Trump’s opposition to mail voting ‘a death warrant’ for Americans: Rep. Clyburn

President Donald Trump is “signing a death warrant for a lot of people” through his opposition to mail-in voting during the COVID-19 pandemic, says House Majority Whip James Clyburn.

"We ought not [to] be crippling the Post Office and for the president to admit that he is doing this in order to gum up the works when it comes to the elections, he is actually signing a death warrant for a lot of people that he ought not be doing this," the South Carolina Democrat told CNN on Saturday.

Clyburn said that the election in November would not be free and fair “if it’s left up to the president.”

Trump has claimed for months that universal mail voting during the pandemic would result in widespread voting fraud, and give a boost to his Democratic rival, former Vice President Joe Biden.

With Universal Mail-In Voting (not Absentee Voting, which is good), 2020 will be the most INACCURATE & FRAUDULENT Election in history. It will be a great embarrassment to the USA. Delay the Election until people can properly, securely and safely vote???

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 30, 2020

Speaking at a news conference on Saturday evening, the president said he had no issue with absentee voting, which he himself uses. But he added, "Universal mail-in voting is going to be catastrophic, it's going to make our country the laughing stock of the world."

In a wide-ranging interview with FOX News last month, Trump went as far as suggesting that he might not accept the result of the election because of an expected increase in mail voting, which he claimed would “rig the election.”

Clyburn told CNN that the late Rep. John Lewis, a Civil War veteran, would be “disappointed” by Trump’s opposition to mail-in voting.

"John Lewis would be so disappointed that he … nearly gave his life to get the vote for people of color and to watch [the] complicity of the Republicans in holding onto this kind of shenanigans is just beyond me," the congressman said.

Democrats, including former President Barack Obama, have accused Trump of attempting to undermine the election by attacking mail voting and the Postal Service.

Trump trying to 'kneecap' Postal Service 

Obama said on Friday Trump was trying to “kneecap” the Postal Service in order to prevent people from voting.

 “What we’ve seen, in a way that is unique to modern political history, is a president who is explicit in trying to discourage people from voting,” Obama said in a discussion with his former campaign manager David Plouffe.

In a scathing statement on Friday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer accused Trump and Republicans of waging an “all-out assault on the Postal Service and its role in ensuring the integrity of the 2020 election.”

Pelosi and other top Democrats are considering bringing the lower chamber back into session to address the unfolding crisis at the Postal Service, Democratic sources have confirmed to CNN and POLITCIO.

Pelosi considering recalling Congress over Post Office woes

Speaker Pelosi may recall lawmakers from a summer recess to address changes at the Postal Service that have prompted anger among Democrats and alarm about possible impact on the 2020 election.

The House could convene as early as next week to discuss possible action on forbidding the Postal Service to change sorting devices, stopping any effort to end overtime pay or changing the timing of mail delivery, according to CNN.

Democrats are also looking to address organizational issues in the coming weeks.

A handful of states have already said they will be holding universal mail voting, meaning that voters will automatically receive a postal ballot ahead of the election.

Voters in other states will still have to request to cast their ballot by mail.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk