democracynow--2020-04-29--Vote by Mail: Head of Postal Union Says Mailed Ballots Are Best Way to Secure 2020 Election

This is a rush transcript .
Copy may not be in its final form .
AMY GOODMAN : I want to go to President Trump , before we end , talking about mail-in voting .
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP : You get thousands and thousands of people sitting in somebody ’ s living room signing ballots all over the place .
No , I think that mail-in voting is a terrible thing .
I think if you vote , you should go .
And even the concept of early voting is not the greatest , because a lot of things happen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But you should go , and you should vote .
I think you should go and you should vote .
You look at what they do , where they grab thousands of mail-in ballots , and they dump it .
I ’ ll tell you what — and I don ’ t have to tell you , you can look at the statistics — there ’ s a lot of dishonesty going along with mail-in voting .
AMY GOODMAN : [ inaudible ] go on to ask him , “ Didn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ did in Florida .
But , Mark Dimondstein , let ’ s talk about this .
In the time of the coronavirus pandemic , I mean , we see what happened in Wisconsin , the fiasco around voting , when people were afraid to go out to vote .
The issue of mail-in voting , increasingly significant in this critical election year , how is it threatened ?
What does this mean ?
MARK DIMONDSTEIN : Well , look , we ’ re talking now about basic access to the ballot box and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to vote .
And the reality is , the Post Office is the most trusted federal agency , 91 % in the last Pew Research poll last week , obviously also reflecting a new and great appreciation for what postal workers are doing during this crisis .
But we ’ ve been servicing the people of this country on vote by mail and the information around balloting , voter registration and so on , for decades and decades .
And the states that have mandatory vote by mail have absolutely no fraud .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
And so , if people are going have true access to the ballot box , we ’ re going to have to have vote by mail .
And that ’ s been really brought home in this tragic crisis .
And if we don ’ t have a United States public Postal Service , we will not be able to have vote by mail .
And anybody that thinks voting can take place on the internet and take place safely , that ’ s a pipe dream .
The internet , in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Mail can not be .
So , it ’ s a great way .
People are voting voluntarily that way , long before this crisis , in California — AMY GOODMAN : And they don ’ t have to pay , of course , when they ’ re sending in their vote by mail — AMY GOODMAN : — because we have a U.S. Post Office , unlike the private corporations .
MARK DIMONDSTEIN : That ’ s right .
That ’ s right .
It actually saves the cities , states @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It increases voter participation .
And just the opposite of thousands of people getting together filling out each other ’ s ballots , it actually gives people a chance to make a more informed vote , to think about it , but to have access to the ballot box .
The last time I went to vote , last November , was a three-hour wait at the polling place .
And , of course , our elections are on a workday , so it ’ s much more hard — it ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vote .
So , it ’ s a thrust towards more democracy , defense of our democratic rights .
And obviously , this pandemic has brought home that if we ’ re going to have true access to the ballot box — or more access to the ballot box , because we really don ’ t have true access now — vote by mail is definitely the way to go .
It was before .
Now it ’ s very , very clear .
And postal workers are ready to continue to serve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sorts of ways , including that defense of our democratic right to vote .
AMY GOODMAN : Mark Dimondstein , we want to thank you for being with us , president of the American Postal Workers Union .
We go from the Post Office to education in this country .
Stay with us .
AMY GOODMAN : That ’ s Mariachi Nuevo Santander from Roma High School in Texas , virtually playing “ These Are These Eyes ” by Cuco Sánchez .

This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: I want to go to President Trump, before we end, talking about mail-in voting.
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: You get thousands and thousands of people sitting in somebody’s living room signing ballots all over the place. No, I think that mail-in voting is a terrible thing. I think if you vote, you should go. And even the concept of early voting is not the greatest, because a lot of things happen. But it’s OK. But you should go, and you should vote. I think you should go and you should vote. You look at what they do, where they grab thousands of mail-in ballots, and they dump it. I’ll tell you what — and I don’t have to tell you, you can look at the statistics — there’s a lot of dishonesty going along with mail-in voting.
AMY GOODMAN: [inaudible] go on to ask him, “Didn’t you mail-in vote?” Which he did in Florida. But, Mark Dimondstein, let’s talk about this. In the time of the coronavirus pandemic, I mean, we see what happened in Wisconsin, the fiasco around voting, when people were afraid to go out to vote. The issue of mail-in voting, increasingly significant in this critical election year, how is it threatened? What does this mean?
MARK DIMONDSTEIN: Well, look, we’re talking now about basic access to the ballot box and defense of our cherished and hard-fought right to vote. And the reality is, the Post Office is the most trusted federal agency, 91% in the last Pew Research poll last week, obviously also reflecting a new and great appreciation for what postal workers are doing during this crisis. But we’ve been servicing the people of this country on vote by mail and the information around balloting, voter registration and so on, for decades and decades. And the states that have mandatory vote by mail have absolutely no fraud. So that’s just not true. And so, if people are going have true access to the ballot box, we’re going to have to have vote by mail. And that’s been really brought home in this tragic crisis. And if we don’t have a United States public Postal Service, we will not be able to have vote by mail. And anybody that thinks voting can take place on the internet and take place safely, that’s a pipe dream. The internet, in all aspects, can be easily hacked. Mail cannot be. So, it’s a great way. People are voting voluntarily that way, long before this crisis, in California —
AMY GOODMAN: And they don’t have to pay, of course, when they’re sending in their vote by mail —
MARK DIMONDSTEIN: No.
AMY GOODMAN: — because we have a U.S. Post Office, unlike the private corporations.
MARK DIMONDSTEIN: That’s right. That’s right. It actually saves the cities, states, counties money. It works well. It increases voter participation. And just the opposite of thousands of people getting together filling out each other’s ballots, it actually gives people a chance to make a more informed vote, to think about it, but to have access to the ballot box. The last time I went to vote, last November, was a three-hour wait at the polling place. And, of course, our elections are on a workday, so it’s much more hard — it’s much harder for working people to vote.
So, it’s a thrust towards more democracy, defense of our democratic rights. And obviously, this pandemic has brought home that if we’re going to have true access to the ballot box — or more access to the ballot box, because we really don’t have true access now — vote by mail is definitely the way to go. It was before. Now it’s very, very clear. And postal workers are ready to continue to serve the people of this country in all sorts of ways, including that defense of our democratic right to vote.
