President Trump said Wednesday that he disagrees with Gov. Brian Kemp\u2019s decision on reopening certain businesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kemp\u2019s bold move on reopening \u2013 arguably the most aggressive timeline of any state \u2014 has put Georgia squarely in a national spotlight on COVID-19.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The governor is allowing the reopening Friday of businesses that include gyms, fitness centers, bowling alleys, body art studios, barbers, cosmetologists, hair designers, and nail care artists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Restaurant dining rooms and movie theaters can open next Monday under the Kemp plan, but bars, nightclubs and entertainment operations will remain closed for the time being. Public schools will stay shut for the rest of the school year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI told the governor of Georgia, Brian Kemp, that I disagree strongly with his decision to open certain facilities, which are in violation of the Phase One guidelines for the incredible people of Georgia,\u201d Trump said during his coronavirus task force briefing Wednesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump was referring to the White House guidelines, issued last week, on the thresholds that states should meet on reopening their economies. These criteria include adequate COVID-19 testing, contact tracing, and health care capacity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The guidance also says that before reopening, a state should have seen a decline in new COVID-19 cases for 14 days. Georgia has not yet met that standard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut at the same time,\u201d the president added, \u201che [Kemp] must do what he thinks is right. I want him to do what he thinks is right, but I disagree with him on what he\u2019s doing.\u201d Trump said he doesn\u2019t want to interfere with governors\u2019 decisions, but will take action if he sees any state doing something that\u2019s \u201cegregious, totally out of line.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Trump cited the phases of reopening the economy that are listed in the recent federal guidelines, and said that if \u201cspas and beauty salons and tattoo parlors and barber shops [are] in Phase One, we\u2019re going to have Phase Two very soon. It\u2019s just too soon. I think it\u2019s too soon.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kemp, in an interview with Fox 5 Atlanta<\/a>, said earlier Wednesday that he had spoken to Trump and Vice President Mike Pence and had \u201cgreat conversations\u2019\u2019 with them. Trump and Kemp are both Republicans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The governor defended his reopening decision, saying it was made in conjunction with public health officials, \u201cbased on the data we\u2019re seeing.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI think we\u2019re in great shape,\u2019\u2019 Kemp told Fox 5, citing added hospital capacity across Georgia to handle a possible surge. \u201cThis is a measured step.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He said the large Albany<\/a> outbreak has skewed Georgia\u2019s COVID-19 numbers higher, and that the situation in the southwest Georgia city has improved. Dougherty County, where Albany<\/a> is the county seat, has been a hot spot for the pandemic, with 106 deaths as of Wednesday evening, the highest total in the state. Albany\u2019s hospital, Phoebe Putney, has seen 73 patients die from COVID-19.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Under his reopening plan, Kemp said, he can take steps to thwart any outbreaks if the infection data worsen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n