It will be interesting to see what happens as the result of their decisions.
GOP governors in Florida and Texas split as coronavirus cases surgeAs coronavirus cases spike in Texas and Florida, the states' Republican governors have split on how seriously to take the surge in cases and whether to mandate masks.
In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott -- who had previously blocked local governments from requiring masks, and had been among the first to reopen businesses -- last week reversed himself and issued a mandate requiring masks in most of the state. The move came after he'd shut down all bars, limited restaurants to 50% capacity and halted elective surgeries in coronavirus hot-spots. In a video, he acknowledged what he said was "a stark reality: Covid-19 is not going away. In fact, it's getting worse."
In Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis, like Abbott, has encouraged masks and social distancing. But unlike Abbott, he has refused to issue a statewide mandate, insisting that new action isn't necessary. He has wiped out funding for coronavirus treatment in prisons and for online learning services, while insisting schools will reopen in the fall. And he is downplaying the spike in cases in his state, saying that those contracting the virus are younger.
"There's no need to be fearful," DeSantis said Monday.
The governors of the two largest Republican-led states' response to the surge in cases in recent weeks showcases a split within the GOP over whether to follow President Donald Trump's lead as Trump expresses skepticism toward masks, holds campaign rallies that ignore social distancing guidelines, insists that schools must reopen in the fall and more..........
.................But DeSantis, a first-term governor who needed Trump's help to eke out a narrow victory in 2018, has mirrored Trump's antagonism toward coronavirus-related restrictions, insisting this week that no further actions are needed even as his state has set records in cases and positivity rates in new tests in recent days. ............
https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/07/politics/florida-texas-governors-coronavirus/index.html
