Well, here’s a headline that’s got Washington in a frenzy—Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has officially signed a deal with the General Services Administration and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to overhaul the U.S. Postal Service. And if you thought Democrats were already worked up over DeJoy’s reforms, just wait until they see Musk’s fingerprints on the operation.
Now, let’s be clear: the Postal Service is a financial disaster. DeJoy himself spelled it out in a letter to Congress, stating that the agency has already lost close to $100 billion and was on track to burn through another $200 billion.
That’s not just bad management—that’s a full-scale fiscal crisis. So, what’s the plan? In short, DOGE will be working to cut costs, eliminate inefficiencies, and drag the USPS kicking and screaming into the 21st century.
As part of these efforts, the Postal Service is pushing forward with 10,000 job cuts, offering early retirement to eligible employees in an attempt to trim the workforce. This comes on the heels of a $3.5 billion cost-cutting plan announced earlier and follows the 30,000 postal worker cuts that took place back in 2021. The writing’s been on the wall for years: the agency’s business model is unsustainable, and change isn’t just needed—it’s overdue.
Of course, critics are lining up to slam the agreement. Rep. Gerald Connolly (D-VA) wasted no time accusing Musk and DOGE of trying to “undermine, privatize, and profit off Americans’ loss.”
He even threw in a bizarre claim that “Reliable mail delivery can’t just be reserved for MAGA supporters and Tesla owners.” Because, apparently, cutting government waste is now a partisan issue.
The National Association of Letter Carriers also voiced concerns, warning that privatization efforts could threaten not only 640,000 postal jobs but also 7.9 million jobs linked to the USPS. They want “common-sense solutions,” not what they see as a corporate takeover.
But here’s the reality: the Postal Service has been bleeding money for decades. It operates as an independent entity but still relies on government bailouts to stay afloat. And while first-class mail has plummeted, costs have only climbed. Something has to give.
President Trump has long been a vocal critic of USPS’s inefficiencies and hinted last month that he might move the agency under the Department of Commerce. That would be a seismic shift, effectively putting the Postal Service under direct executive branch control. If the Democrats are mad about Musk getting involved, imagine their reaction if USPS becomes a fully streamlined arm of a Trump-led Commerce Department.
