By Emily Heil, The Washington Post, Sept. 13, 2016.
Willie Nelson: country-music legend, outlaw, policy wonk?
The singer, set to perform at the Farm Aid concert in Virginia this weekend, is lending his recognize-it-anywhere voice to the surprisingly nerdy issue of postal reform, supporting efforts to keep post offices open and protect the mail service from cuts and privatization.
In a video for A Grand Alliance to Save Our Public Postal Service, Nelson describes how his affinity for the issue is rooted in his memories of the PO in his hometown of Abbott, Tex., which he visited nearly every day as a boy — along with his dog — and spent time with neighbors. “I still remember my box number there,” he recalls.
Other than creating community, protecting union jobs, and the fact that the post office is “older than the United States itself,” Nelson cites a reason for preserving local offices that only an outlaw would love.
“Plus in the post office, they have all the ‘wanted’ posters,” he says. “So you can check and see if you’re up there.”
Willie Nelson – Preserve the Public Postal Service from A Grand Alliance on Vimeo.