• Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., holds a news conference to talk about the Democratic victory in the Alabama special election and to discuss the Republican tax bill, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2017. Photo: J. Scott Applewhite, AP / Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Photo: J. Scott Applewhite, AP
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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., holds a news conference to talk about the Democratic victory in the Alabama special election and to discuss the Republican tax bill, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2017. less
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., holds a news conference to talk about the Democratic victory in the Alabama special election and to discuss the Republican tax bill, on Capitol Hill in Washington, ... more
Photo: J. Scott Applewhite, AP

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York's U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer says a federal rule change that's stopping donated Christmas trees from being sent to American troops overseas is straight out of the Grinch's playbook.

The top Senate Democrat sent a letter to the U.S. postmaster on Thursday urging her to immediately waive procedural changes that are preventing New York residents from sending trees to military bases abroad.

Schumer says at least 40 trees donated by community groups and others this year were returned to New York farmers. He blames a last-minute policy change that strictly limits the size of packages that can be shipped to overseas bases in places such as Iraq, Afghanistan and Germany.

The U.S. Postal Service hasn't commented.