postmaster for two cities that have populations of less than 700. in four weeks time, both postal service has only had one customer. i was paid $47,000 a year basically to raise and lower the flag. when you take into account the hundreds of thousands of post offices across the united states in populated areas of less than 4000 people, and when you figure out the cost of operating those postal service is, paying those postmasters and also their benefits, you could right now reduce the cost of postage down to 10 cents. now, at the congress didn't link the offense responded to my employee suggestion and said that it was the only identity as some of the city side. that is the most ridiculous statement i've ever heard.

10 miles of populated cities of 14 belsen or more. why is the postal service subsidizing these post offices in the small cities that do not have any customers? it is ridiculous. guest: i think you raise a good point about the role of the postal service in america. the constitution says we should have post offices. that is part of what the government should do. where they are located and what their service is is the question. not only deliver the mail, they create an identity for the community, a meeting point, a sense that there is a government that cares about me, no matter how far i am from urban areas of the country. the postal service is obligated, under its universal service

obligation, to make sure that every part of the country is serviced. how expensive that is is up to the base. it is not dead nearly as expensive to maintain as you say, but it is a financial burden. the postal service has talked about reducing the number of those post offices. it has, over time, reduced them somewhat. there are down to about 35,000 locations. there were closer to 37,000 a few years ago. congress specifically tells the postal service that it cannot close an office just for economic reasons. there has to be other reasons. congress has told the postal service at these offices, especially in rural areas, are important to maintain.

if this was a private company, it would not have to provide those services, and probably, those people would feel isolated and not as much a part of the country as they would otherwise. the postal service gets a monopoly. no one else puts their letter in the mailbox. so it gets in monopoly and some benefits in exchange for the obligation it has to provide those services in far-out lane places in the country. our job and congress's job is to balance those two requirements that the postal service functions under. try to help them be efficient, over all. our recommendations to the

postal service board to help them to do their job better. we do not feel as if this is punitive, in any way. >> host: is sending a message, is a possible the postal system could go bankrupt? what then the? >> guest: it is a good question. it is a good questions since it is a wholly gone own government agency and questions as to what the government would do too reestablish what we used to have which was a post office that was a branch of united states government under the president and executive branch. we could do that or we could try to privatize it do see of the private sector with like to run the postal service. those are different configurations that are in place around the world not totally owned by the

government some are fully privatize but i think if it gets to that there may be more serious questions about how to restructure the postal service. but quite frankly maybe i have rose colored glasses but i think if we can address this serious retiree benefit problem 5.5 billion of the common the economy is turning around some of the efficiencies of the postal service's implementing now can be balanced out so the post office as a vibrant future. >> host: the independent line. good morning. you are on the air. >> caller: of like to know why maybe you could get rid of some of the junk mail? i get three times as much of junk mail as i get a regular mail.

i think it would cut down by the people all they do is grab it out of the mailbox and throw with in the trash. >> host: how important are the so-called junk mail the third class mail to the health of the postal service? >> guest: some of that mail does contribute to the operating bottom-line. some of it does substantially. the problem that all of us have is that your job mail may not be junk mail on the some of my catalogs but don't care about others and other people like their saturday pliers that tell them about bargains of the neighborhood stores some like the coupons they get. we can't really distinguish and it does seem from the markers point* of view and what they tell us that direct-mail is the most effective way to advertise

in spite of television or radio when you get a hard copy piece of people in day's paper in the mail your response is greater and more positive than all of this other communication you get for advertising. it works and as long as it works the businesses in the united states are going to 12 use the mail. and most citizens of the united states are going to want to get it. it is a question and a think you will find the catalog in particular is very effective in reducing the number of catalogs you get in the last couple of years who. there is not as much waste as a used to be and the recession has made everybody more effective to what they put in the mail but advertising mail is quite powerful and you'll still

see a lot of it in the mail stream. >> host: how many people work for the postal service? >> guest: 600,000 employees 10 years ago there over 800,000. >> host: is this saturday delivery a reduction by one day what they're also be a reduction of force? >> guest: yes. that is the way it thinks it will save the most amount of money. that is controversial. they think there will be at least 13,000 part-time positions and i have heard up to 40,000 positions that will be lost. i think the postal regulatory commission will look at this issue and the impact of job losses because when you lay people off on one side to reduce employment but the government has cost on the other side from that as well. of the postal service may not feel the cost but the

government does. we will look at the trade-off between saving jobs and lowering the number of employs from the postal service and they can save money. i wish these issues were erse simpler but they are complicated and independent. >> host: it is just now 6:05 a.m. we are pleased to have her. on the republican side. >> caller: i was a direct mailer and ran a small business for several years. mainly political. but the best rate i could get with the expensive equipment and packed everything directly at the correct addresses was not nearly close to the word stray a nonprofit could do nothing for preparation. that is item number one.

