# So was the whole "Trump destroyed the Post Office to rig the Election" just a left-wing conspiracy theory?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Tags:** trump
**Created:** [December 2, 2023, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003 "2023-12-02T10:55:36Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/1 "2023-12-02T10:55:36Z")
[Reading this article](https://time.com/6263424/louis-dejoy-trump-election-postal-reform/) and came along this line.
> DeJoy may be best known as the Trump-era GOP megadonor the left accused of meddling with mail-in voting to subvert the 2020 election.
Now that it’s all said and done, was the whole “Trump appointed Dejoy to destroy the USPS so mail in voting wouldn’t hinder him” just a massive conspiracy theory? The fact Dejoy is now seen as directly helping the Democrats and not as a partisan Trump toadie makes it seem like it was entirely overblown.
Now, I fully understand we can never understand Trump’s intentions, but the fact that there was almost no problems with mail-in voting in 2020 mean Dejoy actually was a legitimate appointment?
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### Author:  [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/2 "2023-12-02T10:59:53Z")
> [@Asuka](#):
>
> The fact Dejoy is now seen as directly helping the Democrats and not as a partisan Trump toadie makes it seem like it was entirely overblown.
Or it proves that he’s a mercenary who has no agenda of his own and will do whatever the current boss says if it means keeping his job.
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### Author:  [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/3 "2023-12-02T11:07:09Z")
True, but I also have not seen any proof that the USPS was being “sabotaged” in the first place.
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### Author:  [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/4 "2023-12-02T11:08:26Z")
> [@Asuka](#):
>
> Now that it’s all said and done, was the whole “Trump appointed Dejoy to destroy the USPS so mail in voting wouldn’t hinder him” just a massive conspiracy theory?
Who promoted this alleged “massive conspiracy theory”?
Stranger
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### Author:  [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/5 "2023-12-02T11:09:23Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#):
>
> > [@Asuka](#):
> >
> > Now that it’s all said and done, was the whole “Trump appointed Dejoy to destroy the USPS so mail in voting wouldn’t hinder him” just a massive conspiracy theory?
>
> Who promoted this alleged “massive conspiracy theory”?
It was literally all over the Dope. I believed it, even. And it was on John Oliver, I’m pretty sure.
Basically, people said it, and the guy didn’t refute it.
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### Author:  [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/6 "2023-12-02T12:07:03Z")
> [@BigT](#):
>
> It was literally all over the Dope.
Can you cite a few examples? I can’t recall ever hearing about this conspiracy.
> [@BigT](#):
>
> And it was on John Oliver, I’m pretty sure.
You’re probably thinking of this piece.
Talks about USPS problems. Talks about Trump hating USPS. One brief mention that it might affect mail-in voting. Does **not** suggest it is a deliberate tactic by Trump to rig the election.
> **[USPS: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IoL8g0W9gAQ%2F)**
>
> As the U.S. Postal Service faces financial catastrophe, John Oliver discusses why the service is so important, what brought it to this point, and what we can...
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### Author:  [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/7 "2023-12-02T12:16:58Z")
I recall the talk being that the idea was to slow the mail down. This in itself wouldn’t rig an election, but it might help. A piece here, a piece there, could add up up to enough to affect the results.
Also as I recall, the mail actually was being slowed down.
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### Author:  [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/8 "2023-12-02T12:23:37Z")
Here’s an article from summer of 2020 talking about sorting machines being dismantled, and DeJo defending the decision - while also admitting that he needed to halt further dismantling to avoid the appearance of interfering with elections:
> **[Reports Of Dismantled USPS Sorting Machines Continue Despite DeJoy Announcing...](https://www.forbes.com/sites/andrewsolender/2020/08/19/reports-of-dismantled-usps-sorting-machines-continue-despite-dejoy-announcing-halt/amp/)**
>
> DeJoy is set to testify before Congress about service changes as states move forward with lawsuits amid widespread delays and mail-in ballot fears.
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### Author:  [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/9 "2023-12-02T14:06:07Z")
> [@BigT](#):
>
> > [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#):
> >
> > > [@Asuka](#):
> > >
> > > Now that it’s all said and done, was the whole “Trump appointed Dejoy to destroy the USPS so mail in voting wouldn’t hinder him” just a massive conspiracy theory?
> >
> > Who promoted this alleged “massive conspiracy theory”?
>
> It was literally all over the Dope.
Here’s the closest thing I could find:
> [@Prediction: Postal Service shutdown](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/prediction-postal-service-shutdown/918138):
>
> Trump and his stooge of a Postmaster General are going to shut down the Postal Service about 2 weeks before the election. People will complain there’s critical (non-election) mail that has to be delivered and it won’t matter. They’ll do it anyway.
> [@bobot](#):
>
> Also as I recall, the mail actually was being slowed down.
I did find threads discussing this (and the extent to which DeJoy was responsible):
> [@Did DeJoy create the USPS slow down?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dejoy-create-the-usps-slow-down/931135):
>
> I have nothing more than anecdotal evidence that USPS mail delivery is more slow now than prior to Louis DeJoy’s appointment in June 2020…but…is it true that USPS service is degraded, and if so, did Louis DeJoy create the slow down?
> [@Is there a general slowdown in package delivery lately with USPS?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-general-slowdown-in-package-delivery-lately-with-usps/917597):
>
> Not to get political or anything, but has anyone noticed a slowdown in delivery of packages at the USPS? I have orders on ebay and Amazon, and almost all of them pass their expected delivery dates and the USPS message is “in transit but arriving late”. I do realize the heavy lifting that the USPS is doing, has been doing, since the whole pandemic exploded and ordering online became the order of the day for many, many US citizens, but things were actually running fairly smoothly until a little wh…
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### Author:  [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/10 "2023-12-02T15:24:21Z")
I kept hearing that Biden was working on getting rid of DeJoy, but nothing ever came of it.
