Gov. Ron DeSantis wants to end local restrictions on restaurants

[Zorro]

Source: Tampa Bay Times

The Florida governor is looking at a “preemption” of local government authority.

Gov. Ron DeSantis wants to prohibit local governments from being able to close restaurants and bars, as some locals did to slow the spread of COVID-19 earlier this year.

DeSantis, appearing ready to ease state restrictions that place a 50 percent indoor occupancy limit on restaurants and bars, believes a “preemption” of local government authority can be enacted through the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, which oversees licensing.

“I don’t think it’s as much of the state having restrictions as much as it’s, we may need to provide some level of assurances for people against some of the local restrictions that we’re seeing,” DeSantis said after a health-care event Thursday at the Capitol.

DeSantis said he wants to eliminate any uncertainty that restaurants could be shut down if there is another surge of COVID-19 cases, as people are now becoming more comfortable in dining out.

Read more: https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida-politics/2020/09/25/gov-ron-desantis-wants-to-end-local-restrictions-on-restaurants/

[George II]

1. This is the moron who couldn't figure out how to put on his mask:

[beachbumbob]

2. covid exploding in Florida so this seems like the right path for DeSantis to take, right?

[Jimbo S]

15. Are you sure?

https://globalepidemics.org/key-metrics-for-covid-suppression/

FL is ranked #22.

It seems FL has gotten things under control the last couple of weeks.

[muriel_volestrangler]

18. In deaths per capita in the last 7 days, it's about third worst, after Georgia and North Dakota

https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#compare-trends_newdeathsper100k

(I can't find a way to get all the data at once, so it'd possible there are one or two more as bad as that, but I've checked those that are near the top of https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/ for deaths yesterday)

[progree]

19. This one has Florida #2 in daily new deaths per capita, 7 day moving average

after North Dakota

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html

with deaths selected and sorted by "Deaths in the last 7 days per 100,000"

[muriel_volestrangler]

21. Thanks

(NYT demanded I sign up to see their stats - I thought they'd made them freely available?)

[progree]

23. Oh darn, sorry about that, I post that NYTimes URL everywhere, EVERYWHERE 😲 😭

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html

I thought NY Times had made Covid articles and stats freely available to everyone without any barriers.

But now that I think about it, I do remember signing up (for free) about 3 months ago, and haven't had to sign in since then or any other obstacle, annoyance, or barrier.

I so love the individual states' data and charts. And that the specific URL above shows little mini-charts of all 50 states' daily new cases, so "at a glance" one can see which ones are improving or getting worse. And the mini-charts are scaled in vertical height by per capita, so states can be compared fairly.

And then that table which can be sorted in many ways

And it is based on 7 day moving averages (so there's not the big big problem of wildly fluctuating daily results with "weekend effects" ).

[muriel_volestrangler]

25. Turns out I had registered with them a long time ago

(which makes sense, because I keep getting email trying to get me to sign up to a paid subscription) and was able to reset my password, so I can now see the whole page. Thanks!

[progree]

26. I don't recall getting any spammy emails (to subscribe) from NY Times, but yes, every time

I visit that page, it does put something annoying at the bottom sixth of the page that has to be clicked away about subscribing for $1 (uh huh)

[beachbumbob]

22. yesterday's 172 deaths doesn;t look like under control AND COVID cases in schools are

not being released, but kept hidden

[ananda]

3. DeSantis does not change colors, clearly.

His hands have been red for a good while, and
I think it's spreading to his whole body.

He is just hellbent on harming and killing everyone
in Florida.

[badhair77]

4. He doesn't learn from experience.

[Eyeball_Kid]

5. Killing for the Economy is now the hallmark of unregulated capitalism. n/t

[Firestorm49]

6. Sad that he was too stupid to learn from the first fiasco. Many will die.

I’m fuming over our current state of affairs in my country, as are all of you.

I’m not a very religious person, but I pray that this insanity will pass without bloodshed in the streets. OK, OK, Quit the doom and gloom. Fine.

I’m still enraged that fools like Tucker Carlson say that 1) “Kenosha was burned to the ground.” Pure lies, 2)Mobs of Biden voters destroyed businesses and churches, they torched cars and furniture stores.” Nothing like stoking the flames of insurrection. 3) “At this point the mob. (Really?) turns on Kyle Rittenhouse , they (the unarmed) assault him. It’s plain they plan to kill him.” What bullshit! 4) Hamstrung by local politicians, police did little to stop the destruction.” 5) Police say Blake reached for a knife. Police then shot him in response.” FACT: Police have not said Blake was reaching for a knife. [Milwaukee Journal 9/25/20 - What Carlson got wrong about Kenosha shootings.

If, by the grace of God, we turn out in overwhelming numbers to remove the fascist from power, as this is what will be necessary to prevent a corrupt GOP from stealing another election, and, as this will be our last chance, I hope Joe can calm the nation down once he’s in office.

Sorry, I must have digressed. Have a great day.

