‘Cheers’ mailman John Ratzenberger issues plea to support US Postal Service

If you want to save the United States Postal Service, “Cheers” actor John Ratzenberger has an idea: do all your Christmas shopping in August, and do it all at the USPS’s online store. “The Post Office is in a little bit of a pickle right now,” Ratzenberger, who played letter carrier Cliff Clavin on the hit '80s sitcom, says in a 1:15 video message. “So I had an idea: Why not do all your Christmas shopping early at the Post Office store?” He suggests taking the dollar amount you’d spend on a gift, such as Aunt Tillie's "new hat” and spend it on stamps instead. The short clip was initially requested by musician Tim Kasher via Cameo, an on-demand service that allows users to pay for custom video messages from celebrities. An important message from none other than Cliff Clavin (@dratzenberger) himself, asking us all to help keep @usps in business!! (thank you for your service, Mr. Ratzenberger) #SaveUSPS #USPS pic.twitter.com/bbS43gNcIP— Tim Kasher (@timkasher) August 16, 2020 While Ratzenberger’s idea of only giving stamps as Christmas presents may seem a little far-fetched, his suggestion of shopping at the Postal Service’s store is right on the money. The USPS-run online shop has more than 100 gift items for sale beyond shipping supplies, including tote bags, crop tops and toy mail trucks—some of which have sold out recently in the face of massive demand from young people seeking to support the Post Office. In the video plea, Ratzenberger stops short of criticizing (or even mentioning) the Trump administration, despite the president openly disparaging the U.S. Postal Service in recent weeks as part of a larger push against implementing universal mail-in voting. Ratzenberger is known as a high-profile Republican voter who has long backed many GOP political candidates, including Trump in a 2016 Fox News interview. “Donald Trump’s the only candidate for me,” the “Cheers” actor told Fox host Neil Cavuto at the time. Following a massive outcry from the public and a pending congressional investigation, newly appointed Postmaster General Louis DeJoy announced today that he was suspending operational changes to the Post Office—including removing mail processing machines and cutting retail hours—until after the November election.

‘Cheers’ mailman John Ratzenberger issues plea to support US Postal Service

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