The article argues that recent executive overreach and politicization have severely undermined established norms of U.S. civil-military relations. To restore professional standards, the incoming Congress must actively exercise its oversight powers, moving beyond mere criticism to demanding transparency in defense policy and personnel decisions. Key reforms include enforcing meritocratic promotion processes, requiring documented justification for senior officer removals, and preventing the partisan use of the military. These actions are crucial for bolstering public trust and ensuring the military remains a nonpartisan instrument of civilian control.
Postal network redesign and mail ballot rejections in the 2026 primaries
English Summary
The Brookings analysis finds that the USPS's Regional Transportation Optimization (RTO) initiative has significantly increased the rate of mail ballot rejection for late arrivals. By comparing rejection rates in 2026 primaries, the study determined that RTO exposure roughly doubled the rate of late rejections, primarily affecting rural and elderly voters. This suggests that tens of thousands of additional ballots could be rejected in the general election due to the added day in the mail journey. Policy implications demand that USPS and election officials immediately improve public communication, making it easy for voters to identify which post offices are covered by RTO and advising them to mail ballots with greater lead time.
中文摘要
布魯金斯（Brookings）的分析指出，美國郵政服務（USPS）的「區域運輸優化」（Regional Transportation Optimization, RTO）計畫，顯著提高了郵寄投票單因延遲送達而被拒收的比率。該研究透過比較 2026 年初選的拒收率，判斷 RTO 的影響使延遲拒收的比例大致翻倍，主要影響了農村和年長投票者。這暗示著由於郵寄過程額外增加的一天時間，在全國大選中可能會有數萬張額外的投票單被拒收。因此，政策意涵要求 USPS 和選舉官員必須立即改善公眾溝通，讓選民能夠輕鬆了解哪些郵局涵蓋了 RTO 範圍，並建議他們預留更充裕的時間寄出投票單。
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