uncertainty and win a second term. "Pure Trump. He doesn't want an election," said Democratic challenger Joe Biden. Biden's running mate, Senator Kamala Harris, tweeted: "We cannot let Donald Trump destroy the United States Postal Service." Trump, asked by a reporter Saturday if he was trying to hobble the USPS, replied: "No, not at all." But the concerns are unlikely to disappear. Also read: US Postal Service watchdog to probe service woes as worries rise about mail ballots Reflecting the escalating nature of the controversy, former president Barack Obama has also weighed in. "What we've never seen before is a president say, 'I'm going to try to actively kneecap the Postal Service ... and I will be explicit about the reason I'm doing it,'" Obama said in a podcast with a former aide. On Saturday, protesters gathered at the Washington home of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, blaring horns and banging pots in anger. USPS spokesman David Partenheimer attributed changes at the agency to its poor financial state. "We are not slowing down election mail or any other mail," he told AFP. "The Postal Service is in a financially unsustainable position, stemming from substantial declines in mail volume and a broken business model," he explained. "We face an impending liquidity crisis," Partenheimer said, calling on Congress and regulators to enact reforms. Meanwhile, in Congress... The postal troubles come as Congress remains deadlocked over a new stimulus bill to follow the $2.2 trillion CARES Act package passed in March as the coronavirus crisis erupted. Democrats have proposed giving the USPS billions of dollars in funding, and Trump -- after first saying he opposed that -- said Friday that perhaps some new funds could be included in a compromise. × On Saturday he blamed the Democrats again, telling reporters they "aren't approving proper funding for postal, and they're not approving the proper funding for this ridiculous thing that they want to do which is all mail-in voting." "You're right, there has to be more resources, I agree," he said. Trump said candidly in April that mail-in voting "doesn't work out well for Republicans" and has repeatedly described such ballots as prone to fraud. Experts disagree. A study this year by New York University's Brennan Center for Justice found that "it is... more likely for an American to be struck by lightning than to commit mail voting fraud." In an interview, American Postal Workers Union President Mark Dimondstein blamed the nationwide slowdowns in mail deliveries on measures implemented by DeJoy, a Republican fundraiser appointed by Trump who took office in June and pledged to reform the agency. Dimondstein said overtime has recently been reduced, meaning carriers leave distribution centers immediately rather than wait 10 or 15 minutes for delayed mail, as they previously did. That, combined with the around 40,000 workers who have had to quarantine since March because of COVID-19, has created delays. DeJoy -- defended by Trump as a "fantastic man" -- has "arbitrarily reduced hours of work of the employees, but the same work is still there to get done," Dimondstein said. States act As concerns mount over the USPS's ability to handle the expected surge in ballots, states are working to ensure their residents' votes count. Pennsylvania this week asked its supreme court to push back its deadline for accepting mail-in ballots. In a court filing, it cited a letter from a USPS official to the state warning of "a risk that ballots requested near the deadline under state law will not be returned by mail in time to be counted under your laws." The Washington Post reported on Friday similar notices were sent to 45 other states and the District of Columbia. Jon Tester, a Democratic senator from Montana, also has asked DeJoy in writing to explain reports that the USPS was removing mailboxes from towns in the state. Late Friday, a USPS spokesman told CNN that removal of mailboxes was being halted in 16 states, including Montana, and parts of two others. Dimondstein said he hoped Trump's "brazen challenge to the democratic right -- that somehow he's going to starve this institution to suppress the vote -- somehow gives more impetus to Congress to react." "Congress needs to act, and they need to act soon," he said.

Postal slowdown sparks claims of plot to undermine US vote

The U.S. Postal Service’s internal watchdog is investigating cost cutting that has slowed delivery and alarmed lawmakers ahead of a presidential election when up to half of U.S. voters could cast ballots by mail, a congressional aide said on Friday.

The Postal Service’s inspector general also will examine possible conflicts of interest involving new Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who has donated $2.7 million to President Donald Trump and his fellow Republicans, according to Saloni Sharma, a spokeswoman for Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, who requested the investigation.

DeJoy owns millions of dollars in stock in Postal Service rivals and customers, according to a financial disclosure form filed by his wife.

The Inspector General’s Office is “conducting a body of work to address concerns raised,” spokeswoman Agapi Doulaveris said.

The investigation comes as the Postal Service is warning states there is “significant risk” voters will not have enough time to complete and return their ballots. The Postal Service late on Friday released letters it had sent to 46 states and the District of Columbia, after the Washington Post reported earlier on the extent of the warnings.

