the data are provided to the postal service by foreign postal operators, fpl and include information such as names, addresses and descriptions of content. once received, aed is passed for the screening efforts. before i joined to aed, i want to describe the dramatic decline in the seizures of opioids and international mail. according to the postal inspection service using fiscal year 2018 as a baseline, we saw 71% drop in international seizures in 2019. the drop was 93% in 2020. unfortunately, this international decline has counterbalanced by an increase in domestic seizures. now, over 97% of seizures are domestic in areas near the southwest border are the hotspot. on the data front, beginning in 2015 through 2016, the postal service increasingly recognized the need for more aed. through 2017 and 2018, we worked on various efforts in the stop act's passage reinforced this work. it is important to know that even though the stop act sets aed mandates on the postal service, it is fpl's that collect and transmit the data. even so, currently we receive aed from 96 countries, and we are in

we are talking about way back january 2019 we at the postal service only had it on 57 percent of packages, not 70 percent only 76 from china, not 100 percent. the state department has ruled the universal postal union of which the united states is a member with all foreign pos post, the state department leads the efforts to collect aed for foreign partners. it is true, the rate of international packages has improved over the past two years since the implementation of the stop act and i appreciate that. is made a big difference and saved a lot of lives in fact less fentanyl is coming into the country because of that. three years ago 26 percent of international packages had aed. by january 2020 it was 67 percent. unfortunately during covid it has dropped off 254 percent. we were making good progress and recently we have seen a drop off and we want to know why. as noted generate first the postal service cbp will be required to refuse any international package without aed because deadlines were not meant a substantial number of packages will be turned away starting january 1st 221,100,000 pack

i'm the vice president of logistics for united states postal service. i oversee the national logistics operation, including international logistics. this17 2018 i testified to subcommittee about customs advanced electronic data, aed. this is provided by forum postal operators, and include names and addresses and descriptions of content. once received, aed is passed to cpb for screening efforts. i want to describe the dramatic seizures, according to the postal inspection service using fiscal year 2018 as a baseline, we saw 71% drop in international seizures in 2019. in 2020.d 93% this is counterbalanced by an increase in domestic seizures. over 97% of seizures are domestic in areas near the southwest border which are a hotspot. on the data front, beginning in 2015-2016, the need for more aed . 2017-2018, we worked on various efforts. it is important to note even though the stop act mandates on the postal service, it is fpo's that collect and transmit the data. even so we currently received aed from 96 countries. we work for international cooperation and u

the postal service willollect the fee and remit 50% to cbp. we have already received the rst payment from the ptal service and we use these funds to enhance the capabilitiest thofthe internional mail facilies. cbp, dhs science and technology, boei cbp and u.s. postal service sponsored a conte called the opioid prize challenge offering $1.5 milon prizes to develop a sution that could detect quantities of opioids and other contraband in the mail stream. the prize winner was announced last december andbp has award contracts to purchase and deploy this technogy as a part of an ovell strategy to modernize the mail processing capabilities, including a multimillion dollar renovation for the international mail facility at the jfk international airport. implementing the stop act is a collaborative fort. the experience is gained working with the postal inspection seice and the department of state hashown that we can effectively operationalize t use of mail aed to mitiga risks and mak international mail as secure as all others. thank y for the opportunity

your job was to drive ballots to a postal service center. you are nonpartisan and you said you were told by two separate postal workers that they were gathering over 100,000 ballots on the morning of november 4th, a day after the election and backdate those ballots. can you please tell us that story? >> yes. so... let's see. on election day, i only had -- i had no ballots to take on election day. the day after the election, i didn't think anything of it until the postal service supervisor asked me if i had forgotten ballots the night before and i didn't have any. so i was like, that's kind of a weird question. no. he explained to me that 100,000 ballots were supposedly missing in the state of wisconsin and in order came down look for them from wisconsin and illinois usps chapters of the postal service. >> sean: by the way, you signed an affidavit. you know if you sign a false affidavit that you could be charged with perjury. correct? >> yes, sir. >> sean: jesse, you told a story that you drove almost 300,000 ballots across state lines, what,