#2, mailing packages i can take a 20-pound package and mail it to lowe's angeles at $37 also samoa, guam, alaska, hawaii, in a place outside of the continental united states for $37. the same thing on the east coast like to move to florida, for a given price and also pr or the caribbean we are subsidizing massively these of continental mailings. 37 vs 160 by ups. >> guest: thank you very much to when you raise a really good point* about the postal service that it provides universal service at a uniform rate across the country. that combines a nation together to insure everybody has access.

people live at the bottom of the grand canyon, hawaii, alaska, pr and we all want to be able to access e-bay. that is one of those industries that has grown enormously as a result of having the postal service available to its. the country has benefited and it has benefited from the postal service providing the uniform rates. the economy has benefited even if the postal service itself has not from those rates that are available. i think the question is a postal regulatory commission deals with they're not just the dollars and cents whether the postal service will breakeven but what are the needs of the country? it is educational scientific, a construction and social needs and other it needs those as well as the obligations to break-even? with regard to your first

question and about presorting mail and bar coding yes you get discounts but if you are a nonprofit agency the law says you only have to pay 60% of the rates that a for-profit says when email at the standard mail. that is something the congress decided was important to. the postal service has an obligation to assure that nonprofit agencies in this country can communicate to the public at a subsidized rate because what they do with the nonprofit agencies is so important in our society. it is up to the congress to change that it is true the postal service has to subsidize those rates but also their periodicals of newspapers and magazines because congress has a longstanding policy that it is important for the country to have a free flow of ideas

and for the postal service to ensure that happens. ben franklin was a magazine publisher and was there when the congress -- constitution was written to major the postal service would provide an expensive and ubiquitous service for magazines and newspapers around the country. that is a vital role the service place in our democracies. >> host: how many membe does the postal regulatory commission have? >> guest: of five members all appointed by the president and confirmed for the congress and with a staggered six year term. we are based in washington d.c. and i think you just add the web page up? >> host: we did. we have our own web page which we have more information about consumer access and a particular link to this issue of changing

service from six down at five days of people have questions or comments or information to share with us we would really like to have it your to make the most aggressive effort we have had to date to get their imports station but on this very important change we went with all the information we can get as to get the information how to proceed. >> host: how is the commission funded? >> guest: we get its funding which is minuscule from the postal service. we get some of our operating funds through the postal service but they're actually voted on by congress though they could change that financial system if it wanted to do. >> host: connecticut. >> guest: we have 70 employees and a budget of $14 billion and i think we work really hard to make

every one of those dollars worthwhile to the american public. >> host: connecticut is next as a talk about the future of the postal service on the democrat line. >> caller: i would like to say i like the post office i would hate to see saturday services eliminated because there are checks that have not came they're supposed to come it is expected to come on saturday. that would be terrible to wait until monday especially with the economy one to get your checks and pay your bills. i have pretty high phone bills. i just wanted to say you have a lot of tradition and throughout the 18th century and i hate to see that eliminates to be bankrupt or anything like

that. and also if you have to privatize, the other caller made an interesting point* some of the post offices with maybe one customer per day may be making a private company and make it some money that way. i am a democrat i am surprising to hear myself say that. [laughter] >> host: they give. >> guest: we have to be flexible. that is certainly true the world is changing faster than for people my age thought it never would. we have to be flexible but we want to hold on to our values. >> host: columbia merrill lynch the last caller four ruth goldway independent-minded. >> caller: could i interject a note of interest about my grandfather?

