Gov. Kemp’s Decision To Reopen Georgia Looks Even Worse Now

@wallein
Gov. Kemp’s Decision To Reopen Georgia Looks Even Worse Now

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp

Reprinted with permission from DailyKos.

The day before Republican Gov. Brian Kemp of Georgia began reopening his state from stay-at-home orders, the Peach State saw its largest single-day increase in COVID-19 cases. Gov. Kemp has already shown over the past few weeks that he is less interested in following infectious disease experts' opinions on public safety in a time of pandemic than he is with towing whatever big business conservative party line he thinks he's supposed to follow.

Forbespoints out that since the first phase of Gov. Kemp's reopening of Georgia on April 21, the incidence rate (IR), or the number of confirmed cases per 100,000 people, has increased 42 percent. This means that "Georgia's citizens run a substantially greater risk of contracting COVID-19 now than they did before Kemp allowed businesses to reopen."


Now, the increase in risk of exposure from COVID-19 has increased a ton between April 21 and May 2, but this doesn't mean that Gov. Kemp's ill-advised cowardly policies are to blame. More testing and new hotspots of outbreaks could be the reason for the increase. This increase could be well within the normal variance that would have occurred whether or not reopening began. This is the gamble, of course.

As of Monday, May 4, some malls have been added to the list of businesses reopening. However, there are many businesses that refuse to take this ridiculous bait from the governor and have refused to reopen without more meaningful public health safeguards in place. As of Monday, Georgia has confirmed 28,671 cases with 1,179 deaths recorded.

Advertising

Start your day with National Memo Newsletter

Know first.

The opinions that matter. Delivered to your inbox every morning

Speaker Capitulates To Greene And Far Right On Biden Impeachment Inquiry
Reps. Lauren Boebert, center, and Marjorie Taylor Green, foreground, on Capitol steps

House Republicans are moving toward a vote on a formal impeachment inquiry as they continue to allege, without evidence, serious corruption on the part of President Joe Biden. The evidence has not gotten stronger since mid-November, when House Speaker Mike Johnson reportedly told so-called Republican moderates that there was “insufficient evidence” to move forward. The politics, however, have changed. Johnson’s move to keep the government from shutting down angered some extremist Republicans, and the expulsion of George Santos just after Johnson declared his opposition to expulsion did not make Johnson look any stronger. Giving the extremists a vote on an impeachment inquiry is an easy way for Johnson to try to shore up support.

Keep reading...Show less
Mike Johnson

Speaker Mike Johnson

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) is set to receive an award and speak at the National Association of Christian Lawmakers annual meeting and awards gala alongside a range of right-wing media figures who have pushed extreme anti-LGBTQ, anti-abortion, and Christian nationalist rhetoric.

Keep reading...Show less
{{ post.roar_specific_data.api_data.analytics }}