postal service. congresswoman katy porter will join us on that. "all in" starts right now. good evening from new york. i'm chris hayes. well, it's beginning to look like possibly the single biggest hack in history, and we're learning more about the breadth of it every day. now, you may remember back when the coronavirus pandemic hit, many people pointed out part of the reason, or its implausible part of the reason our government is so unprepared was because the trump administration had reached in and disbanded a white house pandemic response team in 2018. now, as more and more extremely worrying details about russia's massive cyber attack on our federal government come to light, it seems worth pointing out that just days after getting rid of the pandemic response team, the white house eliminated the position of cyber security coordinator on the national security council. as "the new york times" reported at the time, quote, the elimination of the cyber security role is likely to increase concern of th

postal service in wisconsin.says 100,000 mail-in ballots were illegally back dated to circumvent a state deadline. we're also a joined but congressman deny nunez, ranking republican on the intelligence committee -- devin nuÑes, we'll ask him about why the department of justice is refusing to investigate election fraud and whether the doj and fbi by their inaction have made themselves complicit in the crimes against the nation. we'll also tonight are have an exclusive interview with general michael flynn. he joins us here in his first television interview since being pardoned by president trump. among other things, we'll be talking about the general about that pardon as well as the four years of political persecution by the deep state and the radical denials that he -- dems that he and his family have endured. and the focus of his newfound freedom and his energy, what he will do to get president trump reelected and, oh, yes, get to the bottom of the most fraudulent election in this country's history. >>> as presid

postal service, this year? , here is cnn's christina aleshi. >> we just don't have enough rooms in the stations. >> reporter: postal union president jonathan smith says the post office is handling more mail than ever, before. this year, 3 billion parcels will be delivered during the peak-holiday season by all major carriers. that's 800 million more than last year. >> it's an impossible task to keep up. >> reporter: and impacting christmas mornings around the country. >> things i ordered never came on time. i ended up cancelling, or they said they were delivered and they weren't. >> reporter: the backlog also affecting small business owners, like alicia, in michigan. she refunded $800 in sales of her wreaths because of postal delays. she is getting messages, like this one, from customers. the wreath is not here, yet. can you, please, find out where it is? >> i'm not counting on them because i had to shut my shop down because i can't rely on the flowers to get there before christmas. >> reporter: alicia is not alo

uses the postal service to deliver.re coming into the holiday season, we're continuing to have these slowdowns. so a couple of things are clear to me. one, mr. dejoy made a bad choice. whatever changes he made, he should unmake them. and, two, he's a terrible manager because he hasn't figured that out and done it. >> the structure of the post office is somewhat strange. obviously it was a u.s. government institution for many, many decades in the constitution. it's now this kind of quasi private entity with government oversight. does dejoy get to stay, right? he has a fixed term no matter what? >> dejoy gets to stay. there is a postal board of governors, and they can vote to remove him. i'm hopeful that mr. dejoy will take a clue here and understand that the american people don't want him, that he's failing at this job, that he's not competent for it, and that he'll step down and we'll be able to put someone in his place who is really committed not to destroying the post office for his personal profits, but instead to in

postal service?> the last few days were receiving 6 million packages a day more than what they would have otherwise have handled if it was not for those restrictions. >> reporter: on top of the crush for demand, the impact of the coronavirus, as nearly 19,000 postal workers are in quarantine. that's more than double the 8,000 workers before thanksgiving. >> i understand the frustration of the american people. don't confuse a comma for a period because we will get you your packages. >> reporter: thank you, christina. and thank you for watching. our coverage continues. to your doctor understk about treatment options is key. today, we are redefining how we do things. we find new ways of speaking, so you're never out of touch. it's seeing someone's face that comforts us, no matter where. when those around us know us, they can show us just how much they care. the first steps of checking in, the smallest moments can end up being everything. there's resources that can inform us, and that spark can make a di