he carried mail 40 miles one way and came back on horseback this was in the 20s on the navajo reservation and i would like to ask please do not do away with the small post offices are small communities. that is the only way they get their mail. mail is not delivered to their homes. the people come and my family has to go 30 miles one way to get their mail. i sure you hope you keep that in mind. i love your recent beautiful stance and my love and blessings to the troops. figure very much. >> host: a snapshot of the commentary you will be hearing as you set out to

get public opinion on the postal service plans. let's close with a timetable of people are interested in how much time is the comments section of been? >> we have opened as of this today and on april 273 will have an announcement of what the full agenda will be for the hearing process. there will be an opportunity for people to participate in formally in the com mentor files through its participants through the internet and will accept comments on april 27 then will tell you exactly what the format will be but we expect the process will be about six months or longer and make sure we're traveling to cities around the country chicago, dallas, las vegas are on our list. maybe sacramento? and we will be building up

others. so people can come and meet us and present firsthand experience is about the postal service and how important saturday delivery is or willing to live without saturday delivery and the adjustments they can make if they don't have that. we will be hearing both sides of the story and i am sure along the way we will hear the kind of testimony we just heard about how important the postal service is to the country especially in areas that are far away from big cities. and always makes me feel proud to be part of that sum that provides a special unique service to everyone in the nation. >> host: thank you for making fats and early part of the process. >> on "washington journal" a look at the a media event

>> and did morningveone and it will come to carnegie at a special welcome to our c-span audience this morning. tata exactly one year ago and london president medvedev and president obama met and began what has now become known universally as the resets of the new oppression american relations. and essential to that from the very beginning has been then nuclear relationship the strategic arms relationship and nuclear proliferation and other nuclear issues. i think it is a particularly fitting event this morning at carnegie to have one of the leading experts both on

our own staff and also on our staff in moscow talk to us this morning about what is happening over the last several years to the nuclear relationship and the situation as a nuclear weapons with russia and how oppressions see it spread of it is my pleasure this morning to both george perkovich director and vice president for studies to focuses efforts here at carnegie in washington on the nuclear agenda and he will introduce to you alexei arbatov the recognized expert, political leader, and long tom -- longtime student of the strategic relationship between russia and the united states. let me turn it over to george. >> thanks.

just to build low little on what jim said to set up the discussion to introduce alexei arbatov, the start treaty has been agreed will be signed next week there are other things you ask alexei arbatov to talk about and contextualize for us with the questions because just as the united states i believe next tuesday the obama administration will release or at least preview the new -- nuclear posture the administration review of the nuclear policy enforced the rash of announced the new military doctrine and i think it will be very useful 45 to discuss that with us. also us today is papers recount there is movement in

the security council to deal with iran's violation of the security council resolutions and i ata resolutions and the relationship that is very important in that process which again alexei is very well situated to discuss and in the broader question end up well how will all of these issues of a nuclear dimension fit into the overall resets of u.s.-russian relations which the administration began very early seeking to do with the russian counterparts? i don't know anybody better to talk about all of these issues into context other than alexei arbatov the chair of the non-proliferation program at the moscow center also at the head of center of international security at the world economy and

international relations in moscow. one of the most prestigious institutes ceiling with international affairs. alexei has played the zero leading role at and russia as the ongoing adviser of the russian national security council and a prolific author with a new book out in russia and which covers the horizon of affairs russian domestic, international affairs come a very impressive book. we're honored and delighted to have him as a carnegie colleague and have him here this morning. let's go through some issues and we will open to discussion. >> thank you jim and george presario delighted and honored to be here again. and thank you for coming. let me start with the new treaty. which is the days will be

signed in a few. i think it would be the most controversial strategic arms control treaty and the whole history of arms control. i attempted to use vice president by this formula which was used with respect to health care and applied to the near treaty but the whole question is with the witch to gadgeteers you put the emphasis? [laughter] we have to see all of the papers are articles to make a comprehensive judgment. but for what we know at present, some of the judgments may be already advanced. the first thing you ask about with a new arms-control treaty is how

much does it affect strategic forces? what is the real reduction? but compared to what? if you compare it to treaty of san one in this hit then the warheads is very impressive by 75% of the ceiling of start one compared to the new ceilings. the reduction is also very impressive by a 60%. if you compare it with a treaty in 2000 to, then the achievement is less impressive depending on the ceiling of sort agitate as a

departing point* is for the warhead reduction. if you compare this ceiling of the new treaty it was mutual for deployment. then the official position of the united states which i have already heard is reduction is by one-third from the existing force deployment. led to the strict accounting rules come out of the treaty. and i am sure that to they will be taking care of. for example, -- was covered and covered significantly and reduce but the new treaty it is counted as one launcher and one were ahead. even over the extent you almost have reduction