Political Quotes

“Mr. President, today the Postmaster General announced that the Postal Service would begin the process of consolidating about 140 processing facilities around the country. Despite the harsh realities of this announcement from the Postmaster General, there are a few bright spots in Illinois. The processing facilities in Springfield and Fox Valley, which the Postmaster General had originally slated for closure, will remain open. Additionally, I am glad that the Postmaster General has heeded our calls to keep Illinois jobs in Illinois and other jobs in the States where the processing facilities currently exist. The Postmaster General's original plan would have potentially sent over 500 Illinois postal jobs to surrounding States, along with the mail they have processed so efficiently for so many years. Beyond the postal employees, the Postal Service supports tens of thousands of private sector jobs in Illinois, which is the center of the mailing and printing industry. Certainly, today's announcements are difficult for my constituents who live in Quincy and Rockford, Carbondale and Centralia, Bloomington and Effingham. I have consistently insisted--and the Postmaster General assured me--that we are going to avoid layoffs and that all of the employees in these facilities will have the opportunity to pursue another role in the Postal Service or to accept, if they wish, early retirement incentives. I am told none of these facilities will close before the end of the year.…”