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The warning highlighted the possibility that a meaningful number of mail votes in the Nov. 3 presidential election might go uncounted if they are returned too late.

“State and local election officials must understand and take into account our operational standards and recommended timelines,” Postal Service spokeswoman Martha Johnson said.

Election officials are bracing for a deluge of mail ballots as many states have made it easier to vote by mail to address concerns about public gatherings during the coronavirus pandemic.

Republican President Donald Trump said Thursday that he opposes additional funding to make mail voting easier.

Trump, who is trailing Democratic rival Joe Biden in opinion polls, has said without evidence that widespread mail voting could lead to fraud. However, public records show he has requested mail ballots for himself and his wife Melania before Florida’s Tuesday primary election.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/ahead-of-presidential-election-trump-holds-up-coronavirus-aid-to-block-funding-for-mail-in-voting-320339">Also read:&nbsp;Ahead of presidential election, Trump holds up coronavirus aid to block funding for mail-in voting</a>

Evidence has shown that mail voting is as secure as any other method. Biden and other Democrats say Trump is trying to interfere with the election. Former Democratic President Barack Obama said he was worried that Trump was trying to “kneecap” the Postal Service.

The issue has taken on added urgency in recent weeks, as cost-cutting measures put in place by DeJoy have led to widespread mail delays.

Democratic congressional leaders and committee leaders sent a letter to Dejoy on Friday demanding an explanation for changes he is making at postal facilities.

Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, said on Friday that the changes could violate state laws against election tampering. She called for a criminal investigation.

Too little time?

The Postal Service has warned some states that allowing voters to request ballots less than a week before the election does not leave enough time to print the ballot, mail it to the voter and have it returned.

Half of the states allow voters to request an absentee ballot within seven days of an election. The Postal Service recommends that mail ballots should be completed and sent in by that point.

Ohio, Michigan and several other states with tight deadlines have so far not pushed them back.

Pennsylvania’s secretary of state asked the state Supreme Court to allow ballots to be counted if they are received up to three days after the Nov. 3 election, rather than on Election Day.

The Postal Service’s top lawyer, Thomas Marshall, also encouraged election officials to use its first-class mail service to ensure prompt delivery, rather than the cheaper and slower bulk-mail rate.

Marshall told Congress in a letter released Friday “we have ample capacity to handle the increased volume of Election Mail that will occur because of the pandemic.”

In past elections the Postal Service has given priority to all political and election mail, no matter the postage rate, according to workers and the service’s internal watchdog.

“If this letter aims to backtrack on that collaboration or the promise of prioritization of election mail, that would be very concerning,” said Tracy Wimmer, a spokeswoman for the Michigan Department of State, which oversees elections.

Roughly 0.25% of mail ballots were rejected in 2016 because they arrived too late, according to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.

The U.S. Postal Service’s internal watchdog is investigating cost cutting that has slowed delivery and alarmed lawmakers ahead of a presidential election when up to half of U.

