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    Suspicious packages sent to election offices in 16 US states as threats mount

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    An investigation has been launched after suspicious packages, some containing white powder, were sent to election officials in 16 states, intensifying fears of disruption to the forthcoming US presidential election.Election offices in Alaska, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Tennessee, Wyoming, Oklahoma, Georgia, Missouri, Mississippi, Massachusetts, Indiana, Rhode Island, Maryland, Colorado and Connecticut all confirmed receiving suspect mail, triggering a joint investigation by the FBI and the US Postal Service (USPS).In one case, a package from a sender purporting to be “the United States Elimination Army” and marked with a return address in Maryland was sent to officials in the Nebraska elections division, according to the Washington Post.In a joint statement issued with the USPS, the FBI said it was collecting packages from what the agencies called “a series of suspicious mailings sent to election officials in several states.“We are also working with our partners to determine how many letters were sent, the individual or individuals responsible for the letters, and the motive behind the letters,” the statement said.The substance in some cases turned out, on inspection by local authorities, to be flour.Dispatch of the packages was disclosed two days after a suspected second assassination attempt on Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, in two months. It comes amid a febrile and increasingly toxic political atmosphere, punctuated by violence and threats and reports from several fronts of the specter of Russian interference, as well as rising fears among election officials and others that the outcome of the 5 November election could be subject to multiple challenges from committed partisans unwilling to accept the result and ready to intimidate election workers.The National Association of Secretaries of State, a nonpartisan body of public officials responsible for administering elections and voting procedures, said the packages were part of “a disturbing trend”.“With less than 50 days until the … [election] we are seeing a disturbing trend continue – the second assassination attempt of a presidential candidate, and threatening and intimidating actions towards election officials,” the association said. “This must stop, period. Our democracy has no place for political violence, threats or intimidation of any kind.”It is the second time in the past year that suspicious mail has been sent to election officials in multiple states. The latest episode came to light after postal voting – which has been labelled as corrupt by Trump and his supporters, who disparaged the practice to bolster their false accusations that the 2020 election was stolen – has already begun in several states.skip past newsletter promotionafter newsletter promotionThe development comes after Microsoft published a report citing evidence of increased evidence of attempted Russian interference in November’s poll. It identified attempts to denigrate the character of Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, with fake videos.In one instance, researchers found that a Russian covert disinformation operation created a video featuring a paid actor who falsely claimed that Harris had inflicted injuries on her in a 2011 hit-and-run incident.The fictitious claim was disseminated by a fake website for a nonexistent San Francisco news outlet named KBSF-TV. The Russian group responsible, which Microsoft called Storm-1516, is described as a Kremlin-aligned troll farm. More

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      Trump-appointed postmaster general investigated over political fundraising

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      Federal law enforcement authorities are investigating the controversial US postmaster general, Louis DeJoy, who was widely criticized for his handling of the post office during the election, in relation to political fundraising that involved his former company, the Washington Post reported on Thursday.FBI agents recently interviewed present and former employees who worked for DeJoy and his business, according to the Post. They are asking about campaign contributions and business activities, sources told the newspaper. Prosecutors also hit DeJoy with a subpoena for information, according to the report.The Post reported in September 2020 that staffers at DeJoy’s former business in North Carolina, New Breed Logistics, claimed that he or his aides pressured them to patronize fundraising events or contribute to GOP candidates. These employees alleged that they were reimbursed through bonuses.This sort of repayment could violate federal or state campaign contribution laws that bar “straw-donor” set-ups, which enable deep-pocketed donors to bypass contribution limits. Straw donors can also obscure the source of politicians’ fundDeJoy’s spokesman, Mark Corallo, reportedly confirmed that there was an investigation. He was adamant that DeJoy did not knowingly break any laws.“Mr DeJoy has learned that the Department of Justice is investigating campaign contributions made by employees who worked for him when he was in the private sector,” Corallo was quoted as saying. “He has always been scrupulous in his adherence to the campaign contribution laws and has never knowingly violated them.”The investigation could suggest looming legal problems for DeJoy. He has not been charged with any crime and maintained that his campaign fundraising complied with the law.DeJoy is a “prominent GOP fundraiser, who personally gave more than $1.1m  to the joint fundraising vehicle of President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign and the Republican party,” the newspaper noted.The postal service’s board of governors appointed DeJoy to postmaster general in May 2020. DeJoy’s tenure in the opstal service has been contentious.Shortly after DeJoy assumed his role, he enacted cost reduction initiatives that prompted limits to overtime and limiting mail runs, spurring delivery delays. Democrats claimed that DeJoy was trying to weaken the postal service in advance of the election, as Donald Trump vehemently distrusted mail-in voting.DeJoy previously insisted that he was not trying to impact the election. “I am not engaged in sabotaging the election,” DeJoy reportedly said at an August 2020 congressional hearing. “We will do everything in our power and structure to deliver the ballots on time.” More

