No, President Trump, You Can’t ‘Reopen America’ – By David S. Cohen (Rolling Stone) / April 13 2020
Governors issued the orders that shut down the economy, which means it’s up to them to rescind those orders
If you asked Donald Trump whether the president of the United States had the general power to overrule governors and mayors, I’m sure he would say yes. Putting it in language suitable to his background, I’m sure he believes that the org chart for the business he currently runs — the United States — has him at the top, with governors reporting to and controllable by him. In other words, he is the boss, while they are middle management.
This view of how things work in America surely informs Trump’s coronavirus topic du jour — “reopening America.” The president clearly stated his vision for how to reopen the country in tweets this morning:
For the purpose of creating conflict and confusion, some in the Fake News Media are saying that it is the Governors decision to open up the states, not that of the President of the United States & the Federal Government. Let it be fully understood that this is incorrect….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 13, 2020
But this is all wrong, and for several reasons. As an initial matter, the president never “closed” America or its states, so he has no authority to open them. The CDC has issued many different recommendations and guidance about coronavirus — about masks, social distancing, large gatherings, schools, and more. However, the federal government has done nothing to mandate the closures that have devastated the economy and brought about record unemployment.
Rather, that has fallen upon governors and, in some places, mayors. The result has been a patchwork of rules, with most of the country covered by statewide orders, but with eight states stubbornly refusing to do so. The governors and mayors that have issued these shutdown orders have done so based on their own state and local authority. They have not relied on any federal power, nor have they done so after asking permission from the federal government. Instead, they have acted as completely separate entities from one another and the federal government in order to protect the people who live in their states and cities.
Continue to article: https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/president-trump-reopen-america-governors-983152/