The U.S. Postal Service’s internal watchdog is investigating cost cutting that has slowed delivery and alarmed lawmakers ahead of a presidential election when up to half of U.S. voters could cast ballots by mail, a congressional aide said on Friday. The Postal Service’s inspector general also will examine possible conflicts of interest involving new Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who has donated $2.7 million to President Donald Trump and his fellow Republicans, according to Saloni Sharma, a spokeswoman for Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, who requested the investigation. DeJoy owns millions of dollars in stock in Postal Service rivals and customers, according to a financial disclosure form filed by his wife. The Inspector General’s Office is “conducting a body of work to address concerns raised,” spokeswoman Agapi Doulaveris said. The investigation comes as the Postal Service is warning states there is “significant risk” voters will not have enough time to complete and return their ballots. The Postal Service late on Friday released letters it had sent to 46 states and the District of Columbia, after the Washington Post reported earlier on the extent of the warnings. × The warning highlighted the possibility that a meaningful number of mail votes in the Nov. 3 presidential election might go uncounted if they are returned too late. “State and local election officials must understand and take into account our operational standards and recommended timelines,” Postal Service spokeswoman Martha Johnson said. Election officials are bracing for a deluge of mail ballots as many states have made it easier to vote by mail to address concerns about public gatherings during the coronavirus pandemic. Republican President Donald Trump said Thursday that he opposes additional funding to make mail voting easier. Trump, who is trailing Democratic rival Joe Biden in opinion polls, has said without evidence that widespread mail voting could lead to fraud. However, public records show he has requested mail ballots for himself and his wife Melania before Florida’s Tuesday primary election. Also read: Ahead of presidential election, Trump holds up coronavirus aid to block funding for mail-in voting Evidence has shown that mail voting is as secure as any other method. Biden and other Democrats say Trump is trying to interfere with the election. Former Democratic President Barack Obama said he was worried that Trump was trying to “kneecap” the Postal Service. The issue has taken on added urgency in recent weeks, as cost-cutting measures put in place by DeJoy have led to widespread mail delays. Democratic congressional leaders and committee leaders sent a letter to Dejoy on Friday demanding an explanation for changes he is making at postal facilities. Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, said on Friday that the changes could violate state laws against election tampering. She called for a criminal investigation. Too little time? The Postal Service has warned some states that allowing voters to request ballots less than a week before the election does not leave enough time to print the ballot, mail it to the voter and have it returned. Half of the states allow voters to request an absentee ballot within seven days of an election. The Postal Service recommends that mail ballots should be completed and sent in by that point. Ohio, Michigan and several other states with tight deadlines have so far not pushed them back. Pennsylvania’s secretary of state asked the state Supreme Court to allow ballots to be counted if they are received up to three days after the Nov. 3 election, rather than on Election Day. The Postal Service’s top lawyer, Thomas Marshall, also encouraged election officials to use its first-class mail service to ensure prompt delivery, rather than the cheaper and slower bulk-mail rate. Marshall told Congress in a letter released Friday “we have ample capacity to handle the increased volume of Election Mail that will occur because of the pandemic.” In past elections the Postal Service has given priority to all political and election mail, no matter the postage rate, according to workers and the service’s internal watchdog. “If this letter aims to backtrack on that collaboration or the promise of prioritization of election mail, that would be very concerning,” said Tracy Wimmer, a spokeswoman for the Michigan Department of State, which oversees elections. Roughly 0.25% of mail ballots were rejected in 2016 because they arrived too late, according to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.

US Postal Service watchdog to probe service woes as worries rise about mail ballots

Pakistan has resumed postal mail services with India and lifted a ban on the delivery of letters, news agency ANI reported quoting a Pakistani media. Parcel services, however, remains banned, the reports added.

Pakistan has resumed postal mail services with India and lifted a ban on the delivery of letters, news agency ANI reported quoting a Pakistani media. Parcel services, however, remains banned, the reports added. Imran Khan-led Pakistan government unilaterally downgraded diplomatic relations with New Delhi after India abrogated Article 370 and bifurcate Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories. In August, the Pakistan government suspended postal mail services and partially shut its airspace. India had slammed Pakistan as the move was in contravention of international norms. "Pakistan has stopped postal services to India for the last two months. After Pakistan has stopped it our postal department has also thought of taking appropriate action," Minister of Communication and Information Technology, Ravi Shankar Prasad, had said on October 21.

Pakistan resumes postal mail services with India, lifts ban on delivery of letters  

Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said that Pakistan has unilaterally stopped postal services to India for the last two months, and this is in direct contravention of international norms.

He was speaking to media persons in Delhi on Monday. He said that Pakistan has taken the step without any prior notice or information to India.&nbsp;

"Pakistan has stopped postal services to India for the last two months. After Pakistan has stopped it our postal department has also thought of taking appropriate action," said the Minister of Communication and Information Technology.

"All come under the system of the World Postal Union. Pakistan`s decision is directly in contravention of the World Postal Union`s norms. But Pakistan is Pakistan, it has stopped the letters belonging to India," he said.

Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said that Pakistan has unilaterally stopped postal services to India for the last two months, and this is in direct contravention of international norms.

Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said that Pakistan has unilaterally stopped postal services to India for the last two months, and this is in direct contravention of international norms. He was speaking to media persons in Delhi on Monday. He said that Pakistan has taken the step without any prior notice or information to India. "Pakistan has stopped postal services to India for the last two months. After Pakistan has stopped it our postal department has also thought of taking appropriate action," said the Minister of Communication and Information Technology. "All come under the system of the World Postal Union. Pakistan`s decision is directly in contravention of the World Postal Union`s norms. But Pakistan is Pakistan, it has stopped the letters belonging to India," he said.

Pakistan has unilaterally stopped postal services to India: Ravi Shankar Prasad

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