COVID-19 has been largely a health crisis with serious economic implications for the various countries around the world. In the United States, it appears to have developed a political twist with the nation’s governors uniting against President Trump who claimed early this week that he has “total” authority to decide when to reopen the economy after weeks of quarantine and social distancing.
In a press conference at the White House, President Trump said he would decide how and when to lift the restrictions that the various state governors had imposed to stop the spread of the virus. He insisted he had absolute authority. “When somebody is president of the United States, the authority is total. The governors know that,” he said.
The governors of two groups of states – the northeastern group of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Rhode Island, and the west coast group of California, Oregon, and Washington – countered with statements that they will work together and make the decisions, with their constituents’ health as the foremost consideration, and guided by findings of health and science authorities.
Trump had issued national recommendations advising people to stay home, practice social distancing, and wear face masks, but it has been state governors, city mayors, and other local officials who have instituted mandatory restrictions, such as closing schools and non-essential businesses. “All of these executive orders are state executive orders and so therefore, it would be up to the state governors to undo a lot of that,” said New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, a Republican like Trump.
“The government doesn’t get opened up via Twitter,” said Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, a reference to Trump’s favorite way of announcing his plans and views on Twitter. “It gets opened at the state level,” she said.
Last Thursday, two days after claiming “total authority,” President Trump changed his stand. The governors “call the shots,” he said.
Trump is running for reelection in November and he may want to be seen as in command of the coronavirus situation. The pandemic has already deprived him of one of his top election issues – the national economy which, before COVID-19, had been a healthy one, with increases in national employment.
We can be thankful that our own Philippine officials have been able to carry out decisive and difficult anti-coronavirus moves that less decisive officials might not be able to carry out.
