UPDATE: Trump wants to see economy reopened. Can he force Murphy to lift N.J.'s coronavirus restrictions?
President Donald Trump said Tuesday he‘d “love to” have the U.S. “opened up and just raring to go by Easter” — a little less than three weeks from now — despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said he hopes the country is ready by then.
“But I’d be lying to you if I said I don’t see that,” the Democratic governor said during an appearance on CNN’s “Cuomo Prime Time” on Tuesday night. “We’re trying to make our decisions based on data, science, facts. And the facts tell us: Aggressive social distancing."
And though Trump did not explicitly say he would take action to force American businesses to reopen by Easter, Murphy said he doesn‘t plan to reverse the restrictive measures he’s instituted in the Garden State if the Republican president does issue such an order and science does not point to the coast being clear.
That’s even if Trump starts personally attacking him.
“Remember: We’re in Jersey,” Murphy said. “So we’ve got a lot of spine, skin is very thick, lots of attitude. We’ll stand tall. And we’ll try to reason based on the facts.”
“If the facts are going in the right direction, no one wants that more than I do,” the governor continued. “But my fear, based on the meetings we’re having constantly, would suggest we’re not gonna be out of the woods by then. I hope I’m wrong. I hope they’re wrong. My fear is: They’re not. And if they’re not, we have to stay the course. And I will do everything I can in my power to do just that.”
”We can’t fire that bullet too early,” Murphy added. “I fear the backlash, the price we’ll pay will be overwhelming if we misfire.”
Trump’s comments Tuesday are in line with many conservative commentators — and at least one New York Times columnist — who say the U.S. needs to ease coronavirus-related restrictions to restart a paralyzed national economy.
But the remarks are at odds with numerous governors and many health experts who say limits on human interaction must remain to slow the virus’ spread, prevent hospitals from being overloaded, and save lives. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan called Trump’s timeline an “imaginary clock.”
In New Jersey, Murphy has ordered the state’s 9 million residents to stay at home and mandated the closure of non-essential businesses until further notice.
Many states — New York, California, Illinois, among others — have implemented similar restrictions to halt the virus, which causes the illness COVID-19.
New Jersey has at least 3,675 known cases of the virus, including at least 44 known deaths. The total number of cases is second to only New York in the U.S. And state officials expect that number to keep rising as testing increases.
Murphy said he believes New Jersey is “at least two or three weeks away” from the peak of COVID-19 cases.
Still, the rash of business closings nationwide have already caused a slew of lost jobs and lost revenue.
Murphy has repeatedly said New Jersey needs keep businesses closed for public-health reasons and then have the federal government send billions in direct cash relief to the region to make up for the losses. Congress is debating a $2 trillion bailout plan.
But Trump has said in recent days “we can’t let the cure be worse than the problem" and suggested the U.S. may need to reopen the economy sooner than expected.
During an appearance Tuesday on Fox News, Trump said “we’ve got to get our country back to work” and argued “more people are going to die” from a wrecked economy than the virus.
He said his hope is to have the country reopened by Easter — Sunday, April 12.
“Wouldn’t it be great to have all the churches full?” Trump asked. "I think it’ll be a beautiful time.”
At a press briefing later in the day, Trump said “we’ll only do it if it’s good,” noting that “our decision will be based on hard facts and data.”
The president has also floated the idea of easing restrictions in parts of the country that have so far been less affected by the virus.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the federal government’s leading infectious disease expert, said at the briefing that “no one is going to want to tone down anything when you see what is going on in a place like New York City“ — which has more than 15,00 cases alone.
Murphy has avoided directly criticizing Trump in recent days as he asks the federal government for help fighting the outbreak.
Trump this week agreed to send New Jersey four pop-up field hospitals and a second round of sorely needed medical equipment.
Murphy initially walked a fine line Tuesday when CNN host Chris Cuomo also asked him if he’d ignore a Trump order to remove restrictions by Easter.
“We’ve got one president, and that’s the reality,” Murphy said.
“But,” the governor continued, "the fact of the matter is: I can’t as the chief executive of this state, if the numbers are still going up and we still have more folks, sadly, who, are passing on, the pain may be high in terms of our lifestyle and economy, I can’t relent.”
Later Thursday, Murphy appeared on MSNBC’s “The 11th Hour with Brian Williams.” Williams — a Middletown native — played the governor a clip of conservative radio host Glenn Beck saying he’d rather have older patients go back to work and run the risk of perishing than have the economy collapse.
“I’d rather die than kill the country,” Beck said. "It’s not the economy that’s dying. It’s the country.”
Murphy’s response? “That’s the first time I’ve ever heard Glenn Beck on the radio, and I hope the last."
“We’ve lost 44 precious souls in New Jersey," the governor said. “That’s 44 too many."
“Break the back of the virus and then get the economy back on its feet," Murphy added.
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Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @johnsb01.
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