joe biden and his plans for the postal service, he wants to direct even more funding for the postal serviceas it struggles financially. one of the root causes of those financial different cuts is a requirement to pray pay for future retiree health care benefits. he wants to do away with that. he wants to slow the rates of increases to ship things through the postal service. to do two of three things on the list he would need help of congress. another thing the republicans thrown out several times over the past several years is privatizing the u.s. postal service. president-elect joe biden says he has no mans to do that. connell: that wouldn't be something he would think about. the other issues, why georgia is so important, grady, thank you. grady trimble live in chicago. >>> the fbi is warning americans to stay vigilant and be on the lookout for scams. the biggest issues, a bunch of crooks are looking for down payment or medical details, in exchange for being placed on a waiting list or priority access to a vaccine. you hear that type of thing. it is almost definitely a scam. we'll be back

the postal service is struggling to keep pace with the workload. there's the annual avalanche of christmas packages, the tidal wave of online shopping due to stayed home orders and like all businesses everywhere, there's covid. >> we are just like other employers, we had to be cognizant of the fact that we may have a case. we do have those, there's no denying that. >> the postal service says they've had a very few cases but when one is discovered the cdc guidelines take over. particularly with deep cleaning and quarantine. all when there's a historical workload during these unprecedented times.>> is been a lot of frustration. >> monica checks her twice a day. she says her mail carrier was gone for a couple of days but no one was available to step in and take his place. >> no one was able to take his route area so for a few days there was no service in this area. then it just piled up and waited for him. >> it's mostly just a local issue.>> the post office says male early.>> the deadline was yesterday for regular ground deliveries. you may still be

a luxury the united states postal service does not have.ts and the agency often has to absorb the packages these private carriers turn down. >> what kind of stress has the ups and and fed ex restrictions put on the postal service? >> in last few days, we're receiving 6 million packages a day more than what they would have otherwise had handled if it was not for those restrictions. >> reporter: on top of the crush for demand, the impact of the coronavirus, as nearly 19,000 postal workers are in quarantine. that's more than double the 8,000 workers before thanksgiving. >> i understand the frustration of the american public. we're doing the best we can. we will get you your packages. >>> and this just in to cnn, uk prime minister, boris johnson has announced that a long awaited post brexit trade deal between the united kingdom and the european union has been reached. this comes just days ahead of the end of the transition period on december 31st. the uk formerly left the european union in january of this year. we'll be right back. r you, for t

postal service has been struggling with record volumes, and at the same time, unprecedented staffingages. more than 18,000 workers are now out due to covid, either sick or in quarantine, up from roughly 4,000 before thanksgiving, according to postal union representatives. that amounts to about 3% of postal staff being out at the peak of the holiday shipping season ahead of key shipping deadlines last week, on-time performance for packages dropped below 87%, according to data from ship matr matrix, which says the postal service saw outsized demand when commercial shippers shifted their priority to larger customers and getting out vaccines >> you may be finding out that your package is sitting at the origin for a day or two more because they don't have space on the aircraft. >> reporter: a postal service spokeswoman says the entire operations team worked around the clock last week and to try to catch up with the backlog and new shape matrix data shows they've made progress. on-time performance back up to nearly 94% and last-mile deliveries made for amazon, u.p.s., and other large shipp

the result is a shipping surge, and longer lines for the postal service. >> i tried to come last night, and there was, like, 40 people in line, so i decided mid-day was going to be a better option. [ laughter ] >> the service said it is experiencing unprecedented volume increases and limited employee availability. >> we're seeing an increase for the christmas season, plus what people need for essential needs, so we're being slammed. >> they have hired 500 workers in the bay area and are still in need of 500 more. the result has those that are on the job working longer hours. >> actually speaking to my mailman, he mentioned he is starting work at 5:00, 6:00 in the morning and not getting home until 9:00 at night. >> they said there is a paradox between being unemployed, and also with a great need. >> undoubtedly, some people are going to be scared. who exactly are they going to be exposed to as they go around delivering? and i think that that adds to the difficult of filing the positions. >> another problem, few people want to start a job in december, only to be let go when the rush sub