AMY GOODMAN: Mark Dimondstein, we want to thank you for being with us, president of the American Postal Workers Union. We go from the Post Office to education in this country. Stay with us.
[break]
AMY GOODMAN: That’s Mariachi Nuevo Santander from Roma High School in Texas, virtually playing “These Are These Eyes” by Cuco Sánchez.


democracynow--2020-04-29--Trump Attacks Post Office While Carriers & Clerks Die from COVID-19

This is a rush transcript .
Copy may not be in its final form .
AMY GOODMAN : This is Democracy Now !
, democracynow.org , The Quarantine Report .
I ’ m Amy Goodman in New York City , with my co-host Juan González joining us from his home in New Brunswick , New Jersey .
More than 6,400 people have now died from coronavirus-related complications in New Jersey ; at least — well , close to 114,000 cases of COVID-19 have been reported , second only to New York .
Hi , Juan .
JUAN GONZÁLEZ : Hi @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of our listeners and viewers across the country and around the world .
AMY GOODMAN : Well , wishing your family very well in these very difficult times .
We ’ re going to turn right now to the Post Office .
We look at the devastating impact the coronavirus has had on the U.S .
Postal Service , which may be on the brink of collapse — this at a time when more people than ever are relying on the mail .
The nation ’ s mail service faces steep losses in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ through summer without major federal assistance .
But President Trump and his administration have repeatedly rejected attempts to bail out the Postal Service , blocking its inclusion in the $ 2.3 trillion stimulus bill .
Trump lashed out at USPS on Friday .
AMY GOODMAN : The Washington Post called Trump ’ s claim that the USPS loses money on every package it delivers for e-commerce merchants “ baseless.
” Later that day , Trump tweeted , quote , “ I will never let our Post Office fail .
It has been mismanaged @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the internet and modern-day technology .
The people that work there are great , and we ’ re going to keep them happy , healthy , and well !
” Trump tweeted .
At least 30 Postal Service workers have died from COVID-19 .
The U.S. Post Office has reported more than 1,200 confirmed cases of the virus .
Workers report a lack of protective gear .
Earlier this month , Senator Bernie Sanders discussed the crisis confronting the Postal Service with American Postal Workers Union President Mark Dimondstein .
AMY GOODMAN @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the U.S .
Postal Service also poses a massive threat to the upcoming November presidential election .
Well , for more , we are joined by the American Postal Workers Union president , Mark Dimondstein .
Welcome to Democracy Now !
First and foremost , can you talk about the health of the workers in the U.S .
Postal Service around this country , what they ’ re confronting now ?
Here in New York , we see post offices closed .
Mail is not delivered for weeks .
I talked to a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the street .
He was saying that they are devastated .
MARK DIMONDSTEIN : Well , first , greetings .
Thank you so much for having us on , Amy .
Look , it ’ s a challenging and dangerous time .
Postal workers are essential frontline workers .
We salute all the frontline workers — grocery store workers , healthcare personnel , transit workers , firefighters and so on .
These are tough times .
The Postal Service and the postal employees , proud postal employees , are doing the best we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people of the country , get vital supplies , life-saving medicines , all sorts of important information .
And the mission of the Post Office is to bind the country together — the public Postal Service .
So , obviously , there ’ s going to be gaps in mail service .
There ’ s workers who are unable to come to work because of sickness , because of quarantine , because of deep concerns and fears .
And we have a liberal leave policy that helps protect the workers protect themselves .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Office is still able to serve , even in these very difficult times .
And the pandemic — you know , the Post Office and postal workers are often taken for granted .
We ’ ve been here since the year before the country was founded .
It ’ s something that ’ s always there .
But in this time of pandemic , I think there is a great appreciation for what postal workers are doing .
We have had deaths .
We have — it ’ s up to , unfortunately @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sick , and many people have been quarantined .
And yet , the proud postal workers are still coming to work when they can and serving the American people the best we can .
JUAN GONZÁLEZ : Well , Mark Dimondstein , I wanted to ask you , this whole — we constantly hear these reports that the Postal Service is in huge — is running huge deficits every year .
But could you talk about how the previous reform that required the Postal Service to prepay all of these retirement benefits for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has had , the decision by Congress to impose that restriction on the Postal Service , what that has — the impact that has had on the bottom line ?
MARK DIMONDSTEIN : Well , it definitely had an impact on the bottom line , and I can share that briefly , but I do want to differentiate some of the historical problems and the ongoing problems with the COVID pandemic economic crisis and how that ’ s affecting the Post Office .
But as a little background , in 2006 , Congress @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Enhancement Act .
And they did something to the public Postal Service that no other government agency and no other private company has ever had to do , and it ’ s just too onerous .
They forced the Post Office to pay 75 years into the future , and within a 10-year period , 75 years into the future , of retiree health benefits .
So , that ’ s for workers that not only did not work at the Post Office yet , but weren ’ t even born yet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ much of the news stories each year about the Postal Service being in debt came from .
It was a manufactured , on-paper crisis .
The reality is , if you took out that prefunding mandate , the Post Office actually did quite well .
The Post Office is not set up as a business .
It ’ s not set up to pack billions of dollars in the bank and enrich shareholders or CEOs .
It ’ s set up to serve the people of the country .
And it was doing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But if I can fast-forward to now , I think it ’ s important to separate out some of the ongoing problems , some of changing mail habits , some of the opportunities that the Post Office has to bring in new revenue , like postal banking and so on , but talk about what ’ s really happening right now , because whatever happened in 2006 , even if it didn ’ t happen , the COVID pandemic is having a huge , devastating , dire impact on postal revenue .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s no taxpayer dollars that goes into the Post Office .
It runs strictly on the revenue of postal and postal products .
And that revenue has to be able to be enough to carry out the mission of what we call the universal service mandate — every address , every person , no matter who we are and where we live , a great small-d democratic right , getting mail , packages , six days a week now , sometimes seven .
And what ’ s happened in this pandemic , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ country and world — but what ’ s happened specifically to the Postal Service is the mail has precipitously dropped off .
Just think about it .
What restaurant is sending coupons through the mail ?
What small business is saying , “ Come to my business , we have a sale going on , ” while the business is closed ?
Even grandpa , like me , can ’ t go out and buy the birthday card for the grandkids and put it in the mail , because the store is closed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
So it ’ s had a huge impact .
And what ’ s happening is , a lot of the mail , the marketing mail , for example , has dropped off almost 50 % .
