Republican governors in Florida, Texas and Arizona warn of rising caseloads and advocate mask-wearing, social distancing.
U.S. coronavirus cases are surging sharply again, thanks to outbreaks spreading across the country’s South and West.
Now even some of President Donald Trump’s key allies in affected states are breaking with the White House on the state of the pandemic and how best to respond.
Twenty-six states have seen their case counts rise over the past 14 days, according to a New York Times tracker. Infections have more than doubled over the past two weeks in Florida, Texas and Arizona, three states led by Republican governors that have been vocal supporters of Trump.
Ahead of Trump’s visit to his state Tuesday, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey tweeted a graphic illustrating guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on applying face coverings with the hashtag “MaskUpAZ.” Trump came to Arizona to commemorate the 200th mile of “new border wall” in San Luiz and deliver an address to young Americans at Dream City Church in Phoenix.
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego, a Democrat, distanced herself from the event in a statement Monday.
“While I do not believe an event of this magnitude can be held safely, particularly as Arizona sees rising Covid cases, the president has decided to continue with this rally,” Gallego said, adding that church and campaign staff have been informed of the city’s masking policy and that all participants, including Trump, should wear a face covering.
Neither the president nor many of those in the crowd followed the mayor’s instructions, however, according to reporters on the scene in Phoenix.
Arizona hit another record high in new cases of Covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, on Tuesday, The Arizona Republic reported. Daily hospitalizations also exceeded 2,000 for the first time.
Across the state, at least 80 percent of intensive care unit beds have been occupied since June 14. As of Monday, 1,412 ICU beds — 84 percent — were in use.
Texas, meanwhile, tallied more than 5,000 new cases in a single day for the first time Tuesday. “The coronavirus is serious. It’s spreading,” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott told a local television station, as he urged people to stay inside and wear face masks when venturing out.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis acknowledged at a briefing in Orlando on Tuesday that the state has seen “a real explosion in new cases” over the past week among younger residents. Florida officials are cracking down on bars and restaurants that violate occupancy limits and social distancing recommendations, DeSantis said, decrying “packed” establishments that are “like mayhem” and “dance party USA.”
“The message is just stick with the basic program that we’ve advised really from the beginning,” he said. “It’s still important to maintain the appropriate physical distance. It’s very important to exercise good hygiene — wash your hands, do things like that. It makes a difference. And then it’s also important … when you can’t socially distance and keep that 6 feet, wearing the face mask can help reduce transmission.”
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U.S. coronavirus cases are surging sharply again, thanks to outbreaks spreading across the country's South and West.
Now even some of Trump’s key allies in affected states are breaking with the WH on the state of the pandemic and how best to respond https://t.co/CZhJNQER1y
— POLITICO (@politico) June 24, 2020
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