postal service having out-of-state changes in address.the move is temporary, someone attending college in another state or a member of the military assigned to duties in another state but raffensperger warns anyone looking to come to georgia to temporarily cast a ballot in the runoffs, or anyone established residence in another state but thinks they can game the system, we will find you, we will prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law. early voteing in georgia is in the second week, a group "true the vote" submitted electoral challenges, 364,000 voters who filled out state or in state changesprove their eligibility before casting ballots in the county where they're registered. "true the vote" research was performed uniformly across all counties without any demographic history. the democratic party said this is baseless, despicable attempt to wrongfully disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of voters including our members of our military serving abroad. election officials in large metro counties declined "true the vote"'s request to

postal service?n what they would have otherwise had handled if it was not for those restrictions. >> reporter: on top of the crush for demand, the impact of the coronavirus. as nearly 19,000 postal workers are in quarantine. that's more than double the 8,000 workers before thanksgiving. >> i understand the frustration of the american public. we're doing the best we can. don't confuse a comma for a period because we will get you your packages. >> reporter: cristina alesci, cnn, new york. >>> it is the top of the hour now. hel hello, everyone, i'm kate bolduan a special edition of "cnn newsroom." christmas eve a time for people to come together, although this year doing so virtually. but the president and his own party can't even seem to do that. and washington can't seem to do virtually anything at the moment. president trump is making it crystal clear right now it's him versus everyone. in a desperate attempt to cling to the false reality that the election can be overturned he's wreaking havoc on his

have drop that we boxes everywhere so we don't have to rely on the postal service. state, have, in every ample opportunities for voters who don't do it exactly right, maybe don't put the signature in the right place, secure their ballots afterwards when they are legitimately voting, and that we have states do what so many do, which is to begin the process of voting by mail when they come in instead of waiting until election day, which means that we don't get the results for days or weeks and they may be different from what we see on election day, which raises, at least for some people, the suspicion that something has gone wrong there. deliberatelys that set the date which you can begin to process them on election day so that they could get a skewed result in what we have seen is that when states do this early, it makes it more legitimate for voters to see what the results are relatively soon after the election. this norm: from a slightly different perspective, if i could. i think you have to acknowledge how polarized the country is. placeal split that took in the s

i can get into more detail about those, too, but one is involving the usps, the united states postal service who we all know slowed down delivery of mail, including ballots, leading up to the election. so, from our vantage point, this election did not go smoothly, it went as well as it possibly could if you take into consideration the vast and enormous resources that civil rights organizations, organizers, activists themselves put into ensuring that our democracy prevailed. >> thanks, janai. i'm wondering if you could as a follow-up describe a little what you think is most important going forward to, again, acknowledging and i understand the perspective of that it's it-- that there's lots of room for improvement, but that we had-- that some things worked. what do you think we need to fortify going forward to avoid the negative aspects of the last election. >>. >> well, there are two important bills that are before congress right now that could do an enormous amount of work to alleviate some of these pressures on voters and our election systems. one is hr-1, the for the people act which would

postal service. backlogs and work shortages means long delays in delivery, just as the pandemic sends more americans online for holiday shopping and shipping. here's cbs's janet shamlian. >> reporter: if you want that package delivered by christmas, today is the ground shipping deadline for most carriers. the volume of packages being shipped is unprecedented. that's put a tremendous strain on the postal service, fed ex and u.p.s. and it's coming at the same time the vaccine is being shipped and a winter storm is forecast for much of the east coast. fed ex and u.p.s. are not picking up extra packages beyond what they've already agreed to for some retailers, and that sent a crush of items through the post office. >> the only person i haven't seen any real problems with has been amazon. i have noticed with regular mail it's been coming a little slower. >> reporter: the postal service tells cbs news it does have workers out with covid and they're working to address the issues. as we come to you from a bu

