Embattled U.S. Postmaster General Has Told Associates He Wants To Quit, Sources Say (David Steiner)

Huffington Post ^ | 9/16/26 | Jacob Bogage

[Libloather]

WASHINGTON, Sept 16 (Reuters) - The head of the U.S. Postal Service has told confidants that he is deeply discouraged by his job and wants to resign, according to four people familiar with his thinking, as the agency comes under scrutiny over financial losses and President Donald Trump’s effort to tighten rules on mail-in voting.

Postmaster General David Steiner, who took office in July 2025 after the White House forced out his predecessor, has expressed frustration over a lack of help from the White House and Congress in addressing the mail service’s long-running financial woes, the people said.

At the same time, the Postal Service was thrust to the center of a debate over the federal government’s role in voting after Trump directed it in March to serve as a clearinghouse for mail ballots. The Supreme Court on Monday blocked the agency from implementing key elements of the plan, dealing the White House a significant setback.

The pressures culminated in a contentious June Senate hearing, where lawmakers from both parties interrogated Steiner over poor delivery service, Trump’s ballot restrictions and his compensation.

The hearing left Steiner furious, the people said. In conversations afterward, Steiner described the job as thankless, warned that the agency’s finances were increasingly dire without federal aid, and said he wanted out, according to the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

“The message was, this isn’t what he signed up for, and he didn’t come on board to get beat up like this,” one of the people said.

---

TOPICS: Business/Economy; Computers/Internet; Conspiracy; History
KEYWORDS: elections; mail; postmaster; quit

[Libloather]

Install Festerman.

[qwerty1234]

USPS: “We are an independent agency and not controlled or funded by US taxpayers.”

Also USPS: “Why won’t the government bail us out so we can continue to give overly generous pay and benefits and pensions to our employees.”

[V_TWIN]

Well the 1st thing is if he wanna quit what the hells stopping him? Quit already.

Second, it is true that the usps isn’t your “normal” government agency.....which has always complicated managing it.

[Arkady]

Let’s see if I can fix this: “The agency came under scrutiny after it lost another 9 billion a year.” And “...his corrupt liberal predecessor was forced out after colluding with dems to deliver 200 million ballots to commie activists in swing states”.

[Liz]

USPS QUOTE: “The Postal Service generally receives no tax dollars for operating expenses,”
.............”and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.”

[Liz]

When starting out at the USPS, employees typically begin in “non-career” tracking roles. These roles offer a base hourly rate but fewer long-term benefits until the employee transitions into a permanent “career” position:

Entry-Level (Non-Career): Positions like City Carrier Assistants (CCAs) or Postal Support Employees (PSEs) typically start around $19.00 to $22.00 per hour.

Career Employees: Once converted to permanent status, starting pay bumps to roughly $23.05 per hour (~$46,000 annually). Over a 13-year step progression scale, top-tier regular carriers can reach a max base pay of $37.70+ per hour (~$75,000+ annually), not counting overtime.

Additional Compensation & Benefits

Base pay tells only part of the story. Postal workers often significantly increase their take-home earnings through overtime (1.5x base pay) and penalty overtime (2x base pay) during peak seasons.

Furthermore, full career postal employees receive federal benefits including robust health insurance options, comprehensive PTO and sick leave policies, a pension plan, and a Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) with up to a 5% employer match.

[kaktuskid]

Privatize it, just like the UK and Germany have.

[PeterPrinciple]

USPS: “We are an independent agency and not controlled or funded by US taxpayers.”

Also USPS: “Why won’t the government bail us out so we can continue to give overly generous pay and benefits and pensions to our employees.”

---

That is one view. On the other hand the government mandates and restricts management authority.

[catnipman]

“sources” ... they know EVERYTHING, don’t they?

[John Milner]

Let’s see if I can fix this: “The agency came under scrutiny after it lost another 9 billion a year.”

*********

Not sure if that means lost 9 billion dollars? Or lost 9 billion pieces of mail?

*********

It now routinely takes a week or more for a (low?) Priority item to make the trip from a Post Office in Florida to a mail box in the Midwest. Watching the tracking it goes through 5-7 different locations to make the trip. Lots of transportation and lots of handling. And many times it ends up making a side trip out west. Or BACK to Florida making it take up to 2 weeks.

While the official wording from the USPS is expect 2-3 days.

[stanne]

Then quit.

[GMThrust]

Well there are four of them, so... ;)

[meatloaf]

The USPS needs to be delayered. Set a goal of removing 10% or more of the managers each year. They can remain if they process mail in distribution centers.

[DownInFlames]

Unfortunately, it’s part of Congress’ role in the 18 enumerated powers.