Georgia Gov. Kemp First To Announce Plans For Reopening State Economy
Governor Brian Kemp of Georgia became the first US governor to announce plans to reopen his state’s economy. In a press briefing on Monday, the Republican governor stated that some Georgian businesses may reopen as early as Friday.
The specific types of industries Kemp mentioned as being allowed to reopen included fitness centers, bowling alleys, body art studios, barbers, hair and nail salons, and massage therapy businesses. According to Kemp, the statewide decree trumps local ordinances, meaning that no local state-at-home orders may bar the reopening of any willing business.
“In the same way that we carefully closed businesses and urged operations to end to mitigate the virus’ spread, today we’re announcing plans to incrementally and safely reopen sectors of our economy,” Kemp stated at the briefing.
Gov. Kemp’s announcement follows remarks made by President Trump last week regarding the loosening of guidelines to help reopen state economies. Pres. Trump has taken a “states’ rights” stance on the economy reopening. In a conference call with governors last Thursday, Trump said, “You are going to call your own shots. I’ve gotten to know almost all of you, most of you I’ve known and some very well. You are all very capable people, I think in all cases, very capable people. And you’re going to be calling your shots.”