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ELON Musk has urged the federal government to privatize what it can and this includes the US Postal Service.
Musk’s intervention came just weeks after reports surfaced claiming Donald Trump was plotting a radical overhaul of the agency.
The USPS has been independent from government for more than 50 years, but its future is certain after racking up huge losses.
Trump previously touted the possibility of incorporating the USPS within the Commerce Department, and Musk appears to back privatization.
“I think logically we should privatize anything that can reasonably be privatized,” Musk reportedly told a Morgan Stanley conference in San Francisco on Wednesday, according to Reuters.
“I think we should privatize the Post Office and Amtrak, for example… We should privatize everything we possibly can.”
The conference was not open to reporters.
But supporters of privatization would face a hurdle – Congress.
A resolution was proposed by congressman Stephen Lynch, urging House politicians to ensure the USPS isn’t subject to privatization.
His bill wants to ensure the USPS remains independent of the government.
But, The Washington Post reported how Trump wants to dramatically overhaul the service.
Six people close to Trump’s ideas believe the president could fire members of the USPS governing board.
The outlet alluded to possible legal challenges Trump could face if he incorporates the USPS within the Commerce Department by executive order.
Between 1775 and 1970, presidents tended to appoint their allies as postmaster general.
But the USPS in its current form stemmed from The Postal Reorganization Act of 1970.
This prevented the agency from being used as a political pawn.
Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s complicated relationship
Former president Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s relationship started rocky, but the pair have since reconciled, with Musk fully endorsing Trump and interviewing him on X Spaces on August 12.
In 2022, Elon Musk and Donald Trump publicly feuded on X, then still known as Twitter.
Trump called Musk a liar and “bulls**t artist” during a rally in Alaska.
“Elon is not going to buy Twitter,” Trump said at the time.
“You know, he said the other day, ‘I’ve never voted for a Republican.’ I said, ‘I didn’t know that – you told me you voted for me. So he’s another bulls**t artist, but he’s not going to be buying it.”
In response to Trump’s critiques, the SpaceX founder clapped back.
“I don’t hate the man, but it’s time for Trump to hang up his hat & sail into the sunset,” Musk posted.
Musk also went on to buy X months later.
The X owner said he had previously voted mostly for Democrats since becoming a United States citizen in 2002.
Musk initially backed Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to be the Republican Party’s presidential nominee.
“My preference for the 2024 presidency is someone sensible and centrist,” Musk wrote on X in 2022.
“I had hoped that would [be] the case for the Biden administration, but have been disappointed so far.”
His shift in political parties might be attributed to his plummeting relationship with President Joe Biden who didn’t invite Musk to the 2021 White House electric vehicle summit.
Despite their past issues, Trump and Musk’s relationship took a turn in March after they met at Mar-a-Lago.
Trump was also previously against electric vehicles but has since changed his stance.
“I’m for electric cars,” he said at a rally earlier this month.
“I have to be, because Elon endorsed me very strongly. So I have no choice.”
Following the assassination attempt at Trump’s rally in July, Musk announced his support for the former president.
“I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery,” Musk wrote on X after the shooting.
During a recent press conference, Trump spoke highly of Musk.
“I respect Elon a lot. He respects me,” he said.
“Elon, more than almost anybody I know, he loves this country. He loves the concept of this country, but like me, he says this country is in big trouble, it’s in tremendous danger.”
Musk has been pictured at events at Mar-a-Lago and the UFC, buddying up with Trump.
Trump selected Musk to lead the Department of Government Efficiency – a taskforce aimed at cutting bureaucracy.
In its financial year ending September 2024, the USPS had losses of around $10 billion, raising questions about its future.
“We want to have a post office that works well and doesn’t lose massive amounts of money,” Trump said.
Trump first touted the idea of privatizing the service in December.
And Commerce Secretary, Howard Lutnick, suggested the USPS could be used to deliver Social Security forms and carry out the US census.
Any moves to privatize the service have been met with widespread opposition from both parties.
“Privatizing the Postal Service is an attack on Americans’ access to critical information, benefits and life-saving medical care,” Gerry Connolly, a Virginia representative, told The Washington Post.
Lynch worked with the Republican lawmaker Nick LaLota on the resolution.
But, the USPS has been the target of criticism from customers who say they’ve not received mail for months.
The U.S. Sun reported how local businesses had to deal with an influx of confused customers who hadn’t received deliveries.
The USPS came under fire from customers who claimed that they hadn’t received medication due to apparent hold-ups at depots.
But the agency has undergone huge change at the helm.
Louis DeJoy, the Postmaster General, resigned after five years in the post.
“We have served the American people through an unprecedented pandemic and through a period of high inflation and sensationalized politics,” he said in a note to colleagues.
While in office, he wanted to modernize the service by consolidating processing centers, but critics claimed this slowed down operations.
