On Wednesday, MSNBC's Rachel Maddow shone a light on how Gov. Tate Reeves (R-MS) is using his authority to block local officials from protecting the public health as the coronavirus pandemic gets worse.
"Last night we talked about the governor of Mississippi, announcing that there would not be a statewide stay-at-home order in his state either because he said 'Mississippi is not China," said Maddow. "But today ... the governor of Mississippi today did something brand new. He issued his own executive order that overrides and overturns any actions that have been taken by cities and towns in his state, even as he is refusing to act statewide."
"So take, for example, the beautiful city of Tupelo, Mississippi," said Maddow. "Birthplace of Elvis Presley, right? World famous. On Saturday, the mayor of Tupelo, Mississippi, ordered a stay-at-home order for that city. He banned gatherings of more than ten people. He ordered nonessential businesses to shut in Tupelo ... yesterday, the city council in Tupelo met and in a unanimous bipartisan vote, they voted to affirm and ratify those rules that the mayor put in place in Tupelo. But today, the governor of Mississippi superseded that. Today, the governor of Mississippi said Tupelo and any other city or town in the state can't do anything like that. Only his rules apply."
"I will just say this to the people of Mississippi," said Maddow. "You should know that your government is breaking new ground when it comes to the coronavirus pandemic. The governor of your state today has pioneered a whole new kind of response to the coronavirus pandemic, in which he is legally blocking towns and cities in your state from doing a better job than he is at keeping you alive. He is undoing public health measures and insisting that the state will not have them."
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