‘Compliance is Not Punitive’ Gov. Newsom Says as he Orders 95% of Californians into Harsher COVID Restrictions and Curfew

Monday’s noon briefing from Gov. Gavin Newsom was as instructive as it was horrifying: He announced that California was “pulling an emergency brake” on reopening because of rising COVID “positivity” cases. Not deaths. And he did a soft-sell on hospitalizations. Newsom admitted that California is nowhere near the national average on “positivity” or hospitalizations, but said he’s still moving 40 California counties back into restrictive tiers.

“We are sounding the alarm,” said Gov. Newsom. “California is experiencing the fastest increase in cases we have seen yet –faster than what we experienced at the outset of the pandemic or even this summer. The spread of COVID-19, if left unchecked, could quickly overwhelm our health care system and lead to catastrophic outcomes. That is why we are pulling an emergency brake in the Blueprint for a Safer Economy. Now is the time to do all we can – government at all levels and Californians across the state – to flatten the curve again as we have done before.”

It felt so punitive and authoritarian.

Yet Newsom failed to acknowledge that he has ramped up testing in the state exponentially, so it is a rational conclusion that people will test positive for this virus, most of who will be asymptomatic, and would never have known they had it, had they not been tested.

California, a state of 40 million people, has had 18,000 deaths, and most of those deaths are people over age 75.

(typo in the Tweet – it’s 40 counties, not 49)

It was revealed late last week Gov. Newsom and his wife attended a large birthday dinner party in Napa Valley despite his own restrictions to the 40 million California residents. And it wasn’t a birthday party for one of his children’s friends, the party was for Jason Kinney, a 20-year friend and political consultant to Newsom, at the famed Michelin-starred restaurant, The French Laundry in Yountville, California Globe reported. The French Laundry menu usually costs $310 per person, before wine.

Gov. Newsom announced changes Monday to the state’s color-coded tier system for reopening. The governor said he will likely be providing weekly updates and changes including more restrictions among counties, rather than every two weeks. He also noted a strong possibility for counties to jump more than one tier in a week, and updates to county status multiple times a week.

Many are saying on social media that there is no coincidence that Gov. Newsom is turning up the heat after California voters turned down a number of really big tax increase initiatives. Others are calling this lockdown a shakedown.

Newsom’s latest restrictions are supposed to be added to the tiers by Friday. As an added bonus, Newsom said he may impose a curfew, as New York has done.

Gov. Newsom is sounding more and more like a despot, and not a benevolent one at that.

As we reported last week, the hospitals are not filling up with COVID patients. California has 74,180 hospital beds among more than 440 hospitals. The CDPH says there are currently 4,000 Californians with COVID in the hospital. How is this a spike or surge?

The governor said he is considering imposing a curfew on the state, and then reminded everyone to “always wash your hands and minimize mixing.”

As for the birthday party indiscretion, Newsom tried to be contrite in issuing an apology and said, “Instead of sitting down I should have gotten back in my car and gone home.”

“I own the mistake. I expect more from myself. I’ll never do it again,” Newsom added. It wasn’t clear whether he meant he won’t dine with more than 10 people again, or if he won’t get caught dining with 12 people again, because he still has not explained why he restricted “gatherings” to 10 people or less. Clearly if he didn’t feel threatened dining with 12 people, why should anyone else?

“COVID fatigue is exhausting,” he admitted.

Gov. Newsom’s latest punitive changes move about 95% of California’s 40 million residents into the most restrictive purple tier. So all of the small businesses and restaurants barely hanging on financially may be kaput… no indoor dining at restaurants, no using your gym indoors, and those movie theaters trying to reopen are about to be closed again. No drinking at the bar with friends, unless they offer full service menus, and only for outside dining… in November.

“Compliance is not punitive,” Gov. Newsom said Monday before his press conference ended. As he praised California’s 40 million residents “for the good work you have done,” he rewarded you with more restrictions, a curfew and ordered your businesses closed again.

At the end of the press briefing, Newsom was asked by two members of the media if he is a “do as I say, not as I do” governor, and if because of his actions he is worried Californians won’t take him seriously. He dismissed the first question saying “rewind the tape.” As for the second question, he said, “I made one mistake. I own that. Now it’s time to move on.”

It was March 4, 2020 when we were told to shelter in place for two weeks to flatter the curve… that was more than 250 days ago.