[groundloop]

9. It's damned difficult not to be enraged right now.

[Tommymac]

14. Rage is good. Wariness & caution are good. Fear and doomgloom are not.

Big difference.

Rage will encourage votes against the Killer Clown and MoscowMitch.

Doomsaying can lead to voter suppression.

So Rage on! I'll join ya.

[PSPS]

7. Opening a restaurant won't make customers magically appear.

As one restaurant owner put it, "I lose less money by staying closed."

[groundloop]

8. Because this country is in such a good place in respect to the pandemic

[Raven123]

10. Wish there was a way to create mask-free zones

That way the maskless ones could eat, drink, party together. They could swap stories and share viruses. And when they became ill, they could go to mask-free hospitals. Of course, if no health care providers agreed to work there, they might become acquainted with the other side of their “Live Free or Die” phIlosophy.

[Delphinus]

28. Hey,

I like the way you think!

[progree]

11. Florida: 24th highest state in per capita new cases, 7 day moving avg, down 78% from peak

but up 6.5% from a low point 10 days ago.

===========================================
24th highest state in per capita new cases, 7 day moving avg

(so slightly worse than the median -- 23 states are worse in this metric, and 26 better. That's definitely not "good", nor a "good idea" to get rid of all restrictions on bars and restaurants )

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html

============================================

and 6.5% more daily new cases than 10 days ago (using 7 day moving averages, 9/24 vs. 9/14), 9/14 was the lowest point since the mid-June rise

but down 78% from it's astronomically high July 17 peak.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/florida-coronavirus-cases.html

=============================================

with a 11.0% test positivity rate (compare to U.S. overall 4.8%)
https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/testing/individual-states/florida

[patphil]

13. Lets compare Florida and New York

Both states have about the same population.

Numbers are from Worldometer
Florida's 7 day moving average has been at or above 2500 new cases a day since mid-June.
New York's 7 day moving average has been below 1000 new cases a day since mid-June.

DeSantis continues to do a piss-poor job of carrying his state through this pandemic.
Cuomo, on the other hand, is showing how competent leadership gets the job done.

Democratic leadership, vs Republican failure to lead.

[progree]

17. Yes, there is definitely a "red bias" in the list of states with the highest per capita new cases

I just glanced at the list of daily new cases, 7 day moving average, at the ones worse than #24-Florida, and only 3 Democratic governor ones stuck out: #3-Wisconsin, #19-Minnesota, #21-Illinois

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/coronavirus-us-cases.html

Wisconsin's Governor Evers (D) is stymied by the RW Wisconsin Supreme Court, so I don't blame him.

I don't know the story behind Illinois.

I do know about Minnesota, that's my state, and I'm not the only Democrat around here in DU that think they opened up a bit too soon (e.g. indoor service at restaurant and bars beginning June 10, albeit with 50% capacity which is still too much). And it is setting almost daily new case all-time highs. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/minnesota-coronavirus-cases.html

Part of the problem is our U.S. neighbors are horrible: #1-NoDak, #2-SoDak, #3-Wisconsin, #6-Iowa. And Minneapolis was the number one transit point for people coming from Sturgis (according to cellphone tracking data, most of those were passing through)

the rest of the 24 states in the top 24 are all "red". There might be one or two that have Democratic governors not on my list above (Kansas comes to mind), but their legislatures are overwhelming red.

[muriel_volestrangler]

20. About third worst in deaths/capita in the last week

See #18. It's possible that Florida is at #24 in new cases because they're testing less (in total tests/capita, they are #37: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us )

[progree]

24. Yes, the 11.0% test positivity rate (compare to U.S. avg 4.8%) indicates there's a lot more

out there.

https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/testing/individual-states/florida

[Delphinus]

29. Thanks for that link.

I have only used Worldometer and 1.3Acres since Johns Hopkins seems to be SO far behind in numbers.

[FloridaBlues]

12. Mini stupid trumpet and herd immunity

This virus will be in Florida for a long long time.

[Tommymac]

16. He is a murderer too. Let's nullify him.

Get out the vote now.

Vote Joe & Kamala. Let's see him try this with them in charge.

[BlueWavePsych]

27. LA Times - COVID-19 puts Florida at risk for Trump

'I really don’t think he has done a great job’: COVID-19 puts Florida at risk for Trump

Trump’s popularity in the state dropped in June as COVID-19 deaths surged after Gov. Ron DeSantis — a fellow Republican following the president’s lead — defied public health experts and rushed to lift stay-at-home orders. More recent polling shows a rebound for Trump.

“I think the politics of the pandemic really hurt Trump in Florida over the summer,” said Republican strategist Alex Conant, a former advisor to Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.). “Florida is a very senior-heavy state, and seniors were more concerned, understandably, than other voters about the pandemic.”

The virus has killed nearly 13,800 people in Florida, 739 of them here in Pinellas County on the Gulf Coast near Tampa.

“It’s really kind of a serious issue for a lot of people,” said Thomas Eldon, a Democratic pollster in Florida. “They just want to live.”

https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2020-09-25/trump-biden-florida-coronavirus-pandemic-election