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      Democrats urge Biden to fire USPS chief Trump ally who decimated mail service

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      Even in a drama-filled election unlike any other, the postmaster general, Louis DeJoy, and his assault on the postal service stood out.After Trump appointed the businessman to run the agency, DeJoy largely failed in his mission to help the former president discourage voters from casting ballots by mail, but evidence suggests his policies and the pandemic have decimated the postal service. Now many, including Democratic lawmakers, are calling on Biden to act swiftly to remove him and the Trump-majority UnitedStates Postal Service board of governors.Though Biden doesn’t have the authority to remove DeJoy himself, he could immediately appoint a Democratic-majority board that could fire the postmaster general, but the administration has yet to act. That’s left many asking “Why?”“We think he can move quickly and should move quickly and should be bold – there’s no debate about anyone being confirmed by the Senate, so let’s make it strong and powerful,” said Mark Dimondstein, president of the American Postal Workers Union.But it might take some time for that to happen. Representative Gerry Connolly, chair of the subcommittee on government operations, which oversees the postal service, labeled DeJoy a “huge problem” and is calling on Biden to fire the entire board, but told the Guardian he doesn’t think it’s “a fair question” to ask why the president hasn’t acted during his first three weeks in office.“Give him a little bit of time. We’re dealing with huge problems – a pandemic, huge economic challenges, he’s got to make cabinet appointments, he’s got his environmental agenda,” Connolly added. “But this needs to be on the priority list and I believe it will be.”Representative Tim Ryan, who in January sent a letter to Biden calling on him to “clean house”, stressed that late bill payments, late checks and delayed medication deliveries cause problems for many Americans and underscored the urgency. Though DeJoy has refused to release 2021 on-time delivery data, December numbers made public in lawsuits shows that only about 40% of first class mail was arriving on time – down from about 92% the year before.Those who spoke with the Guardian agreed that the delays affect Americans’ daily lives more than sub-cabinet appointments at a federal agency like the Department of Commerce.“We’ve got to hit the reset button because there’s no confidence in DeJoy and the board of governors who obviously have lost all control, and that’s inflicting pain on working-class people in places like Ohio,” Ryan said.Connolly said part of the delay in Biden taking action could stem from the administration “wrestling with” a strategy to remove DeJoy and deal with the board, which currently holds four Republicans and two Democrats. Biden could appoint three new Democrats, and that majority could, in theory, fire DeJoy. But some, like Connolly and Ryan, are calling on Biden to fire the entire board, including its Democrats, who Connolly accused of not providing meaningful resistance to DeJoy’s assault.“They’ve gone along to get along and that’s not what we needed,” Connolly said. “We needed forthright voices calling out DeJoy, so I believe they’re part of the problem, not part of the solution.”Ryan said the Biden administration didn’t respond to his letter, and he suspects that it may fear that immediate action would “create a lot of chaos”.Dimondstein also noted that the board is composed of older white men with no experience in the industry and who want to run the postal service as a business, when it’s actually a service.“We’re asking him to fill the openings immediately with strong postal service advocates and to bring some diversity to the board,” Dimondstein said. That includes someone who represents the interest of rural America, which relies heavily on the postal service because private delivery companies often won’t serve it.There’s also the symbolism: DeJoy, a Trump donor, was appointed to his role in May and immediately set to work enacting controversial changes that dramatically slowed first class mail service in critical swing states where large numbers of Democrats were expected to vote by mail. That’s viewed by many as an attack on democracy and weaponization of an essential service.“If you needed a reminder of how quickly this can become a political hot potato, that was it, and you ignore it at your own peril,” Connolly said.The postal service’s struggles don’t end at DeJoy. Its workforce has been flattened by the pandemic and officials say the operation is in need of a cash infusion and tens of thousands of additional employees. Its ageing equipment and 25-year-old delivery truck fleet are designed to largely handle first class mail but the postal service increasingly delivers packages, which makes the operation significantly less efficient.Meanwhile, a 2006 reform bill required the post office to pre-fund 75 years of its retiree healthcare costs, which has been a financial drag.Bipartisan legislation already introduced in the Senate and House would repeal the 2006 law, but Connolly said he was preparing a “more comprehensive” package that would address other major issues. Democrats are having “internal discussions” about the best approach, he added. Meanwhile, Ryan called on the federal government to provide relief to those who have incurred late fees or had credit scores dinged as a result of slowed mail service.Dimondstein applauded all the ideas, and said the USPS was also well-positioned to expand the services it offers, suggesting ideas like postal banking or electric vehicle charging infrastructure should the fleet be upgraded. That would help generate new revenue, but, regardless of what Democrats do, Dimondstein said they need to move quickly: “People are watching and patience is going to run thin.” More

