President Trump’s attack on the U.S. Postal Service could have grave consequences for Alaskans.

Trump says he opposes more funding for the postal service because it would allow more people to vote by mail. Two things stand out.

First, Alaska has more to lose from a crippled post office than any other state, as all mail to Alaska is subsidized by the rest of the nation. There is also the $100 million annual subsidy of bypass mail to rural Alaska. Post office deliveries support much of the aviation industry and the presence of the USPS keeps the the likes of FedEx and UPS from charging much higher rates.

The post office is an integral and unrecognized element supporting the Alaska economy.

Second, Trump is trying to destroy faith in the election process and set things up so he can claim in November that he was cheated and that the election was rigged.

The reticent response by Sens. Lisa Murkowski, Dan Sullivan and Rep. Don Young to Trump is shameful.

Murkowski tells the Anchorage Daily News that Trump’s actions are “inappropriate.” On the Murkowski concern-o-meter, this is one notch above “concerning” and just below “worrisome.” Inappropriate is using the wrong fork at a dinner party.

This is far worse than the circumstances that led Murkowski, Sullivan and Young to pump themselves up in 2015 with a press conference claim that the president had “effectively declared war on Alaska” over a wilderness designation in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Sullivan said, “the battle is joined.”

Young referred to “King George Obama.”

“I am the king. Disgusting for the nation. Disgusting for the people,” said Young. “This man, this person, has gone completely wacko.”

This was just before Young claimed that any trip on Air Force One cost the taxpayers $500 million, an estimate that was off by $499.8 million.

Five years later there is no tough talk from Murkowski, Sullivan or Young about the Trump war on democracy, only timidity.

The three of them can’t find any reason to get angry at Trump for trying to limit voting by mail or send the post office into insolvency.

The three of them would be screaming federal overreach if they didn’t belong to the Party of Trump. Both Sullivan and Young are Trump loyalists who don’t want to do anything that might irritate the supreme leader, who has proclaimed a “complete and total endorsement” of Sullivan and Young.

“Keep up the good work!” someone in Young’s employ said on Twitter, responding to Trump’s endorsement.

The Anchorage Daily News said Sullivan and Young “declined multiple requests for interviews, and in written statements did not answer a question about the president’s remarks.”

I was glad to see the Daily News reporting on this issue and trying to keep the delegation accountable. This is a good start on what should become a standard part of Congressional and campaign coverage.

Including the likely opponents of Young and Sullivan in the story adds perspective. Young’s likely challenger, Alyse Galvin, and Sullivan’s likely challenger, Al Gross, both recognize the seriousness of the attack and what it means to the nation.

“I think it’s absolutely outrageous that President Trump is trying to defund the Postal Service in the middle of a national election and a global pandemic,” Gross told the Daily News.

Your contributions help support independent analysis and political commentary by Alaska reporter and author Dermot Cole. Thank you for reading and for your support. Either click here to use PayPal or send checks to: Dermot Cole, Box 10673, Fairbanks, AK 99710-0673.

Comments? Write to me at dermotmcole@gmail.com