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Governor Brian Kemp argues that wearing masks should be a personal choice.
Georgia’s governor is suing Atlanta authorities to prevent the United States city from enforcing its requirement to wear masks in public, along with other coronavirus-related restrictions.
Gov. Brian Kemp said Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms lacked authority to implement the rule.
Kemp signed an executive order earlier this week voiding the mask mandates across the state.
But Bottoms said this will not prevent Atlanta from enforcing its ordinance.
The United States remains at the epicenter of the global pandemic, with more than 70,000 new cases reported Thursday, a record daily jump in known infections.
Most state governors have mandated that the use of outdoor masks be mandatory, rather than a personal choice. Among them are Republican governors, including Kay Ivey of Alabama, who have reversed their initial opposition to the mandates.
Why is Georgia filing a lawsuit?
The Georgia governor has tried to ban mandatory requirements for facial masks in public places, suggesting that it should be a personal choice.
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But officials in several Georgia cities and counties have challenged him. Mayor Bottoms, who tested positive for coronavirus last week and is in quarantine, said the order will not prevent Atlanta from enforcing its own rules.
Governor Kemp’s lawsuit, filed Thursday, seeks to repeal Atlanta’s rule on masks, along with the mayor’s order to return to Phase 1 of reopening, which requires people to take refuge in their homes and restaurants to close. their dining rooms.
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Atlanta Mayor Bottoms are quarantined after testing positive for coronavirus
In a statement, Mr. Kemp said he was taking the move “on behalf of Atlanta business owners and their hardworking employees struggling to survive during these difficult times.”
“I refuse to sit back and watch disastrous policies threaten the lives and livelihoods of our citizens,” he added.
Ms. Bottoms suggested that expanded testing and contact tracing would be “a better use of taxpayer money.”
“If being sued by the state is what it takes to save lives in Atlanta, then we’ll see them in court,” said the mayor.
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The lawsuit also drew criticism from other state leaders, including Savannah Mayor Van Johnson, who issued a mandate on July 1.
“It’s officially official. Governor Kemp doesn’t give a damn,” Johnson wrote on Twitter.
How fast are cases increasing in the United States?
The United States has seen a record number of new cases in the past few weeks, and the number of deaths has also started to rise in recent days.
So far, the United States has recorded more than 3.5 million cases of the virus and nearly 140,000 deaths.
The new wave is being fueled by new outbreaks in the south and west of the country, which have seen infection rates rise since states began easing closure restrictions in late May.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country’s leading health official for infectious diseases, said earlier this week: “We haven’t even begun to see the end of [the virus] still.”
