The first presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden is next week (Sep 29). I'll be sure to have plenty of popcorn on hand. While we don’t know who will “win” the debate, we do know the topics - Trump's and Biden’s records, the Supreme Court, the coronavirus pandemic, race and violence in cities, election integrity, and the economy. Notice something? There’s no talk of the $3.3 trillion deficit or the $26 trillion debt. Unbelievable. The topics that they'll be discussing are important, but so is knowing what the candidates will do to address the deficit and debt. Will they raise taxes? ❌or will they cut spending? ✅ Enjoy the debate and feel free to send me your thoughts and analysis on what you see and hear on Tuesday.
The Oxymoronic Idea of Postal Transparency
It’s been a bad year for the United States Postal Service (USPS). Ok, it’s been a number of bad years (just check out their finances). There was some hope that the new Postmaster General (PMG) Louis DeJoy would shake things up. And, boy, did he. DeJoy has been implementing much-needed changes and Congress has taken notice, and not in a good way. DeJoy has been accused of delaying the mail and even killing baby chickens (seriously).
When PMG DeJoy testified before the House and Senate in late August, the USPS executive faced no shortage of hostile questions based on false allegations and insinuations. Fortunately, DeJoy was able to counter the claims with data showing that nearly 95 percent of first-class mail was arriving within one day of service standards. More recently, data published by The New York Times confirmed that the delivery slowdown actually preceded operational changes (i.e. cutting down on overtime, network streamlining) instituted by DeJoy. This compelling contextual data has made it far more difficult for serious analysts to put the lion’s share of the blame on DeJoy for mail disruptions. It does seem strange, however, that the all-important task of data-gathering and publishing is left to news outlets rather than America’s mail carrier. Had the USPS continually and transparently published this information, there’d probably be less wild speculation about mail not being delivered or DeJoy killing baby chickens.
It’s unfortunate, but hardly surprising, that the USPS failed to be proactive in releasing this critical information. America’s mail carrier routinely drags its feet in disclosing data, wantonly denying Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests that could shed some light on agency finances and operations. In fiscal year 2019, the agency issued full denials to more than 35 percent of processed and finalized FOIA requests. A quick trip to the Inspector General’s (IG) website reveals the sorts of information that the agency prefers to keep under wraps. Some heavily redacted reports hint that USPS leadership isn’t happy with the IG pointing out flaws in the postage reselling program, which results in commercial consumers who would’ve used USPS anyway benefiting from special discounts. A (still heavily redacted) IG report released thanks to a FOIA request by the Capitol Forum claims that management’s hostility toward investigating the reselling program amounts to an “attack on the independence of the OIG and an attempt to keep important work from being disclosed to critical stakeholders.” Unfortunately, the secretive shenanigans continue. Shortly after the USPS honored a FOIA request submitted by watchdog group American Oversight, the agency claimed that “multiple pages of documents were mistakenly released” and ordered this information to be taken down from their website. This briefly disclosed data likely shed light on the USPS’s response to the pandemic and PMG DeJoy’s managerial changes, but the American people will probably never see these documents again. The USPS should rerelease these documents and commit to a larger data dump on agency operations, financials, and pricing assumptions.
America’s mail carrier can get back on track, but only if it allows taxpayers, analysts, and watchdog groups a peak into its inner workings. The USPS is a letter carrier, not a clandestine spy agency.
Just Say “No” to 5G Nationalization
You may be wondering why TPA is so obsessed with 5G wireless. It’s quite simple: 5G will usher in a whole new era of wireless connectivity that will help close the digital divide and boost the economy. Some experts have even gone so far as to say 5G’s impact on our economy will potentially be comparable to electricity! Here’s the best part, this will happen WITHOUT spending taxpayer dollars. So, it is imperative that the country moves forward as quickly as possible. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is making all the right moves by taking a market-based approach to spectrum, making more available for 5G use. But, there’s a problem, Republicans Newt Gingrich, Brad Parscale, Karl Rove and Peter Thiel have pitched a plan to use spectrum held by the Department of Defense to create an open-access wireless network under the banner of Rivada Networks. The concept first arose in 2019, with Trump expressing interest, but hasn’t been mentioned again by the administration until recently. Gingrich calls the idea a “wireless moonshot” that would be carrier-neutral. A Daily Caller investigation earlier this year indicated that the former Speaker of the House may be closer to Rivada than he has indicated.
