President Trump on Sunday blasted Democrats for wanting to use “mail drop boxes” to collect ballots for November’s presidential election, insisting they would lead to fraud and aren’t “COVID sanitized.”
“So now the Democrats are using Mail Drop Boxes, which are a voter security disaster. Among other things, they make it possible for a person to vote multiple times. Also, who controls them, are they placed in Republican or Democrat areas? They are not Covid sanitized. A big fraud!,” the president wrote on Twitter.
Later in the day, Twitter flagged the posting for violating “civic and election integrity.”
“However, Twitter has determined that it may be in the public’s interest for the Tweet to remain accessible,” the social messaging site said, linking to a fuller explanation on its policies.
It said it considered content in the public interest “if it directly contributes to understanding or discussion of a matter of public concern,” but noted that the notice limits the ability to engage with the posting “through likes, Retweets, or sharing on Twitter.”
A number of states, including the swing-states of Arizona, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, are considering using or expanding the use of drop boxes, which allow voters concerned about social distancing to cast their ballots without going to the post office.
Oregon, Washington and Colorado already regularly use drop boxes.
Trump has railed about Democrats supporting mail-in voting in November, saying it would result in a rigged election.
The president said he backs voting with an absentee ballot, which he and first lady Melania Trump use in Florida, but is against widespread voting by mail because of security risks.
Democrats accused Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, a GOP donor and Trump ally, of making changes to the US Postal Service in recent weeks that would slow down mail collection at a time when voting-by-mail is expected to surge because of the coronavirus.
DeJoy, in a Senate hearing on Friday, denied claims he is trying to slow the mail and said his top priority is to make sure election mail arrives on time.
In a rare Saturday session, the Democrat-led House approved $25 billion to help the agency with the expected influx of ballots and to order DeJoy not to close post offices, remove mail sorting machines or cut back on postal workers’ overtime before the election.
Twenty-six Republicans voted with the Democrats.
Trump has vowed to veto the USPS assistance bill if it passes the GOP-controlled Senate, which is unlikely.