Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) accidentally dropped a slew of “F-bombs” on live television during the Senate hearing focused on the testimony of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy.
During the hearing, Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) called on Carper to speak.
“Senator Carper,” Johnson called out as the camera remained him. “Is Senator Carper there?”
Johnson, then, called on Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) as he sought to move on after receiving no response from Carper. But as Johnson prepared to move on, Carper could be heard saying, “F—, f—, f—,” as the camera suddenly shifted to a view of his office.
See the footage below:
Sen. Tom Carper dropping some f bombs, apparently because his computer was muted: pic.twitter.com/uARqNK6IQ5
— Matt Shuham (@mattshuham) August 21, 2020
At the time of the shift, Carper appeared to be speaking with someone in his office who could also be seen at the screen. However, both appeared to be unaware that the microphone was on. Lankford signaled that Carper was able to speak saying, “Senator, I think Sen. Carper is there.”
“Senator Carper, can you unmute?” an amused Johnson said smiling before he added, “We don’t want to be on TV again.”
Carper then proceeded with his questions. The Senate hearing comes amid public outcry and scrutiny of DeJoy’s handling of the United States Postal Service.
On Tuesday, DeJoy released a statement confirming operational changes would be halted until after the election, as previously reported on IJR.
“To avoid even the appearance of any impact on election mail, I am suspending these initiatives until after the election is concluded,” DeJoy said in a statement.
He added, “I came to the Postal Service to make changes to secure the success of this organization and its long-term sustainability. I believe significant reforms are essential to that objective, and work toward those reforms will commence after the election.”
The latest hearing is one of many being held virtually in an effort to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus. DeJoy is also set to testify before the Democratic-led House Oversight Committee on Monday.