postal service leaders led by the postmaster general.this an attempt by the president to interfere in the election? >> absolutely. >> who are they being replaced? >> tampering with the postal service, putting his knee on the neck of american democracy. >> lisa: jeff, there is never any accountability for anything with the media. >> they get to say anything they want and they'll never be held toto account for it. that's the thing. frankly, lisa, that's why conservative media, rush limbaugh, all sorts of others, laura, sean, came to be precisely because of this and that's why they have an audience. >> lisa: do we ever get to a point where these people wake up ande sort of realize their ways or is that wishful thinking? >> if you look at the numbers, if you look at the pure research surveys, the media critically are not very popular anymore. this narrative, this soap the only conspiracy with the postal service is the notion they had any business having the federal government delivering mail in the year 2020. we got ups, fedex, email. the no

the clerk: h.r. 4988, a bill to designate the postal service as the clara barton post office building. the speaker pro tempore: is there objection to the consideration of the bill? without objection, the bill is engrossed, read a third time and passed and the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from illinois seek recognition? ms. kelly: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that the committee on oversight and reform be discharged from further consideration of h.r. 5123 and ask for its immediate consideration in the house. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 5123. a bill to designate the facility of the united states postal service located at 476 east main street in galesburg, illinois, as the senior airman daniel miller post office building. the speaker pro tempore: is there objection to the consideration of the bill? without objection, the bill is engrossed, read a third time and passed and the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from illinois see

from world war two to the transformation of the postal service — postmistress kay white finally fromar two to the transformation of the postal service — postmistress kay white finally retires after after 80 years working in the same post office in shropshire. hello and welcome if you're watching in the uk or around the world. the prime minister has promised that "big" changes are on the way for the uk following his brexit deal with the european union. in an interview with the sunday telegraph, borisjohnson has said he wants to focus on "leveling up the country" and "spreading opportunity" across the uk. mrjohnson said the brexit deal would provide new regulatory freedoms to "deliver for people who felt left behind". but some fishing leaders have accused him of "caving in" to the eu and sacrificing their interests. mps will vote on the deal in parliament on 30 december. this report from our political correspondent, iain watson. the prime minister has insisted he had been willing to go for no—deal when negotiations were going in the wrong direction, but he insisted the deal he achieved

and the postal service was more than 93%.in of orders, more than 1 million packages did not get to their destinations yet. errol barnett had this report from new york city. >> reporter: in a year unlike any other, the race for shippers to reach the homes of families nationwide, has reached its pinnacle. >> people are doing online shopping. the delivery system is flooded with packages. >> reporter: the u.s. postal service is getting hit hard. shipping millions more items than average. partly due to shipping caps at u.p.s. and fedex. for the first week of december, on-time deliveries fell to 75%. >> i'm worried about the u.s. postal system. i'm not sure what's going on. hopefully it will improve and they will figure it out. >> reporter: what is it like to be a postal worker right now? >> well, it's daunting. >> reporter: mark is the president of the american postal workers union, representing one-third of the more than 644,000 postal service employees. in addition to deliveries, he says, more than 6,000 workers v tested positiv

postal service is blaming them on. #. >> last minute help that saves a christmas decision. >> we got light to moderate rain today. we have a second storm on the way this week. what it will mean for your plans and a look at your saturday forecast, coming up in just a few minutes. stay with us. >>> italy has entered a christmas lockdown until the second week of january. those are certificates to work in healthcare issues are allowed to leave the house as well as people getting groceries. the government is planning one family visit per day but only in t on the holidays. >>> a christmas day message in the vatican dominated by the covid-19 crisis. prance delivered his message online this year. >> he criticized the so-called nationalism. u.n. official and you pour nations, receiving the vaccine last. >>> the south bay agency that helps the homeless to pull off a christmas day, they made it happen with a little help from food truck vendors. >> reporter: on this covid christm christm christmas evening, some have a story to share. >> heather is -- >> with the covid 19 shutting down their prog