And that ’ s going to continue to happen .
Packages are up some , but how long is that going to last , when 25 million people , and more to come , are unemployed ?
So , what ’ s happening is , there ’ s a fork in the road .
The Postal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , whether it ’ s this summer , whether it ’ s early fall .
The revenue just isn ’ t there , strictly based on COVID .
So , what we ’ ve asked — and it ’ s not just the “ we ” of the postal union ’ s .
The postal Board of Governors , which sets policy , which is a majority-Republican board right now , has unanimously asked for robust relief , not a bailout — this is for the people of the country ; this doesn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ any CEOs — but to make up that lost revenue , so the Post Office can weather this crisis and still , at the same time , serve the people of the country , both in ordinary times and in this time of crisis .
So , it ’ s serious .
It ’ s real .
And again , it ’ s very focused on the COVID pandemic economic impact .
JUAN GONZÁLEZ : And in addition to the potential or the possibility of additional help as a result of COVID from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you talk a little bit more about these proposals , reformed ways for new — possible reforms for new revenues for the Post Office , specifically this whole issue of banking , or what other people call Federal Reserve accounts , that would be used through individual post offices ?
MARK DIMONDSTEIN : Look , the Post Office is a wonderful national treasure in every community , from the most remote rural portions of the country to the most densely populated urban centers and neighborhoods .
And as such — and again , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ together .
So , there ’ s so much more that the Post Office can do .
It already does a certain amount of financial services .
It could do a lot more , even basic paycheck cashing , ATMs in Postal Service , money transfers .
All of that would be a counter to this predatory payday-lending , check-cashing industry .
There ’ s tens of millions of people that are either unbanked or underbanked , meaning that they have no bank account at all , where they end up in this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — we call it the loan sharking predatory industry .
So , there are opportunities there to serve the people .
It would bring in revenue .
Postal workers are eager to perform those kind of things .
There could be all sorts of licensing .
There could be , you know , internet access .
There could be copying services .
There ’ s all sorts of things that the Post Office can do and should do .
But in order to get there , we have to make sure that we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that now is really up for grabs , because , clearly , we have an administration that would like to — and it ’ s clear .
They have an agenda .
They would like to sell the public Postal Service off to private corporations , privatize it and turn what ’ s a service of the people into — and everybody has the same equal access to — turn it into a profit-making entity , where whether people get mail service or not , and at what cost and what kind of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can make a quick dollar .
And again , the Post Office is set up on a nonprofit basis to serve every single person .
So , this administration has an agenda , and they ’ re shamefully using this crisis to carry it out rather than set policy .
I mean , here you had an incentive package of $ 2.2 trillion .
The corporations got $ 500 billion .
The postal Board of Governors asked for $ 25 billion of that $ 500 billion .
Didn ’ t get it .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to ask you also — we just have a little bit of time left , but I wanted to ask you about this allegation of President Trump that Amazon is getting sweetheart deals from the Postal Service , and also the possibilities he ’ s raising about giving access to Americans ’ mailboxes for the private carrier industry .
MARK DIMONDSTEIN : Well , look , every agency with authority , the Postal Regulatory Commission and others , has debunked that myth that the Postal Service is losing money on Amazon and other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ true .
And for a president of the United States to tell the people of this country and the postal workers who are on the frontlines that the postal workers — that the Post Office is a joke — something that belongs to everybody in this country , it belongs to the people — that is the absolute insult of insults .
And it ’ s not a laughing matter to the people of the country , to veterans that rely on their medicines to come from the VA .
The Postal Service @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of medicine and so on .
So , it ’ s — and I ’ m sorry , I forgot your second part of that question .
If you could say it again ?
JUAN GONZÁLEZ : And also the possibility of bringing in private carriers to deliver in regular post office boxes ?
MARK DIMONDSTEIN : Well , look , our mailbox is an extension of our living room .
It ’ s part of our home .
It ’ s private .
Nobody can walk through our front door .
Nobody @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It ’ s the last — really , it ’ s the last holdout of true private communications .
The internet is not , Facebook is not , tweeting is not , and so on .
So , that ’ s what ’ s called the sanctity of the mail .
And if the Post Office was to let die by this administration , we don ’ t think that the people of the country are going to put up with that .
They ’ re not going to let it be stolen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , part of what would die with it is that right to privacy and the right to what we call the sanctity of the mail .
So , that ’ s an absurd idea , and we don ’ t think the people of the country are going to buy that idea .
But again , we ’ re not going to have these debates if we don ’ t call Congress , if we don ’ t write Congress , if we don ’ t email Congress , if we don ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ going around .
The listeners can go to APWU.org .
There are petitions there demanding that Congress step up and do the right thing .
AMY GOODMAN : Mark , I wanted to ask you about the disproportionate impact that this threat against the Post Office has .
Actor and activist Danny Glover wrote a piece last year in USA Today headlined “ My parents proudly worked for the US Postal Service .
Don ’ t destroy it.
” In it , he wrote , “ For black families like mine , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the few reliable paths to the middle class .
… Today , the Postal Service remains a critical source of good jobs for African Americans .
Black employees make up 28.6 % of the postal workforce — more than double their share of the U.S. population.
” So , if you can talk about this ?
And then I want to ask you about mail at home .
MARK DIMONDSTEIN : Well , we are very proud that the Postal Service is such a diverse workforce , how many workers really truly have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hiring practices and so on .
And because of our union contracts , we have equal pay for equal work .
And the postal clerks , the people that you see when you go to a post office and buy stamps and bring packages and so on — the postal clerks are now over 50 % women , equal pay for equal work .
As you mentioned , it has been a wonderful opportunity for many of the African American workers , Asian workers , Latino workers and White workers .
And we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ And Danny Glover , activist , actor Danny Glover , is very clear that without the opportunity that his parents had — and they helped make that opportunity .
They were union activists themselves .
It wasn ’ t always a good job .
It was fought for .
He ’ s very clear that the opportunities he had in life were largely based on his parents ’ opportunity to make a decent living and give their family the opportunity and path that he was able to take .
So , it ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that we ’ re also —

This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now!, democracynow.org, The Quarantine Report. I’m Amy Goodman in New York City, with my co-host Juan González joining us from his home in New Brunswick, New Jersey. More than 6,400 people have now died from coronavirus-related complications in New Jersey; at least — well, close to 114,000 cases of COVID-19 have been reported, second only to New York. Hi, Juan.
JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Hi, Amy. And welcome to all of our listeners and viewers across the country and around the world.
AMY GOODMAN: Well, wishing your family very well in these very difficult times.
We’re going to turn right now to the Post Office. We look at the devastating impact the coronavirus has had on the U.S. Postal Service, which may be on the brink of collapse — this at a time when more people than ever are relying on the mail. The nation’s mail service faces steep losses in revenue, warns it may not survive through summer without major federal assistance. But President Trump and his administration have repeatedly rejected attempts to bail out the Postal Service, blocking its inclusion in the $2.3 trillion stimulus bill. Trump lashed out at USPS on Friday.
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: The Postal Service is a joke, because they’re handing out packages for Amazon and other internet companies, and every time they bring a package, they lose money on it. … The Post Office, if they raised the price of a package by approximately four times, it would be a whole new ball game. But they don’t want to raise, because they don’t want to insult Amazon, and they don’t want to insult other companies, perhaps, that they like. The Post Office should raise the price of the packages to the companies — not to the people, to the companies. And if they did that, it would be a whole different story.
AMY GOODMAN: The Washington Post called Trump’s claim that the USPS loses money on every package it delivers for e-commerce merchants “baseless.”
Later that day, Trump tweeted, quote, “I will never let our Post Office fail. It has been mismanaged for years, especially since the advent of the internet and modern-day technology. The people that work there are great, and we’re going to keep them happy, healthy, and well!” Trump tweeted.
At least 30 Postal Service workers have died from COVID-19. The U.S. Post Office has reported more than 1,200 confirmed cases of the virus. Workers report a lack of protective gear.
Earlier this month, Senator Bernie Sanders discussed the crisis confronting the Postal Service with American Postal Workers Union President Mark Dimondstein.
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS: I understand that the postmaster general has said that the Postal Service will be running out of money in a few months. The Postal Service has been dealing with long-term financial problems. … What would happen to this country if the Postal Service went out of business?
MARK DIMONDSTEIN: If the Post Office were allowed to die, and with this COVID pandemic and its economic impact on the Postal Service, if Congress doesn’t step up and the people ensure that Congress steps up, the Post Office could die. It runs on no taxpayer dollars. It runs on revenue.
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS: Say that again, because I think most people don’t know that.
MARK DIMONDSTEIN: The Post Office —
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS: Most people think that it’s a government agency. Explain where the revenue comes from that sustains the Postal Service.
MARK DIMONDSTEIN: It’s a quasi-independent government agency that only runs on revenue from postage and postal services, no taxpayer dollars. And that revenue has to be able to maintain the delivery to 160 million addresses, the retail units all over the country, often the anchor of community, whether it’s rural or urban.
AMY GOODMAN: This comes as the attack on the U.S. Postal Service also poses a massive threat to the upcoming November presidential election.
Well, for more, we are joined by the American Postal Workers Union president, Mark Dimondstein.
Welcome to Democracy Now! First and foremost, can you talk about the health of the workers in the U.S. Postal Service around this country, what they’re confronting now? Here in New York, we see post offices closed. Mail is not delivered for weeks. I talked to a Postal Service worker who was walking down the street. He was saying that they are devastated.
MARK DIMONDSTEIN: Well, first, greetings. Thank you so much for having us on, Amy.
Look, it’s a challenging and dangerous time. Postal workers are essential frontline workers. We salute all the frontline workers — grocery store workers, healthcare personnel, transit workers, firefighters and so on. These are tough times. The Postal Service and the postal employees, proud postal employees, are doing the best we can to move the mail of the people of the country, get vital supplies, life-saving medicines, all sorts of important information. And the mission of the Post Office is to bind the country together — the public Postal Service.
So, obviously, there’s going to be gaps in mail service. There’s workers who are unable to come to work because of sickness, because of quarantine, because of deep concerns and fears. And we have a liberal leave policy that helps protect the workers protect themselves. But on the whole, the Post Office is still able to serve, even in these very difficult times.
And the pandemic — you know, the Post Office and postal workers are often taken for granted. We’ve been here since the year before the country was founded. It’s something that’s always there. But in this time of pandemic, I think there is a great appreciation for what postal workers are doing. We have had deaths. We have — it’s up to, unfortunately, 45. Many people have been sick, and many people have been quarantined. And yet, the proud postal workers are still coming to work when they can and serving the American people the best we can.
JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Well, Mark Dimondstein, I wanted to ask you, this whole — we constantly hear these reports that the Postal Service is in huge — is running huge deficits every year. But could you talk about how the previous reform that required the Postal Service to prepay all of these retirement benefits for years, what the impact that that has had, the decision by Congress to impose that restriction on the Postal Service, what that has — the impact that has had on the bottom line?
MARK DIMONDSTEIN: Well, it definitely had an impact on the bottom line, and I can share that briefly, but I do want to differentiate some of the historical problems and the ongoing problems with the COVID pandemic economic crisis and how that’s affecting the Post Office.
But as a little background, in 2006, Congress passed a law called the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act. And they did something to the public Postal Service that no other government agency and no other private company has ever had to do, and it’s just too onerous. They forced the Post Office to pay 75 years into the future, and within a 10-year period, 75 years into the future, of retiree health benefits. So, that’s for workers that not only did not work at the Post Office yet, but weren’t even born yet. And that’s where so much of the news stories each year about the Postal Service being in debt came from. It was a manufactured, on-paper crisis. The reality is, if you took out that prefunding mandate, the Post Office actually did quite well. The Post Office is not set up as a business. It’s not set up to pack billions of dollars in the bank and enrich shareholders or CEOs. It’s set up to serve the people of the country. And it was doing that well, even with the challenges.
But if I can fast-forward to now, I think it’s important to separate out some of the ongoing problems, some of changing mail habits, some of the opportunities that the Post Office has to bring in new revenue, like postal banking and so on, but talk about what’s really happening right now, because whatever happened in 2006, even if it didn’t happen, the COVID pandemic is having a huge, devastating, dire impact on postal revenue.
As the lead-in talked about, there’s no taxpayer dollars that goes into the Post Office. It runs strictly on the revenue of postal and postal products. And that revenue has to be able to be enough to carry out the mission of what we call the universal service mandate — every address, every person, no matter who we are and where we live, a great small-d democratic right, getting mail, packages, six days a week now, sometimes seven.
