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THREAD — THE ATTACK ON USPS IS A FELONY IN OHIO
Folks, we need to get this right.
The battle over the USPS is not a budget battle. A policy battle. A legislative fight.
It is a crime in plain sight.
And not just a federal crime.
It is an open-and-shut felony in Ohio.
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Folks, we need to get this right.
The battle over the USPS is not a budget battle. A policy battle. A legislative fight.
It is a crime in plain sight.
And not just a federal crime.
It is an open-and-shut felony in Ohio.
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Ohio law makes clear: “No person shall…knowingly hinder or delay the delivery of a lawful ballot to a person entitled to receive it.” R.C. 3599.20. It is a fifth degree felony to violate O.R.C. 3599.20.
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OH law also says: “No person shall knowingly do any of the following:
(5) Delay the delivery of any absent voter's ballot with a view to preventing its arrival in time to be counted;
(6) Hinder or attempt to hinder the delivery or counting of such absent voter's ballot..."
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(5) Delay the delivery of any absent voter's ballot with a view to preventing its arrival in time to be counted;
(6) Hinder or attempt to hinder the delivery or counting of such absent voter's ballot..."
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"...(7) Fail to forward to the appropriate election official an absent voter's ballot application entrusted to that person to so forward
(8) Fail to forward to the appropriate election official an absent voter's ballot application entrusted to that person to so forward..."
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(8) Fail to forward to the appropriate election official an absent voter's ballot application entrusted to that person to so forward..."
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"...within 10 days after that application is completed or w/in such a time period that the failure to so forward the application disenfranchises the voter w respect to a particular election, whichever is earlier…”
It is a 4th degree felony to do any of those things in OH
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It is a 4th degree felony to do any of those things in OH
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So in Ohio, if anyone were to grab 10 absentee ballots from a mailbox, and destroy them, they would be violating Ohio law. A fourth degree felony, no less.
Which makes what Trump is doing….an EGREGIOUS violation of Ohio law.
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Which makes what Trump is doing….an EGREGIOUS violation of Ohio law.
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Now usually, a major problem with prosecuting crimes of this sort is proving intent.
The good news here is that Donald Trump has been so helpful.
Trump's intent has been plain as day in his pronouncement that he is knowingly and intentionally doing these exact things...
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The good news here is that Donald Trump has been so helpful.
Trump's intent has been plain as day in his pronouncement that he is knowingly and intentionally doing these exact things...
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For those of you who haven't paid attention, he's made no secret of his disdain for mail-in absentee ballots & his belief that allowing people to vote by mail would harm his chances for re-election.
Let's call it very handy evidence.
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1265255835124539392
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Let's call it very handy evidence.
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1265255835124539392
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Here's another subtle bread crumb of his trail of evidence.
9/ https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/1266172570983940101?lang=en
9/ https://twitter.com/realdonaldtrump/status/1266172570983940101?lang=en
There are other such tweets, but let's skip ahead to the outright admission of the crime last week, when Trump openly admitted the reason for his attacks on the post office...
10/ https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/trump-postal-service-mail-in-voting-absentee-election-defund-1043797/
10/ https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/trump-postal-service-mail-in-voting-absentee-election-defund-1043797/
The quote: "They need that money in order to have the Post Office work, so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots…but if they don’t get those items, that means you can’t have universal mail-in voting because they’re not equipped to handle it.”
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So that statement makes clear his intent to violate Ohio law.
Now, words w no actions only go so far. You need both for a crime.
Is there evidence that this intention to delay absentee ballot delivery is actually having an impact?
Sadly, there is so much, including in OH.
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Now, words w no actions only go so far. You need both for a crime.
Is there evidence that this intention to delay absentee ballot delivery is actually having an impact?
Sadly, there is so much, including in OH.
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In Columbus, for instance, officials have removed mail sorting and processing equipment, reducing the amount of mail that can be sorted by over 325,000 pieces per hour, or over 2.6 million pieces across an eight hour workday.
