Beaufort Observer: Cooper Seeks to Extend His Illegal Stay at Home Order Until at Least May 8 | Eastern North Carolina Now

Press Release:

    Governor Roy Cooper announced Thursday (4-23-20) and extension of his illegal "Stay At Home" order which was set to expire April 30. He says it will stay in place until at least May 8, saying:

    "IT IS CLEAR THAT WE ARE FLATTENING THE CURVE, BUT OUR STATE IS NOT READY TO LIFT RESTRICTIONS YET. WE NEED MORE TIME TO SLOW THE SPREAD OF THE VIRUS BEFORE WE CAN EASE THE SOCIAL RESTRICTIONS." - GOV. ROY COOPER, APRIL 23

    Once again he failed to get concurrence by the Council of State as is required by law. Cooper made no explanation of why he is not complying with the law. Click HERE to read the Governor's Office explanation, with a link to the actual order.

    Moreover, he offered little or no justification for his extreme actions based on solid evidence. On the contrary, recent news reports have indicated that there is no valid evidence that the measure he has imposed on citizens and businesses have a significant impact on the virus trends.

    Neither did he explain his thinking on the damage he is causing to millions of North Carolinians who have lost their jobs, many of whom have yet to get the unemployment checks his administration is responsible for getting in the mail.

    Click HERE to read Jeff Moore's report on the Governor's actions.

    NC Civitas issued a release that: "North Carolina workers, business owners, families, and job creators received very little to be hopeful about from Gov. Roy Cooper's statement today. The governor continues to rely on blanket orders for a large and diverse state. One-size fits all policy does not work for North Carolina. Currently, seven counties have no cases of COVID-19, and workers in all of those counties are at home without paychecks to pay for family necessities." Click HERE to read the remainder of the Civitas press release.

    Lt. Governor Dan Forest said: "Gov. Cooper's one-size-fits-all approach for reopening is not necessary for a state as large as North Carolina. This decision will needlessly crush businesses and destroy livelihoods in places that don't even have a single case of coronavirus." #ncpol #ncga #covid19 #releasethedata

    Rep. Greg Murphy, a medical doctor who represents the 3rd Congressional District said: "First and foremost, as a physician and a member of Congress, the health and well-being of North Carolinians has been and continues to be the single most important factor to me during this pandemic. We are in uncharted clinical waters but, given the interventions enacted so far, we have fared very well. Social distancing has become the norm and face masks are commonplace. Our hospitals have had time to implement policies that protect healthcare workers and care for patients for a surge that hopefully will never fully materialize. That said I continue to be tremendously worried about the welfare of the thousands of small businesses across the states and the millions they employ. I am also immensely concerned about patients who would normally be receiving lifesaving routine medical care that are not receiving it because of the restrictions that have been put in place," said Murphy.

    Meanwhile, Vidant announced salary cuts and furloughs as a result of decreased revenue that has resulted from lower patient census trends and a decline in non-virus procedures. Click HERE to read that story at the Daily Reflector.

    Commentary

    Governor Cooper today blew a chance to mitigate the horrendous harm he has imposed on millions of North Carolina with the most invasive violations of our constitutional rights in the history of this state. His actions defy logic, valid scientific evidence and pure common sense. The orders have not worked. He has offered no evidence that they have, do or will. The pain he inflicts of North Carolinians is unconscionable.

    Moreover, his Stay At Home order is being ignored, as it rightly should be, by millions of North Carolinians. We think they are right to ignore any illegal order by any government official.

    We think such "orders" should be county based. We do not think any governor has, or should have, the authority for such an extended period of time, without consent by the Council of State and the Legislature. But since that is not happening, we think the people and businesses are well within their rights to exercise their own discretion about what is safe and what is not.