Washington Gov. Jay Inslee is not on board with the idea of reopening states early, and he does not believe other governors should be either.
“This should not be happening,” Inslee said. “So it is a disappointing decision I think for a lot of their citizens.”
“The View” co-host Joy Behar asked Inslee if he had any plans to reopen businesses in his state as early as this week.
He explained it would be dangerous as Washington has not seen a decrease in coronavirus cases to manageable levels. He also said the state also lacks in testing capabilities.
Watch his comments below:
Washington Gov. @JayInslee says states planning to reopen as soon as this week “should not be happening,” calling it “a disappointing decision… for a lot of their citizens.”
— The View (@TheView) April 23, 2020
“I don’t think it’s safe probably anywhere in America right now.” https://t.co/cVclFZQmjA pic.twitter.com/hkULu0dy96
Inslee noted both Republican and Democrat governors have urged President Donald Trump to implement a national testing strategy.
The House is poised to pass a nearly $500 billion coronavirus relief package which includes roughly $25 billion for testing, as IJR previously reported.
According to Inslee, the state would need to see a decrease in cases and more testing to be able to reopen businesses.
“We need both of those conditions to exist to be able to have broad reopening of our economies,” Inslee said.
He reminded Americans this is going to be a gradual reopening of the economy as opposed to something that is going to happen all at once.
“We do think over time that we are going to be able to… set this dial. This is not a light switch,” Inslee said. “This is a dial. So we will be able to slowly at some point be able to reopen some of our businesses.”
Trump has voiced his concern over some states reopening businesses early including Georgia, as IJR previously reported.
He told Gov. Brian Kemp (R) he “disagrees strongly” with his plan to reopen his state’s economy.
Inslee reiterated he does not believe it is safe for any state to start to reopen.
“I don’t think it’s safe probably anywhere in America right now,” Inslee said.