The U.S. Postal Service announced that it has tapped a major donor to President Donald Trump as its new postmaster general.
Louis DeJoy, an accomplished businessman from North Carolina, has been selected to serve as the new head effective June 15.
Robert M. (Mike) Duncan, chair of the Board of Governors, issued a statement on Wednesday.
“Louis DeJoy understands the critical public service role of the United States Postal Service, and the urgent need to strengthen it for future generations,” Duncan said.
He continued, “The Board appreciated Louis’ depth of knowledge on the important issues facing the Postal Service and his desire to work with all of our stakeholders on preserving and protecting this essential institution.”
The Postal Service made the appointment upon Megan Brennan’s retirement. She announced she intended to step down in October of 2019.
“I look forward to working with the supporters of the Postal Service in Congress and the Administration to ensure the Postal Service remains an integral part of the United States government,” DeJoy said.
He continued, “Postal workers are the heart and soul of this institution, and I will be honored to work alongside them and their unions. It will be an incredible honor to serve as Postmaster General, and I commit myself to upholding the Postal Service’s cherished role in our nation.”
DeJoy has been a longtime supporter of Trump and the Republican party.
Since January, he has donated over $360,000 to Trump’s reelection campaign. He has also donated about $70,000 to the Republican National Committee.
Trump has been critical of the Postal Service in the past.
He claimed the Postal Service has been taken advantage of by companies such as Amazon and urged the institution to raise prices of packages.
“They don’t want to raise it, because they don’t want to insult Amazon,” Trump said. “If they don’t raise the price, I’m not signing anything.”
He said last month unless the Postal Service raises the prices of packages “four times or five times,” Trump will block financial assistance to the agency.
“I will never let our Post Office fail. It has been mismanaged for years, especially since the advent of the internet and modern-day technology,” Trump previously tweeted. “The people that work there are great, and we’re going to keep them happy, healthy, and well!”
I will never let our Post Office fail. It has been mismanaged for years, especially since the advent of the internet and modern-day technology. The people that work there are great, and we’re going to keep them happy, healthy, and well!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 24, 2020
https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/946728546633953285
Since the Postal Service became an independent establishment, DeJoy will become the fifth Postmaster General appointed from the private sector.