And what’s happened in this pandemic, and its economic devastation throughout the entire country and world — but what’s happened specifically to the Postal Service is the mail has precipitously dropped off. Just think about it. What restaurant is sending coupons through the mail? What small business is saying, “Come to my business, we have a sale going on,” while the business is closed? Even grandpa, like me, can’t go out and buy the birthday card for the grandkids and put it in the mail, because the store is closed or we’re sheltered at home. So it’s had a huge impact. And what’s happening is, a lot of the mail, the marketing mail, for example, has dropped off almost 50%. And that’s going to continue to happen. Packages are up some, but how long is that going to last, when 25 million people, and more to come, are unemployed? So, what’s happening is, there’s a fork in the road. The Postal Service will actually run out of money, whether it’s this summer, whether it’s early fall. The revenue just isn’t there, strictly based on COVID.
So, what we’ve asked — and it’s not just the “we” of the postal union’s. The postal Board of Governors, which sets policy, which is a majority-Republican board right now, has unanimously asked for robust relief, not a bailout — this is for the people of the country; this doesn’t go into any shareholders, any CEOs — but to make up that lost revenue, so the Post Office can weather this crisis and still, at the same time, serve the people of the country, both in ordinary times and in this time of crisis. So, it’s serious. It’s real. And again, it’s very focused on the COVID pandemic economic impact.
JUAN GONZÁLEZ: And in addition to the potential or the possibility of additional help as a result of COVID from Congress, what about these — could you talk a little bit more about these proposals, reformed ways for new — possible reforms for new revenues for the Post Office, specifically this whole issue of banking, or what other people call Federal Reserve accounts, that would be used through individual post offices?
MARK DIMONDSTEIN: Look, the Post Office is a wonderful national treasure in every community, from the most remote rural portions of the country to the most densely populated urban centers and neighborhoods. And as such — and again, its mission is to bind the people together. So, there’s so much more that the Post Office can do. It already does a certain amount of financial services. It could do a lot more, even basic paycheck cashing, ATMs in Postal Service, money transfers. All of that would be a counter to this predatory payday-lending, check-cashing industry. There’s tens of millions of people that are either unbanked or underbanked, meaning that they have no bank account at all, where they end up in this, what they call, this alternative — we call it the loan sharking predatory industry. So, there are opportunities there to serve the people. It would bring in revenue. Postal workers are eager to perform those kind of things. There could be all sorts of licensing. There could be, you know, internet access. There could be copying services. There’s all sorts of things that the Post Office can do and should do.
But in order to get there, we have to make sure that we have a public Postal Service. And that now is really up for grabs, because, clearly, we have an administration that would like to — and it’s clear. They have an agenda. They would like to sell the public Postal Service off to private corporations, privatize it and turn what’s a service of the people into — and everybody has the same equal access to — turn it into a profit-making entity, where whether people get mail service or not, and at what cost and what kind of surcharges, would depend on whether somebody can make a quick dollar. And again, the Post Office is set up on a nonprofit basis to serve every single person. So, this administration has an agenda, and they’re shamefully using this crisis to carry it out rather than set policy. I mean, here you had an incentive package of $2.2 trillion. The corporations got $500 billion. The postal Board of Governors asked for $25 billion of that $500 billion. Didn’t get it.
JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Mark, I wanted to ask you also — we just have a little bit of time left, but I wanted to ask you about this allegation of President Trump that Amazon is getting sweetheart deals from the Postal Service, and also the possibilities he’s raising about giving access to Americans’ mailboxes for the private carrier industry.
MARK DIMONDSTEIN: Well, look, every agency with authority, the Postal Regulatory Commission and others, has debunked that myth that the Postal Service is losing money on Amazon and other packages. It just isn’t true.
And for a president of the United States to tell the people of this country and the postal workers who are on the frontlines that the postal workers — that the Post Office is a joke — something that belongs to everybody in this country, it belongs to the people — that is the absolute insult of insults. And it’s not a laughing matter to the people of the country, to veterans that rely on their medicines to come from the VA. The Postal Service in normal times delivers 1.2 billion packages of medicine and so on. So, it’s — and I’m sorry, I forgot your second part of that question. If you could say it again?
JUAN GONZÁLEZ: And also the possibility of bringing in private carriers to deliver in regular post office boxes?
MARK DIMONDSTEIN: Well, look, our mailbox is an extension of our living room. It’s part of our home. It’s private. Nobody can walk through our front door. Nobody now has access to that mailbox. It’s the last — really, it’s the last holdout of true private communications. The internet is not, Facebook is not, tweeting is not, and so on. So, that’s what’s called the sanctity of the mail. And if the Post Office was to let die by this administration, we don’t think that the people of the country are going to put up with that. They’re not going to let it be stolen. But if it were to die, part of what would die with it is that right to privacy and the right to what we call the sanctity of the mail. So, that’s an absurd idea, and we don’t think the people of the country are going to buy that idea.
But again, we’re not going to have these debates if we don’t call Congress, if we don’t write Congress, if we don’t email Congress, if we don’t get and sign all the petitions going around. The listeners can go to APWU.org. There are petitions there demanding that Congress step up and do the right thing.
AMY GOODMAN: Mark, I wanted to ask you about the disproportionate impact that this threat against the Post Office has. Actor and activist Danny Glover wrote a piece last year in USA Today headlined “My parents proudly worked for the US Postal Service. Don’t destroy it.” In it, he wrote, “For black families like mine, the Postal Service has long been one of the few reliable paths to the middle class. … Today, the Postal Service remains a critical source of good jobs for African Americans. Black employees make up 28.6% of the postal workforce — more than double their share of the U.S. population.” So, if you can talk about this? And then I want to ask you about mail at home.
MARK DIMONDSTEIN: Well, we are very proud that the Postal Service is such a diverse workforce, how many workers really truly have equal pay for equal work, fair hiring practices and so on. And because of our union contracts, we have equal pay for equal work. And the postal clerks, the people that you see when you go to a post office and buy stamps and bring packages and so on — the postal clerks are now over 50% women, equal pay for equal work.