the result was a shipping surge and longer lines for the postal service. >> i tried to come last night at 4:00 and there was four date four people in my. >> they posted a notice of delivery and tax saying they are experiencing volume increases and limited employee availability. >> now that we are in the midst of shipping season we are seeing that on top of what people are ordering for essential needs. yeah, we are being slammed. >> the postal service has hired 500 workers in the bay area and is still in need of 500 more. the result? those that are on the job are working longer hours. bumps in the night are likely postal carriers making their rounds. >> my mailman is starting at five a.m. and not getting home until 9:00 p.m. >> filling those positions with good people is often hard for them. >> dr. robert chatman would is a professor of strategic management at san jose state university. >> undoubtably they are going to be scared. who will they be exposed to as they go around delivery? i think that adds to the difficulty of filling the positions. >> another problem, few people wants to s

postal service is facing some pretty stiff competition now from all of these delivery services that are much more efficient. we'll see whether the postal service survives. as you know, you reported it, the postal service as major, major financial problems right now. lord knows whether they will be aable to come out of this without a major bailout. but you know i have not had a chance, yet, connell to read those hundreds of pages of this new stemlous bill that blake burman was talking about but it does look as though we're talking about near trillion dollar deal. i remember when a trillion dollars was a lot of money. we used to talk about 100 billion-dollar stimulus bills. this is one trillion. this is on top of the about $1.6 trillion that is already been provided in government aid this year. so we're talking about this year, so people get a sense of this, 2 1/2 trillion dollars of federal aid to deal with this crisis. incidentally that is more money, connell, that is raised each year from the federal income tax. so we could, for the cost of all these bailouts we could have eliminated e

because there are glitches in the postal service. on the only way i could accept the idea of only votes cast that were received by election day is that if in every place they were huge number of drop boxes. and an easy availability of people to put their ballots somewhere at the does not have to be done by the postal service that we know will be picked up by election officials for election day. and that the postage be free. and that we have a whole lot of other ways of making sure those ballots come in. but if you have a voter who does everything the right way, cast the ballot a week in advance a week before the election puts it in the mailbox. and it has received the day after the election because the postal service mistakes or delays, i don't see how you can basically justify not counting that person's vote. we need a whole series of things i would have to work to make that process one that would be workable for all. >> the states and a laboratory to number of states required the cut off on election day. nobody is challenging those

postal service. you talk about what role it has in this bill? we have been singing a rollout of the vaccine, the celebration of fedex and ups. what is happening? >> in this bill, there was a $10 billion loan the treasury department previously gave to the u.s. postal service. according to the bipartisan bill being used as the framework here, that would be forgiven. fortunes boost to the of the postal service, which is actually straining right now because fedex and you yes are pushing off the less profitable packages and telling -- moving them over to the postal service, which is clogging the package to deliver here in the holiday season. that is one thing that is going on. nermeen: could you talk about some of the concerns around the paycheck protection program that have been reinstated with this package? what are the issues with that program? >> well, yes. one of the major parts of this bill is the extension of ppp and allowing individuals to get the second draw from ppp loans. however, there is a pr

we're watching all the carriers and postal service and fedex and others are able to really handle allbeen operating at peak levels for a while now this year so when peak actually came, there was question about what the stepup in volume from also stretched networks is going to do and the carriers have worked the best they can with the customers to try to set expectations, get people to shop ahead of time but, you know, it's not human nature to plan ahead and last minute shoppers are not going to go away. and, you know, really just dealing with issues they have in managing the best they can >> yeah. fedex reported results last week we saw that stock sell off despite better than expected numbers. really because of, i think, the ground margins, at least on the domestic side. are costs up for the carriers right now? is that going to be one of the key things for investors to tune into as we get into earnings season next month? >> yes cost is certainly up for the carriers and several other factors that have gone in that with fedex and ground margins. to get ready for such a strong peak that