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      in US Politics

      Judge orders US Postal Service to take 'extraordinary measures' to deliver ballots on time

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      [embedded content]
      A federal judge ordered the US Postal Service on Sunday to take “extraordinary measures” to ensure mail ballots arrive on time.
      USPS is seeing a severe dip in on-time delivery rates leading up to the 3 November presidential election, according to the data from the agency. Some of the largest mail delays are in battleground states where late ballots could make the difference in which candidate wins the state – and possibly the election.
      The judge’s ruling involves USPS using its express mail service to deliver ballots within one to two days, which will be crucial in states that require that ballots be received by election day.
      On-time rates during the week of 17 October – when about 20 million Americans were sending in their mail-in ballots – fell to the lowest they had been all year. Only 81% of first-class mail was delivered on time.
      Nationwide on-time rates for first-class USPS mail have plummeted in recent weeks.
      The mail delays have been especially notable in some key swing states. In the central Pennsylvania mailing district, where Philadelphia is located, on-time rates fell to 66% after being at about 90% just months earlier.
      In 2016, Democrats won Philadelphia by nearly 750,000 votes, but Trump made up the deficit with big wins in the more rural counties to win Pennsylvania by just 44,000 votes.
      Line chart showing in the Philadelphia mailing district, on-time rates plummeted.
      In the Detroit mailing district, on-time rates for first-class mail fell to 63%. It was above 90% at the beginning of the year. Detroit and the surrounding suburbs are where Democrats accrued most of their margin in 2016, when Trump won the state by less than 11,000 votes.
      Line chart showing in Detroit on-time rates plummeted.
      In both states, a record number of people have already voted by mail. But there are still hundreds of thousands of ballots that were requested but have yet to be returned.
      A mail delay could make the difference between whether a ballot is counted. For example, in Pennsylvania mail ballots must arrive by 6 November at 5pm.
      The postal service has come under scrutiny after Donald Trump’s ally Louis DeJoy was appointed postmaster general in May. DeJoy implemented cost-cutting changes to make the postal service more efficient, but that caused on-time rates to plummet.
      After complaints that USPS was purposely slowing down mail to help Trump’s re-election, Dejoy said he would suspend the changes until after the election. Soon thereafter, on-time rates rebounded – but they are now dropping again. More

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      Voter suppression: how Trump is undermining the US election – video explainer

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      Play Video

      5:32

      Americans are increasingly encountering barriers to exercising their most fundamental of democratic rights during this 2020 presidential election – the right to vote. 
      The Guardian’s Sam Levine looks at how voter suppression has been unfolding across the US, four key tactics being used in attempts to block votes, and how president Donald Trump is trying delegitimize November’s election
      Which US states make it hardest to vote?
      Is America a democracy? If so, why does it deny millions the vote?

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      Donald Trump

      The fight to vote

      US voting rights

      Joe Biden

      US Postal Service

      Coronavirus outbreak

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      Head of USPS board of governors has high-level ties to Republican party

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      Intense scrutiny of the United States Postal Service and its likely role in November’s election is calling new attention to the chairman of the organization’s board of governors, who has deep ties to influential Republicans including the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell.The postal service’s smooth running is seen as key to the success of mail-in voting in 2020, with tens of millions of voters expected to use postal votes instead of going to polling stations, out of health fears due to the coronavirus pandemic. Democrats have raised concerns that Republicans are seeking to disrupt the agency’s operations in ways that could hinder mail-in voting.The USPS board of governors chairman, Robert M Duncan, is partially the target of a request by the House oversight committee. The committee, chaired by Carolyn Maloney, a Democrat from New York, is asking for documents related to how the postmaster general, Louis DeJoy, was selected for his position.Through a spokesman for the USPS board of governors, Duncan declined a request by the Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer to provide more information on the appointment of DeJoy, a major Republican donor. The 11-member USPS board of governors oversees the policies and expenditures of the postal service. The board can also fire the postmaster general.To at least one former member of the board of governors, having a sitting member, much less a chair like Duncan, with such extensive political ties that could be a conflict of interest is unprecedented. More

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      in Elections

      Trump suggests people vote twice to test mail-in system, which would be illegal – video