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### Author:  [@gre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gre)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/11 "2023-12-02T15:36:01Z")
> [@Asuka](#):
>
> was the whole “Trump appointed Dejoy to destroy the USPS so mail in voting wouldn’t hinder him” just a massive conspiracy theory?
No. The answer is no.
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### Author:  [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/12 "2023-12-02T15:50:05Z")
LegalEagle did an entire video on it
[ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zb4u9NVHdts)
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### Author:  [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/13 "2023-12-02T16:13:34Z")
It appears that DeJoy (a confirmed Trump/GOP donor) functioned as a “useful idiot” for Trump, with the flavor of idiocy being “make the government run like a business” with a tone-deaf ignorance of the reason public services exist.
He did some things that had the documented effect of reducing capacity and delivery times:
- Proceeding with a pre-existing plan to decommission some sorting machines.
- Forcing delivery trucks to leave on time no matter what (even if the feeder trucks hadn’t arrived).
- Various other short-sighted cost-cutting measures.
He also had holdings in companies that compete with the USPS, creating a conflict of interest.
Then there is the fact that Trump himself [stated openly](https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-election-2020-ap-top-news-elections-politics-14a2ceda724623604cc8d8e5ab9890ed) that he was opposing USPS funding bills with the intention of suppressing mail-in voting:
> [@Trump](#):
>
> “If we don’t make a deal, that means they don’t get the money,” Trump [told](https://apnews.com/14a2ceda724623604cc8d8e5ab9890ed) host Maria Bartiromo, referring to the false claim that Democrats are are proposing a universal mail-in voting system. “That means they can’t have universal mail-in voting; they just can’t have it.”
So we had Trump openly stating his intent to hobble the USPS. We had an interest-conflicted Trump donor ordering actions that had the effect of slowing down mail delivery. We will never know DeJoy’s actual intent here. But his real-life behavior and conflicts are indistinct from a lackey carrying out Trump’s documented preference to hobble the mail service to improve Trump’s election prospects.
Since then DeJoy has jumped onboard the bandwagon with all sorts of Democrat priorities. So at this point it doesn’t appear he’s in a mind to use his hard-to-fire position to serve as a ride-or-die Republican operative. It seems like he’s now aware of the public service aspect of the job, and that he needs to pay attention to public concerns if he wants his job to stay secure.
If you want my take, DeJoy is just another dumb bean-counting business guy who thinks government can or should be “run like a business”. He had no idea how it looked to be dismantling capacity in a pandemic election year. Trump exploited DeJoy’s naive, knee-jerk bias toward austerity. It worked for a while, and it was going to keep working until public outcry made DeJoy aware that he’d stepped in something smelly that could limit his own job security. Having been thus burned one time, he appears to have mended his ways somewhat.
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### Author:  [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/14 "2023-12-02T16:30:37Z")
> [@BigT](#):
>
> Basically, people said it, and the guy didn’t refute it.
The latter is weird. I mean whether or not wrecking the USPS really was his goal, you’d think he would have gone to great lengths to assure the public that he had no evil intent.
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### Author:  [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/15 "2023-12-02T16:49:05Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#):
>
> Who promoted this alleged “massive conspiracy theory”?
>
> Stranger
There were tweets like this:
[https://twitter.com/markdelaneysays/status/1292277950809694208](https://twitter.com/markdelaneysays/status/1292277950809694208)
[ ](https://imgur.com/FhsiHni)
That went massively viral at the time alleging that removal of mailboxes in Portland were a concerted attempt to disrupt vote by mail.
edit: tweets no longer embed so I included a screenshot as well.
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### Author:  [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/16 "2023-12-02T16:53:24Z")
> [@Asuka](#):
>
> The fact Dejoy is now seen as directly helping the Democrats and not as a partisan Trump toadie makes it seem like it was entirely overblown.
Cite that DeJoy is now helping the Democrats?
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### Author:  [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/17 "2023-12-02T17:15:40Z")
The evidence at the time pointed to DeJoy being more legitimate than not. Or rather, it was apparent even then that things like the sorting machines were just business as usual the predated his appointment and there was little evidence of any malicious intent on his part to interfere with the election.
But yes, despite this, some democrats believed it and demonized him. Maybe time has made him look better but I think anyone willing to dig even back then should have been fine with him.
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### Author:  [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/18 "2023-12-02T17:28:11Z")
Is this a joke? Literally the entire point is a line from a news article I directly posted about Dejoy helping Democrats
Why does every single knee jerk reaction nowadays here is to not read the original topic and immediately ask for cites?
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### Author:  [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/19 "2023-12-02T17:30:44Z")
The conspiracy theory I was aware of was that they were going to make the Post Office function so badly that the private sector could swoop in and rescue it, so you’d get mail delivered by FedEx, UPS, DHL, etc. Except:
1. You already could
2. People don’t send that much mail anymore
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### Author:  [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)
#### Post date: [December 2, 2023, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003/20 "2023-12-02T18:17:00Z")
> [@Dr.Drake](#):
>
> The conspiracy theory I was aware of was that they were going to make the Post Office function so badly that the private sector could swoop in and rescue it
Or better compete with it—which wasn’t that far-fetched a theory, given that
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#):
>
> He also had holdings in companies that compete with the USPS, creating a conflict of interest.
[Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-was-the-whole-trump-destroyed-the-post-office-to-rig-the-election-just-a-left-wing-conspiracy-theory/994003.md?page=2)