Postmaster General David Steiner has told confidants he is considering resignation amid frustration over the Postal Service's mounting financial losses and limited support from the White House and Congress. His tenure has been complicated by a March directive to handle mail-in ballots—parts of which the Supreme Court blocked—and a contentious June Senate hearing over service failures and compensation. The Postal Service has denied the reports.
USPS Postmaster General Reportedly Considering Resignation Amid Financial Strain and Political Scrutiny
FILE PHOTO: U.S. Postmaster General David Steiner testifies before a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing entitled “Reforming the U.S. Postal Service’s Broken Business Model” on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 24, 2026. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo
Postmaster General David Steiner has privately told close associates he is discouraged by the job and is considering resigning, according to four people familiar with his thinking. The disclosures come as the U.S. Postal Service faces mounting financial losses and heightened political scrutiny over its role in mail-in voting.
Steiner, who took office in July 2025 after the White House replaced his predecessor, has said he is frustrated by what he views as inadequate support from both the White House and Congress in addressing the agency's long-running fiscal problems. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity.
Supreme Court Setback And Contentious Hearing
The Postal Service was thrust into a national debate after President Trump directed the agency in March to act as a clearinghouse for mail ballots. The Supreme Court has blocked key elements of that plan, a ruling that was widely seen as a setback for the administration.
Those tensions reached a peak during a heated June Senate hearing where lawmakers from both parties pressed Steiner on deteriorating delivery performance, the proposed ballot rules and his compensation. Sources say the hearing left Steiner "furious" and that, afterward, he described the job as thankless and warned the agency's finances would worsen without federal aid.
"This isn't what he signed up for, and he didn't come on board to get beat up like this," one source said.
Financial Pressures And Policy Fallout
Steiner has told lawmakers that, absent new funding, the Postal Service may need to cut delivery days and close unprofitable post offices—moves he said would fall disproportionately on rural communities. Lawmakers largely rejected his proposed service cuts, and major shippers pushed back on large rate increases intended to reduce losses.
Steiner, a former FedEx board member and former CEO of Waste Management, reportedly told the board during his hiring that he intended to serve roughly two years. His publicly disclosed annual salary is $346,780, and he received a 2025 relocation bonus equivalent to 50% of his salary. Some senators criticized his pay and urged him to forgo bonuses amid operational problems.
Political Role And Reactions
President Trump's involvement—pressuring the agency on parcel rates, influencing the postmaster general selection and pushing mail-in voting changes—has sharpened congressional scrutiny of the Postal Service and its leaders. The four sources said it was unclear how much the ballot-rule inquiries specifically contributed to Steiner's reported decision to consider stepping down, noting he had earlier contemplated leaving because of the agency's financial strain.
To bolster Steiner's morale and secure White House backing for restructuring, donors in the mailing industry reportedly organized a December 2025 trip for him to golf with the president at a Florida resort.
The Postal Service disputed the reports from the sources, saying they had "absolutely zero validity," and declined to comment on specific incidents. The agency did not make Postmaster General Steiner available for an interview.
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