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      Play Video

      1:10

      US president Donald Trump told voters in North Carolina they should vote twice, once by mail and once in person, even though doing so would be illegal. Trump was asked whether he has confidence in the mail-in voting system before suggesting voters break the law as he cast further confusion over the process ahead of November’s election. ‘Let them send it [their mail-in ballot] in and let them go vote, and if their system’s as good as they say it is, then obviously they won’t be able to vote,’ he said.’So that’s the way it is. And that’s what they should do’
      Barr echoes mail-in ballot falsehoods and denies racism in policing

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      Donald Trump

      US elections 2020

      US politics

      US Postal Service

      North Carolina More

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      Trump's postal chief ousted brother to win control of family firm, court files allege

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      Last week, as the Louis DeJoy testified before the House of Representatives about mail slowdowns around the country, the Republican congressman Jim Jordan praised the embattled postmaster general’s career as the chief executive of New Breed Logistics, saying DeJoy had an “amazing record in business”.But court documents reviewed by the Guardian allege that as DeJoy expanded his father’s shipping company into a logistics empire, he alienated his own family, pushing his brother Dominick out of the company and triggering an acrimonious legal battle with long-lasting consequences. The lawsuit and its outcome provide new insight into how Louis DeJoy came to control the company that made him wealthy and put him in a position to become a top Republican donor and, later, the postmaster general.A complaint filed by Dominick DeJoy in North Carolina state court in January 2000 alleges that Louis DeJoy:forged his brother’s signature to establish joint bank accounts in both of their names.
      forced his brother to sign away his ownership stake in New Breed.
      restructured New Breed’s ownership to exclude Dominick from the profits.
      concealed evidence of the new ownership structure from his brother.
      Family patriarch Dominick DeJoy Sr founded New Breed in 1968 as a small-time trucking concern in New York and New Jersey. After suffering a debilitating injury in 1977, he passed control of the company to his sons Dominick Jr and Michael; Louis, the eldest, was in college at the time, studying to become an accountant. Dominick did not go to college, instead taking over New Breed’s operations after graduating from high school.Louis graduated the following year and became a certified public accountant shortly after, and returned to New York to join his brothers at the helm of their father’s company. For the next decade, Louis was New Breed’s chief financial officer, handling the company’s bank accounts and tax filings.Together, the three brothers reincorporated New Breed with Louis as president and each brother owning a third of the company. They then pushed business outward from the New York area, expanding operations nationwide and moving the headquarters to North Carolina; according to the court filing, the brothers only held one in-person board meeting over the course of more than 15 years, despite Dominick and Louis living just a few miles apart in Greensboro.“Dominick Jr trusted Louis, believed he was a capable [accountant], and believed that Louis would responsibly look after all three brothers’ interests,” said the court filing.Some time in the 1990s, Louis and his brother Michael allegedly executed a kind of financial shell game to deprive Dominick Jr of his stake in the family business, according to the complaint. Michael established a new set of holding companies that did business with New Breed’s clients, and Louis allegedly told his brother Dominick multiple times that he would be entitled to a third of the proceeds from these new companies.Louis allegedly sent his own employees to intercept the documents and prevent Dominick from seeing themIn fact, according to Dominick’s complaint, the new arrangement gave Dominick no equity in the companies whatsoever.It wasn’t until April 1998, when Louis undertook to reorganize the entire company once again, that Dominick alleges he became aware of what he claimed was a scheme to defraud him. The ownership structure of the reorganized company would reduce Dominick’s share in New Breed by more than half, giving him a 15% stake instead of the one-third stake he thought he had. According to the court documents, Louis and Michael “conspired and did force” Dominick to sign the agreement.The following year, according to the court documents, Dominick made an even more shocking discovery: Louis had established multiple accounts in his name at local banks and investment trusts, forging Dominick’s signature in order to set up accounts of which they were supposedly the joint owners. Louis then deposited Dominick’s New Breed earnings into these accounts and either spent the money on his own personal expenses or funneled it back into New Breed, according to the court documents. When certain employees tried to send evidence of these fake accounts to Dominick, Louis allegedly sent his own employees to intercept the documents and prevent Dominick from seeing them.No sooner did Dominick sue Louis than New Breed sued Dominick on Louis’s behalf, demanding Dominick drop his lawsuit. Court records show that the cases were consolidated in a state business court later that year. Records also show that the presiding judge arranged in January 2001 for Dominick to depose an employee of Wachovia Securities, a bank that was considering an outside investment in New Breed. But later that month, just two days before the deposition was scheduled to take place, the brothers reached a confidential settlement and the judge dismissed the case. More