Squeezed by dwindling business and rising costs, the U.S. Postal Service is so desperate for money that it might have to shut down this winter unless Congress comes to the rescue, reports The New York Times. Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe wants lawmakers' permission to shutter 3,700 offices and lay off 120,000 workers, despite a no-layoff clause in the agency's union contract. Should lawmakers throw the Postal Service a life line or is snail mail doomed?
If Congress is smart, it will find the money: It looks like we have found the next potential victim of the GOP's "political hostage taking," says Joe Gandelman at The Moderate Voice. But let's hope Republicans don't demand that their "least favorite programs" get cut before the Postal Service gets a helping hand. "If you think a government shutdown was unpopular years ago, just think of the reaction if people don't get their mail ... their checks ... their business documents."
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