As you mentioned, it has been a wonderful opportunity for many of the African American workers, Asian workers, Latino workers and white workers. And we’re all in it together. And Danny Glover, activist, actor Danny Glover, is very clear that without the opportunity that his parents had — and they helped make that opportunity. They were union activists themselves. It wasn’t always a good job. It was fought for. He’s very clear that the opportunities he had in life were largely based on his parents’ opportunity to make a decent living and give their family the opportunity and path that he was able to take. So, it’s a — that’s something that we’re also —


democracynow--2020-04-29--Headlines for April 29, 2020

Headlines for April 29, 2020

An international aid group is warning that as many as 1 billion people worldwide could become infected with the novel coronavirus unless urgent measures are taken to stop its spread .
The finding by the International Rescue Committee , based on U.N. data , came as the global death toll from the pandemic topped 217,000 .
In the United States , over 58,300 people have died from COVID-19 — more than the number of U.S. troops killed in the Vietnam War .
Officially , the U.S. has confirmed over 1 million cases of novel coronavirus , but that figure is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ U.S. residents believed to have been infected .
The U.S. accounts for a quarter of all reported COVID-19 deaths worldwide , and a third of confirmed cases .
Top infectious disease scientist Dr. Anthony Fauci on Tuesday warned states not to reopen businesses prematurely , and said the United States will likely face a resurgence of COVID-19 in the fall .
In California , Governor Gavin Newsom on Tuesday outlined plans for a phased reopening of the economy , saying some businesses at lower risk for spreading coronavirus might be weeks away from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ police broke up a gathering of hundreds of people Tuesday who ignored social distancing rules as they gathered for the Brooklyn funeral of a rabbi who reportedly died of a coronavirus infection .
New York reported 335 coronavirus-related deaths on Tuesday — its lowest single-day death toll in a month .

An international aid group is warning that as many as 1 billion people worldwide could become infected with the novel coronavirus unless urgent measures are taken to stop its spread. The finding by the International Rescue Committee, based on U.N. data, came as the global death toll from the pandemic topped 217,000.
In the United States, over 58,300 people have died from COVID-19 — more than the number of U.S. troops killed in the Vietnam War. Officially, the U.S. has confirmed over 1 million cases of novel coronavirus, but that figure is just a fraction of the number of U.S. residents believed to have been infected. The U.S. accounts for a quarter of all reported COVID-19 deaths worldwide, and a third of confirmed cases.
Top infectious disease scientist Dr. Anthony Fauci on Tuesday warned states not to reopen businesses prematurely, and said the United States will likely face a resurgence of COVID-19 in the fall.
In California, Governor Gavin Newsom on Tuesday outlined plans for a phased reopening of the economy, saying some businesses at lower risk for spreading coronavirus might be weeks away from reopening.
Gov. Gavin Newsom: “I want to make this clear: We believe we are weeks, not months, away from making meaningful modifications to that indicator and in this space.”
Here in New York, police broke up a gathering of hundreds of people Tuesday who ignored social distancing rules as they gathered for the Brooklyn funeral of a rabbi who reportedly died of a coronavirus infection. New York reported 335 coronavirus-related deaths on Tuesday — its lowest single-day death toll in a month.


democracynow--2020-04-30--WHO Adviser on Meat Plants: If We're at War, the Weapons We Need Are Tests and PPE, Not Pork

This is a rush transcript .
Copy may not be in its final form .
AMY GOODMAN : This is Democracy Now !
, democracynow.org , The Quarantine Report .
I ’ m Amy Goodman , with Nermeen Shaikh .
This week , President Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to bar local governments from closing meatpacking plants around the United States .
His executive order comes as U.S. beef , pork and poultry processing plants are linked to areas with the highest rates of coronavirus transmission in the country .
Topping the list is a region around Sioux City @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are more than doubling every day , with outbreaks at a massive Tyson Foods beef plant and a Seaboard Triumph Foods pork plant .
Trump ’ s order declares meat plants critical infrastructure .
He announced it on Workers ’ Memorial Day , an international day of remembrance and action for workers killed or disabled on the job .
At least 20 meatpacking workers have died from COVID-19 .
Thousands have fallen ill from the disease .
This comes as federal guidelines for social distancing are set to expire today , leaving states @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Iowa governor , Kim Reynolds , has threatened workers who don ’ t want to return to work because of the coronavirus , saying they will not receive unemployment benefits .
Nebraska workers also risk losing unemployment if they refuse to turn to their jobs .
This is Trump responding to a reporter in the Oval Office Wednesday .
AMY GOODMAN : In a statement , Stuart Appelbaum , president of the Retail , Wholesale and Department Store Union , said , quote , “ We only wish that this administration cared @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people as it does about meat , pork , and poultry products.
” Well , for more , we ’ re joined by Lawrence Gostin , professor of global health law at Georgetown University , directs the World Health Organization Center on National and Global Health Law and has served as a senior adviser to the WHO for three decades .
He is also the global editor for JAMA .
That ’ s The Journal of the American Medical Association .
He ’ s joining us from his home in Washington , D.C. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you joined us on Democracy Now !
several years ago , it was to discuss the Obama administration caving to the meat lobby in its dietary guidelines despite World Health Organization findings that processed meat can cause cancer .
I want to welcome you back to Democracy Now !
In a minute , we ’ re going to ask you about Trump ’ s attack on the World Health Organization , removing its funding .
But right now I want to ask you about this massive decision he has made .
As thousands @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , President Trump issues this executive order saying states can not close meatpacking plants .
Talk about the significance of this .
LAWRENCE GOSTIN : Yeah .
Well , let me — remember , the Defense Production Act was really to kind of marshal our production for kind of a warlike state .
And so , if you think about , you know , if we ’ re in a war now , the weapons we need is not meat and pork .
The weapons we actually need are testing equipment , ventilators @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our brave health workers , our doctors and nurses and other staff in hospitals .
So that ’ s what the act should be used for , not for producing actually quite unhealthy products like beef and pork .
But that ’ s even a sideshow .
The real thing — AMY GOODMAN : Not to mention the very concern of the workers , as they don ’ t have protective equipment or the tests that they need .
LAWRENCE GOSTIN : No , they don ’ t .
Exactly .
No , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Thank you .
You know , also , the act , when Congress passed that act , it certainly did not have in mind that the president has the power or the right to put workers ’ lives and health at risk .
And remember , it ’ s not just the workers that are being put at risk .
It ’ s the workers ’ spouses .
It ’ s their children .
It ’ s their wider families all being placed at risk .
No president does have the right @ @ @ @ @ @ @ States , and certainly not to produce an unhealthy product .
So , what do we do now ?
I mean , I think , you know , I would urge states , while — they might still want to close those meatpacking plants down and let the federal government try to litigate it .