. >> a hiring freeze, massive reorganization of top postal service leaders led by a postmaster general, is this an attempt to don't make it appear the election? >> by tampering with the postal service he's putting his knee on the neck of american democracy. >> lisa: there's never accountability for anything with the media. >> they get to say whatever they want and they're never going to be held to account for it. that's why conservative media, rush limbaugh and all sorts of others came to be precise because of this. >> lisa: to ever get to a point where people wake up and realize their ways or is that wishful thinking? >> we've gotten there, if you look at the pew research surveys, the media, particularly not very popular anymore. in this narrative, this conspiracy was sold ridiculous, it had to be written by one of their friends in hollywood. the only conspiracy with the postal service is the notion they had any business having the federal government delivering mail in the year 2020. we've got ups, we've got fedex, we got email, the notion these guys are good at delivering parcels, th

postal service has all hands on deck right now, flood of holiday shipping combined with the pandemic is shaping up to be one of the most challenging seasons yet for the usps. to keep up with demand we have learned the postal service has brought on more staff, and has started making deliveries as early as 6 am. >>> santa and his helpers bringing a little cheer to some essential bay area workers. they had a caravan drop off holiday donations for farmworkers and their children. you can see all the gifts getting dropped off at washington united youth center in san jose today. they will be delivered to six different nonprofits that support agricultural workers. the donations will make up 5000 stockings and an extra 5000 books for those families. >>> the message you have a hard time getting out of your head. >>> >>> a woman battling coronavirus in the icu gave birth while fighting for her life. now both diana and baby sergio are happy and at home. but months ago she tested positive for coronavirus well seven months pregnant. she was rushed to the er at uc davis medical center, given oxygen

it is also the busiest for the united states postal service. they say more people than ever are sending out cards and gifts this year due to the pandemic. >> it has been a hard season. >> reporter: the rush is on to get gifts and cards under the tree in time. this year, the folks of the post office are easier than ever. >> we are easily doubling what we saw at this time last year. with the pandemic, and everybody being kept apart, more people are shopping online. more people are using the mail to stay in touch.>> reporter: the increased hours and delivery windows to try to keep up. some people are taking advantage. they're getting up bright and early to ensure their mail makes it on time. >> we are anticipating the delivery. we want to make sure gets you by christmas. >> i did expect to have a line of the door. i was pleasantly surprised. >> reporter: monday is expected to be the busiest day of the year. here are other key dates you should know. the post office recommends sending your gifts no later than december 15 for regular ground shipping.

postal service?reatened as well. >> there's -- let's just say this, lou, that there's been a lot of things that have happened to me leading up to yesterday since i've come out. there's a lot of things that we aren't talking about that i've been told to kind of be quiet on just for -- lou: yes, sir. >> -- investigation. lou: right. well, you have excellent legal counsel, and i want to say again to you with, jesse, thank you so much. >> can i say one thing? lou: what you've done is very brave. yes, sir, you may. >> i want to e say if there's anyone else out there there that's been in the same shoes that i have, don't be afraid to come out. they're just intimidating you. don't be scared to come out. and i will say, lou, going through this whole experience, i will say that this whole system is really corrupt. it is really corrupt. and i'll put that right out there. and i challenge, i challenge everyone -- law enforcement, the congressmen -- i challenge people to do something different, do something diffe

