President Trump said “use our Postal System as their Delivery Boy (causing tremendous loss to the U.S.)” in his tweet the other day referring to Amazon. Excuse me Mr. Trump but doesn’t the USPS have Managers that make these deals with Amazon? Also, the USPS is not the only “delivery boy” as I get 99% of my items from Amazon via United Parcel Service and a few by Fedex.
If POTUS doesn’t like the deal between Amazon and the USPS he should cancel it instead of whining about it.
Before Amazon every politician was complaining about Walmart causing mom and pop stores to shut down.
“If POTUS doesn’t like the deal between Amazon and the USPS he should cancel it instead of whining about it.”
POTUS does not control the post office. The postmaster general is no long a member of the cabinet. Congress made the post office an “independent” agency in 1971 and it reports to a commission. Ultimately Congress is responsible for the USPS. Direct and indirect subsidies given the post office by Congress total $18 billion per year. http://fortune.com/2015/03/27/us-postal-service/
Congress should not be giving the Post Office subsidies from the treasury which allows the post office to benefit some customers (Amazon) while most taxpayers pay higher rates. Congress has three options:
1) Continue the current practice of subsidizing the Post Office and allow it to favor some shippers.
2) Fully privatize the Post Office and end the subsidies. It remains independent, but will be subject to the marketplace. If it cannot redefine its business model to make a profit, it will descend into bankruptcy and liquidate.
3) Continue the post office as an independent commission but eliminate all subsidies and preferences. If the Post Office cannot reform its economic model to make a profit, it will descend into bankruptcy and liquidation of assets.
Under scenarios 2 & 3 the post office will not be able to survive if it continues to subsidize Amazon shipments. It will have to raise its rates to Amazon. If it raises rates to a level higher than its competitors, Amazon will use other services. Such is the invisible hand of the marketplace. It forces all companies to become efficient. Subsidies only encourage inefficiency.
Given the solution is the responsibility of a freestanding Congress nothing will be done. Congress is happy to create more debt to prop up the Post Office and subsidize Amazon. After all Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, owns the Washington Post and likely has the goods on most of the members of Congress.