But if not , they certainly should exercise their public health powers , because Congress clearly did not intend to prevent states from assuring the health and safety of the population , and particularly the workforce .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state public health departments and governors should slap on really major sanctions against firms that don ’ t provide adequate personal protection equipment , adequate social distancing , and to take every possible rigorous measure to ensure the health and safety of these women and men .
Now , this is , remember — you know , would any of you want to go to — any of your listeners want to go to work — AMY GOODMAN : These men and women are overwhelmingly immigrants and African Americans .
LAWRENCE GOSTIN : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , to say that we can just trust the meatpacking operators and the industry to do this , well , self-evidently , we can ’ t .
If you go back into history , there ’ s a long history of abusing immigrant labor in meatpacking plants .
And also self-evidently , safety precautions haven ’ t been taken , because people have died , and they ’ re getting sick in their thousands .
And so , why would we — why would we want to put hard-working Americans and their families @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to have them choose between their livelihoods and their lives or the lives of their children ?
It ’ s really — it has no heart .
It has no compassion .
And a leader , first and foremost — the first responsibility of any leader , any government , is the health and safety and well-being of its population .
So this is really unforgivable , I think .
NERMEEN SHAIKH : Professor Gostin , to turn now to the World Health Organization , you ’ ve advised the WHO for decades @ @ @ @ @ @ @ first accused China , as well as the WHO , for being responsible for the pandemic .
Could you respond to that ?
And , of course , Trump then cutting funding to the WHO .
Could you respond to his decision to do that , as well as the fact that you ’ ve said repeatedly that whatever the failings of the WHO and China , the U.S. is responsible itself for its lack of preparedness for the pandemic ?
Could you talk also about what the U.S. should have done differently @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : Yeah , I mean , there ’ s so much — so many levels there .
Let me just start with this .
You know , I have worked with the World Health Organization under many director-generals for many years .
And the current director-general , the first African head of the World Health Organization , Dr. Tedros , is — I know him well .
He ’ s a man of great integrity , great compassion .
He cares a lot .
So , working with WHO , it can be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , they can be slow .
They can be bureaucratic .
But , my god , what they ’ ve done for the world .
They eradicated smallpox .
They ’ re on the verge of eradicating wild polio .
They work in child and maternal health .
They save the lives of under-5 children .
They save the lives of women undergoing childbirth .
They work in diet and obesity and cancer and heart disease , mental health , injury prevention .
I could go on and on .
So , to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Health Organization after all it ’ s done , on a budget around the size of one large U.S. hospital — I mean , rather than criticizing WHO , we should be dropping our jaw and thanking them for all the things that they ’ ve done .
So , what about this particular episode with the coronavirus in China ?
President Trump has said WHO took China ’ s side , but there is no sides to a pandemic .
And yes , Dr. Tedros did praise China , but he has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s just diplomacy .
I don ’ t think that Dr. Tedros thinks that either President Trump or Xi Jinping have done a particularly great job on this .
And basically , WHO has been caught in a geopolitical power struggle between the world ’ s two superpowers .
And at a time of a once-in-a-century public health crisis , that couldn ’ t be more destructive .
So what should the United States do ?
It should lead a global coalition to at least double — and at least double — the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Right now we have the WHO we deserve , because we ’ ve provided it with pitiful financing .
We ’ ve given it control over less than one-quarter of its budget , because we just earmark all the funds that we want for our pet projects .
We don ’ t give it any political backing .
And the proof positive is , as soon as you get on the wrong side of the American president , he withdraws funding .
So , how is that providing the kind of political capital @ @ @ @ @ @ @ power ?
So , I see this as a — you know , it ’ s a once-in-a-lifetime crisis , but it ’ s also a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity .
Out of every major catastrophe , we have to make an opportunity of it .
And for me , that opportunity would be to provide an emboldened and strengthened , well-funded , politically backed World Health Organization , so in future pandemics and for future health crises , we have the WHO we so richly need , which is a powerful one that will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for science , health and equity .
And that ’ s what the WHO is there for .
And that ’ s why — AMY GOODMAN : We have five seconds .
LAWRENCE GOSTIN : — it was the first United Nations agency .
AMY GOODMAN : I want to thank you so much , Professor Lawrence Gostin , founding O ’ Neill chair in Global Health Law at Georgetown University , director of the World Health Organization Center on National and Global Health Law , also global editor for JAMA : The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ That does it for our show .
I ’ m Amy Goodman , with Nermeen Shaikh , for another edition of Democracy Now !
Stay safe .

This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now!, democracynow.org, The Quarantine Report. I’m Amy Goodman, with Nermeen Shaikh. This week, President Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to bar local governments from closing meatpacking plants around the United States. His executive order comes as U.S. beef, pork and poultry processing plants are linked to areas with the highest rates of coronavirus transmission in the country. Topping the list is a region around Sioux City, Iowa, where confirmed coronavirus cases are more than doubling every day, with outbreaks at a massive Tyson Foods beef plant and a Seaboard Triumph Foods pork plant. Trump’s order declares meat plants critical infrastructure. He announced it on Workers’ Memorial Day, an international day of remembrance and action for workers killed or disabled on the job. At least 20 meatpacking workers have died from COVID-19. Thousands have fallen ill from the disease.
This comes as federal guidelines for social distancing are set to expire today, leaving states to determine their plans for reopening. The Iowa governor, Kim Reynolds, has threatened workers who don’t want to return to work because of the coronavirus, saying they will not receive unemployment benefits. Nebraska workers also risk losing unemployment if they refuse to turn to their jobs. This is Trump responding to a reporter in the Oval Office Wednesday.
REPORTER: Mr. President, what can you do to help businesses with liability issues as workers come back in states that have opened up?
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Well, as you know, we just worked with the meat processors, and if you think about it, a form of delivery. We have tremendous product. We have ample supply. But there was a bottleneck caused by this whole pandemic, and it was pretty — it was potentially pretty serious. And I just got off the phone with the biggest in the world, I mean, the biggest distributors there are, the big companies that you’ve been reading about. They are so thrilled. They’re so happy. They’re all gung-ho. And we solved their problems. We unblocked some of the bottlenecks.
AMY GOODMAN: In a statement, Stuart Appelbaum, president of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, said, quote, “We only wish that this administration cared as much about the lives of working people as it does about meat, pork, and poultry products.”