postal service workers, public transit workers as well as grocery store workers. the cdc hopes as they roll this out, it will also affect the issues they have with how this affects members of minorities, specifically those who are black and latino who have been dishing fortunately affected by covid-19. live in san francisco, emily turner, kpix 5. >>> time for a look at this morning's other top stories. >> california reporting more than 36,000 cases of covid-19 on saturday alone. 161 people died. nearly 17,000 people are in the hospital with the illness. 3600 of them are in intensive care. >>> governor gavin newsom is back in quarantine after a staff member tested positive for coronavirus. newsom's office says he and others who were in contact with the person are now in the ten- day quarantine. >>> president-elect joe biden and his wife dr. jill biden will get the first dose of the pfizer vaccine today. the biden transition office says vice president-elect kamala harris and her husband will both get the same shot next week. >>> taking a last look at the stock marke

postal service. well believe in supporting the postal service b apparently they thought that piecemeal bill was acceptable as long as it was a democratic crawfordsville organ and didn't provide any ditional relief to the american people. and being unsuccessful, the 312 times. to b tried in the. so in september, the mority leader try t bring a bill to the floor to provide $500 billi to our shared priorities for the lord and he real any differences in what was in the bl. the bill entered the only differenceas a democratic always wanted to spend multiples of that for unrelated activities. we wanted to concentrate debord on helping the small businesses to keep theirmployees on payroll and getting the school resources that they need to keep her stunts and teacherstr safe. and sengthening testing nationwide and investing in the continued success of operation workpeed. which is going to deliver an fda approved vaccine to entered before the end of the year . much as one. maybe as any as two or three. and mor

postal service is busier than ever before, and the pandemic isn't making things easier. analyst shipmatrix estimates 7 million packages have already been delayed this holiday season while at least 19,000 workers have called in sick or are isolating themselves due to covid-19. >> if you haven't gotten your gift yet, it might be time to get creative about your gifting options. >> reporter: retail experts suggest signing up for realtime text updates or going to the carrier's website to make sure you don't have a signature required for your packages, not to mention that the increase in volume means the tracking software may be a little off, but that's not always a bad thing. >> tracking isn't necessarily being updated in realtime, but it is possible that you'll get a nice surprise on your doorstep. >> reporter: plus, stores like macy's are partnering with doordash and uber eats for last-minute deliveries meaning there's still hope to wrap up that last-minute shopping before christmas. and if worst comes to worst, you can wrap a picture of the present you ordered giving your

it is expected to be busier than ever for the postal service and other companies. we have more now on when you need to get those gifts in the mail. >> reporter: it is the most wonderful time of the year and it is the busiest for the united states postal service. they tell us more people than ever are sending out cards and gifts this year because of the pandemic. >> i know it has been a hard season. trying to get some joy. >> reporter: the rush is on to get the gifts and cards under the tree in time. this year the folks at the post office are busier than ever. >> we are easily doubling what we saw at this same time of the year last year with the pandemic and everybody being kept apart. more people are shopping on- line, more people are using the mail to stay in touch. >> reporter: they increased hours and delivery windows to try to keep up and some people are taking advantage. getting up bright and early to make sure their mail makes it on time. >> it is just anticipating the delivery. i want to get it out and make sure it gets there on christmas. >> i was expecting

country, at least around the holidays hi, bertha. >> the postal service is dealing with a cascade ofe delays right here as we are during the holiday peak postal season one of the things they admit the first week of december, they say that on-time delivery for first-class mail like letters and bills fell to 75%. part of the problem, staffing shortages. some 18,000 workers are out due to covid they're either sick or in quarantine that's up from 4,000 before thanksgiving, according to the postal union representatives and that amounts to about 3% of staff at a time when it's all hands on deck. >> it's not a time of year that we take vacations. it's a time of year that we workday and night to move the holiday mail through the system. >> for packages, on-time performance was at about 87% last week, according to data, which says express and priority mail packages have been caught in a bottleneck, in part because as package volume has risen, other shippers have prioritized their other deliver ries, including covid vaccines. >> you may be finding out that our priority mail package is sitting