The Rivada proponents claim their plan would help promote the expansion of rural broadband, but skeptics doubt this. Hal Singer, an economist and senior fellow at George Washington University’s Institute of Public Policy, argues the unbundling of retail services from wholesale doesn’t fix the primary reason those rural areas aren’t currently served. “The entry barrier to serving rural areas is not spectrum, but rather high fixed costs that can't be amortized over a large base of customers, such as laying fiber or building towers,” Singer wrote in Forbes. “Rivada's plan doesn't address the relevant entry barrier.”
Rather than push for a national, government-led network, the Trump administration should continue the market-based approach as directed by the FCC under Chairman Ajit Pai. The FCC should continue to work to eliminate barriers to deployment while continuing its planned series of spectrum auctions to liberate more bandwidth for the future of 5G. This will better ensure America’s success in 5G growth than a plan that reeks of cronyism. The nationalization of 5G will slow down, not accelerate the closing of the digital divide.
BLOGS:
Monday: Lame-duck Congress isn’t all that it’s Quacked up to be
Wednesday: President Trump Should Put to Bed (Again) the Concept of 5G Nationalization
Thursday: The USPS Needs to Stop Acting Like the CIA
Friday: On Drinking Recommendations, Bureaucrats Need a Sober Dose of Reality
MEDIA:
September 17, 2020:
Cronkite News (Phoenix, Ariz.) mentioned TPA in their article, “Tribe rushes to beat use-or-lose deadline on COVID-19 relief funds.”
September 18, 2020: The
Tucson Sentinel (Tucson, Ariz.) mentioned TPA in their article, “Navajo Nation rushes to beat use-or-lose deadline on COVID-19 relief funds.”
September 18, 2020: TPA Vice President of Policy Patrick Hedger appeared on
Live and Local with Kevin Wall, KMZQ 670 AM, Las Vegas to discuss the cost to taxpayers of the recent riots.
September 22, 2020: I appeared on
American Family Radio (nationally syndicated) to talk about the deficit and the debt.
September 22, 2020:
The Epoch Times quoted TPA in their story, “Democrats Can’t Stop Senate Confirmation of a Ginsburg Successor; Only Republicans Can.”
September 22, 2020: The
Navajo-Hopi Observer (Flagstaff, Ariz.) mentioned TPA in their story, “Tribe rushes to beat use-or-lose deadline on COVID-19 relief funds.”
September 22, 2020:
Catalyst ran TPA’s op-ed, “The USPS Needs to Stop Acting Like the CIA.”
September 23, 2020: WBFF (Fox 45, Baltimore) interviewed me about corruption with Baltimore City contracts.
September 23, 2020:
Townhall.com ran TPA’s op-ed, “President Trump Should Put to Bed (Again) the Concept of 5G Nationalization.”
September 23, 2020:
Issues & Insights ran TPA’s op-ed, “On Drinking Recommendations, Bureaucrats Need a Sober Dose of Reality.”
September 24, 2020: WBFF (Fox 45, Baltimore) interviewed me about healthcare price controls.
September 24, 2020: I appeared on WBOB Radio (600 AM AND 101 FM Jacksonville, Fla.) to talk about the presidential debates.
September 24, 2020: The Rochelle News-Leader (East Rochelle, Il.) ran TPA’s op-ed, “Lame-duck Congress isn’t all that it’s quacked up to be.”
Have a great weekend, stay safe, and as always, thanks for your continued support.
Best,
David Williams
President
Taxpayers Protection Alliance
1401 K Street, NW
Suite 502
Washington, D.C. xxxxxx
www.protectingtaxpayers.org