Well, for more, we’re joined by Lawrence Gostin, professor of global health law at Georgetown University, directs the World Health Organization Center on National and Global Health Law and has served as a senior adviser to the WHO for three decades. He is also the global editor for JAMA. That’s The Journal of the American Medical Association. He’s joining us from his home in Washington, D.C.
Lawrence Gostin, interestingly, last time you joined us on Democracy Now! several years ago, it was to discuss the Obama administration caving to the meat lobby in its dietary guidelines despite World Health Organization findings that processed meat can cause cancer. I want to welcome you back to Democracy Now! In a minute, we’re going to ask you about Trump’s attack on the World Health Organization, removing its funding. But right now I want to ask you about this massive decision he has made. As thousands of workers have taken ill with COVID-19, President Trump issues this executive order saying states cannot close meatpacking plants. Talk about the significance of this.
LAWRENCE GOSTIN: Yeah. Well, let me — remember, the Defense Production Act was really to kind of marshal our production for kind of a warlike state. And so, if you think about, you know, if we’re in a war now, the weapons we need is not meat and pork. The weapons we actually need are testing equipment, ventilators, and particularly personal protective equipment for our brave health workers, our doctors and nurses and other staff in hospitals. So that’s what the act should be used for, not for producing actually quite unhealthy products like beef and pork. But that’s even a sideshow. The real thing —
AMY GOODMAN: Not to mention the very concern of the workers, as they don’t have protective equipment or the tests that they need.
LAWRENCE GOSTIN: No, they don’t. Exactly. No, that’s a really good point. Thank you.
You know, also, the act, when Congress passed that act, it certainly did not have in mind that the president has the power or the right to put workers’ lives and health at risk. And remember, it’s not just the workers that are being put at risk. It’s the workers’ spouses. It’s their children. It’s their wider families all being placed at risk. No president does have the right to endanger the people of the United States, and certainly not to produce an unhealthy product.
So, what do we do now? I mean, I think, you know, I would urge states, while — they might still want to close those meatpacking plants down and let the federal government try to litigate it. But if not, they certainly should exercise their public health powers, because Congress clearly did not intend to prevent states from assuring the health and safety of the population, and particularly the workforce. And so, just for a start, state public health departments and governors should slap on really major sanctions against firms that don’t provide adequate personal protection equipment, adequate social distancing, and to take every possible rigorous measure to ensure the health and safety of these women and men. Now, this is, remember — you know, would any of you want to go to — any of your listeners want to go to work —
AMY GOODMAN: These men and women are overwhelmingly immigrants and African Americans.
LAWRENCE GOSTIN: They are. And, you know, to say that we can just trust the meatpacking operators and the industry to do this, well, self-evidently, we can’t. If you go back into history, there’s a long history of abusing immigrant labor in meatpacking plants. And also self-evidently, safety precautions haven’t been taken, because people have died, and they’re getting sick in their thousands.
And so, why would we — why would we want to put hard-working Americans and their families at risk? Why would we want to have them choose between their livelihoods and their lives or the lives of their children? It’s really — it has no heart. It has no compassion. And a leader, first and foremost — the first responsibility of any leader, any government, is the health and safety and well-being of its population. So this is really unforgivable, I think.
NERMEEN SHAIKH: Professor Gostin, to turn now to the World Health Organization, you’ve advised the WHO for decades. President Trump, of course, first accused China, as well as the WHO, for being responsible for the pandemic. Could you respond to that? And, of course, Trump then cutting funding to the WHO. Could you respond to his decision to do that, as well as the fact that you’ve said repeatedly that whatever the failings of the WHO and China, the U.S. is responsible itself for its lack of preparedness for the pandemic? Could you talk also about what the U.S. should have done differently and should do now?
LAWRENCE GOSTIN: Yeah, I mean, there’s so much — so many levels there. Let me just start with this. You know, I have worked with the World Health Organization under many director-generals for many years. And the current director-general, the first African head of the World Health Organization, Dr. Tedros, is — I know him well. He’s a man of great integrity, great compassion. He cares a lot.
So, working with WHO, it can be — sometimes can be maddening. Yes, they can be slow. They can be bureaucratic. But, my god, what they’ve done for the world. They eradicated smallpox. They’re on the verge of eradicating wild polio. They work in child and maternal health. They save the lives of under-5 children. They save the lives of women undergoing childbirth. They work in diet and obesity and cancer and heart disease, mental health, injury prevention. I could go on and on. So, to actually just try to kick the World Health Organization after all it’s done, on a budget around the size of one large U.S. hospital — I mean, rather than criticizing WHO, we should be dropping our jaw and thanking them for all the things that they’ve done.
So, what about this particular episode with the coronavirus in China? President Trump has said WHO took China’s side, but there is no sides to a pandemic. And yes, Dr. Tedros did praise China, but he has also praised President Trump. That’s just diplomacy. I don’t think that Dr. Tedros thinks that either President Trump or Xi Jinping have done a particularly great job on this. And basically, WHO has been caught in a geopolitical power struggle between the world’s two superpowers. And at a time of a once-in-a-century public health crisis, that couldn’t be more destructive.
So what should the United States do? It should lead a global coalition to at least double — and at least double — the funding of the World Health Organization. Right now we have the WHO we deserve, because we’ve provided it with pitiful financing. We’ve given it control over less than one-quarter of its budget, because we just earmark all the funds that we want for our pet projects. We don’t give it any political backing. And the proof positive is, as soon as you get on the wrong side of the American president, he withdraws funding. So, how is that providing the kind of political capital the director-general needs to speak truth to power?
So, I see this as a — you know, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime crisis, but it’s also a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Out of every major catastrophe, we have to make an opportunity of it. And for me, that opportunity would be to provide an emboldened and strengthened, well-funded, politically backed World Health Organization, so in future pandemics and for future health crises, we have the WHO we so richly need, which is a powerful one that will stand up to big governments and stand for science, health and equity. And that’s what the WHO is there for. And that’s why —
AMY GOODMAN: We have five seconds.
LAWRENCE GOSTIN: — it was the first United Nations agency.
AMY GOODMAN: I want to thank you so much, Professor Lawrence Gostin, founding O’Neill chair in Global Health Law at Georgetown University, director of the World Health Organization Center on National and Global Health Law, also global editor for JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.
That does it for our show. I’m Amy Goodman, with Nermeen Shaikh, for another edition of Democracy Now! Stay safe.