13/ https://www.dispatch.com/news/20200814/postal-service-reduces-mail-sorting-capacity-warns-ohio-some-absentee-ballots-may-not-be-delivered-in-time-to-count
13/ https://www.dispatch.com/news/20200814/postal-service-reduces-mail-sorting-capacity-warns-ohio-some-absentee-ballots-may-not-be-delivered-in-time-to-count
And at the same time the sorting machines were removed, Postal Service officials informed Ohio’s Secretary of State that voters risk being disenfranchised due to mail delays.
14/ https://www.dispatch.com/news/20200814/postal-service-reduces-mail-sorting-capacity-warns-ohio-some-absentee-ballots-may-not-be-delivered-in-time-to-count
14/ https://www.dispatch.com/news/20200814/postal-service-reduces-mail-sorting-capacity-warns-ohio-some-absentee-ballots-may-not-be-delivered-in-time-to-count
Sorting machines have also been removed from the Detroit area, which processes mail for northwest Ohio and Cuyahoga County...
15/ https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/nation/2020/08/14/postal-service-warns-states-their-voters-could-disenfranchised-delayed-mail-ballots/In4vhOSbmxFTAx33KR4hxI/story.html
15/ https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/nation/2020/08/14/postal-service-warns-states-their-voters-could-disenfranchised-delayed-mail-ballots/In4vhOSbmxFTAx33KR4hxI/story.html
There is no doubt that service is being impacted throughout Ohio. We will likely learn about more all this every day that passes by.
16/ https://www.news5cleveland.com/news/democracy-2020/ohio-politics/us-postal-service-scrambling-for-funding-to-ensure-mail-in-ballots-are-counted-in-time
16/ https://www.news5cleveland.com/news/democracy-2020/ohio-politics/us-postal-service-scrambling-for-funding-to-ensure-mail-in-ballots-are-counted-in-time
And all these attacks on the mail system come after there were already challenges with vote by mail in Ohio's primary.
17/ https://www.journal-news.com/news/postal-service-says-missort-caused-late-delivery-more-than-300-ballots-butler-county/30hGBU3iLtu7NyXoknuJZI/
17/ https://www.journal-news.com/news/postal-service-says-missort-caused-late-delivery-more-than-300-ballots-butler-county/30hGBU3iLtu7NyXoknuJZI/
Bottom line: Trump’s statements leave no doubt about the intent of his efforts to cripple the U.S. Postal Service heading into the 2020 general election: He wants to prevent as many people as possible from voting by mail, in order to help his chances of re-election.
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He is specifically and expressly trying to disenfranchise Ohioans, including voters in your county, by delaying or hindering their efforts to receive and return an absentee ballot by mail.
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He and any of those involved with executing his plan to dismantle post office capacity in Ohio and elsewhere are clearly violating Ohio law that is designed to protect the rights of Ohioans to vote by absentee ballot.
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So to reiterate what I said when I started. This is not a budget battle. This is not a legislative disagreement. This is not a policy disagreement.
This is a crime, both federal and here in Ohio, in plain sight, and should be treated as such. At all levels.
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This is a crime, both federal and here in Ohio, in plain sight, and should be treated as such. At all levels.
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I'd argue that is is a more egregious and direct crime to interfere in the election than even the crimes he committed around Ukraine.
Adam Schiff predicted it all.
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Adam Schiff predicted it all.
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But here's the difference.
The crime is ongoing. It's in plain sight. And, unlike 2016, or Ukraine, it can be stopped if people step up and treat it as such.
So today, we sent a letter of referral to Ohio county prosecutors to investigate these actions...
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The crime is ongoing. It's in plain sight. And, unlike 2016, or Ukraine, it can be stopped if people step up and treat it as such.
So today, we sent a letter of referral to Ohio county prosecutors to investigate these actions...
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...for what they are: clear crimes against the people of the state of Ohio, by Trump and all those involved.
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And what should voters do amid all this?
Send in ur application NOW to vote early. When you get the ballot in October, mail it back in the first few days, or drop it off in available drop boxes (which, for now, will be at your BOE offices).
Or vote in person...w a mask.
END
Send in ur application NOW to vote early. When you get the ballot in October, mail it back in the first few days, or drop it off in available drop boxes (which, for now, will be at your BOE offices).
Or vote in person...w a mask.
END