Congresswoman blocked from touring mail facility by Postal Service police

 

Providing "enough" notice of an inspection negates the usefulness of an inspection.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/congresswoman-blocked-touring-mail-facility-postal-service-police-n1239359

Sept. 4, 2020, 4:38 PM EDT
By Phil McCausland

U.S. Postal Service police barred Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz from entering two mail sorting facilities in Florida in the early morning hours on Friday, threatening to escort her from the property if she didn't leave.

The Florida Democrat, who sits on the House Oversight Committee, said she aimed to inspect a mail plant in Opa-locka and Northwest Miami-Dade. Wasserman Schultz said union members told her about conditions at the processing centers and shared pictures that showed pallets of undelivered mail marked with a receipt date of "July 23."

Her office said those photos were sent to them earlier this week and raise further questions about how the Postal Service is being run under the leadership of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, a close ally of President Donald Trump. NBC News was not able to independently verify the photo of the reportedly undelivered mail.

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The Postal Service maintained Wasserman Schultz was stopped from entering because she did not provide enough notice of her visit.

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A congressional aide told NBC News that they alerted the Postal Service at 1:30 p.m. on Thursday that they intended to make the visit. Because of the photos and the fear of what might be hidden from the congresswoman's view, the short notice was intentional.

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"We weren’t asking for permission,” the aide said.

Rep. Brenda Lawrence and Sen. Gary Peters, both Michigan Democrats, visited a similar facility in Michigan last month. An aide to Peters said Friday that local union leaders had told the two members of Congress that the plant had been intentionally cleared of delayed mail because of their impending arrival.

Wasserman Schultz did not want the Postal Service to have the same opportunity with the plants in Florida.

But when Wasserman Schultz went to the Royal Palm Processing and Distribution Center in Opa-Locka, Florida, for a 4 a.m. tour of the facility, the entrance to the parking lot was blocked by caution tape and a Postal Service police car. Her visit to the Miami Processing and Distribution Center a couple hours later was blocked by two Postal Service police officers in the lobby.

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“There are no children, defense secrets or sick patients behind those doors," Wasserman Schultz said. "I’m perfectly capable of observing the work being done at a safe social distance, which I did without a lengthy delay or incident earlier this year. Denying Congress access to the facilities, is denying the vital public oversight of our mail system.”