Trump Holds Up Coronavirus Aid to Block Democrats’ Bid for Election Funding

President Trump has been railing against mail in voting for months now, saying it will create massive amounts of fraud, which is not true. The Military and 33 states allow absentee voting by mail, and 5 states have done 100% of their voting by mail for years with little evidence of fraud. Today Trump vowed to block any money which would help mail in voting.

Reuters reports “Trump said his negotiators have resisted Democrats’ calls for additional money to help prepare for presidential, congressional and local voting during a pandemic that has killed more than 165,000 Americans and presented severe logistical challenges to organizing large events like the Nov. 3 election. The items are the post office and the $3.5 billion for mail-in voting,” Trump told Fox Business Network, saying Democrats want to give the post office $25 billion. “If we do not make the deal, that means they cannot have the money, that means they can’t have universal mail-in voting. It just can’t happen.”

Democrats have accused Trump of trying to make it difficult for Americans to vote. The White House negotiating team has not met with Nancy Pelosi or Chuck Schumer in six days. Being able to vote without going to polling places this year is especially important, as people are trying to avoid the coronavirus. The President has stood in the way of any money for the Postal Service, “Pelosi said on MSNBC. The new Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who has donated 2.7 million to Trump and his fellow republicans, has ordered operational changes cutting back overtime in a bid to fix the Post Office, which reported a net loss of 2.2 billion in the last quarter.