10 States Plan For Restart Of US Economy

As the death toll from COVID-19 topped 23,000 in the U.S. on Monday, some states are planning to reopen, according to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Reuters reported Cuomo he has joined a coordinated network of states to gradually get back to normal. In addition to New York, Gov. Phil Murphy of New Jersey, Gov. Ned Lamont of Connecticut, Gov. Gina Raimondo of Rhode Island, Gov. Thomas Wolf of Pennsylvania, and Gov. John Carney of Delaware, are working out details.

“Nobody has been here before, nobody has all the answers,” Cuomo said during a telephone press conference with the five other governors. “Addressing public health and the economy: Which one is first? They’re both first.”

Later, Massachusetts was added to the list, Reuters said in a separate report.

The governors of Washington, Oregon and California have also pledged a shared mission to restart Main Street.

In his daily televised press conference Cuomo said the “worst is over.” But he warned residents not to do “something stupid” and relax social distancing too quickly.

New York reported the number of deaths from the coronavirus reached 7,349 at noon on Monday (April 13). The state said 106,813 people have tested positive for the virus while 29,335 are hospitalized.

During his daily briefing, President Donald Trump reiterated that any decision to reopen the country was up to him.

“When someone is president of the United States, the authority is total,” he said, according to The New York Times.

But Reuters reported legal experts said the president’s power under the Constitution is limited when it comes to ordering Americans back to work or for government buildings, businesses or transportation to reopen.

Still, the president disagrees.

“It is the decision of the president, and for many good reasons,” Trump said on Twitter. “… A decision by me, in conjunction with the governors and input from others, will be made shortly!”