In This State, the Party's Over

Other states and New York City are also reimposing or extending lockdowns
By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 1, 2020 5:00 PM CDT
In This State, the Party's Over
In this June 19, 2020, file photo, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, wears a face mask as he answers a reporter's question during his visit to the Queen Sheba Ethiopian Cuisine restaurant in Sacramento, Calif.   (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File, Pool)

It's tough timing for California—but what can you do? On Wednesday, with July 4 around the corner, Gov. Gavin Newsom called on 19 counties to tighten their coronavirus restrictions. That means closing indoor dining at restaurants and indoor entertainment venues like arcades, bowling alleys, and movie theaters, as well as card rooms, museums, and zoos, the LA Times reports. And it includes major counties too, like Los Angeles, Ventura, Orange, and Sacramento. "This doesn't mean restaurants are shut down," Newsom said. "It means that we're trying to take the activities, as many activities as we can—these mixed activities, these concentrated activities—and move them outdoors, which is a way of mitigating the spread of this virus." For more:

  • The move marks a major policy shift after the state began reopening in May and continued June 12 to let restaurants, bars, gyms, hair and nail salons, religious services, and other businesses reopen with certain limitations. But a burst of new cases, hospitalizations, and higher infection rates inspired the reversal, the Sacramento Bee reports.
  • New York City pulled a 180 and chose not to let restaurants resume indoor dining next week after all, the New York Times reports. The move was triggered by rising case numbers in more than 30 states that officials feared could seep into Manhattan.
  • Several red states that reopened swiftly this spring at President Trump's urging are now buckling under high case numbers. That includes Arizona, which has closed movie theaters, gyms, bars, and water parks, per Fox 10 Phoenix. Texas has ordered bars closed, while Florida has closed some beaches and banned indoor drinking in bars. Georgia is extending a rule that forbids large gatherings.
(In Texas, a bar owner has sued the governor.)

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