Does Texas Know Something California Doesn't?
Blue states are imposing new Covid-19 restrictions even as red states lift lockdowns.
A California beach on May 3 vs. a Texas beach on May 2.
Left: Rich Fury/Getty Images; Right: MARK FELIX/AFP /AFP via Getty Images
It’s a tale of two mega-states — and probably of two Americas, each with a nearly opposite approach to Covid-19 restrictions. The governor of Texas allowed his stay-at-home order to lapse and restaurants, theaters and stores to reopen, along as long as they stay below 25% capacity. Meanwhile, California’s governor ordered a “hard close” of the beaches of Orange County.
The divergence reflects an increasingly fundamental divide between different states’ attitudes toward the public health science about the coronavirus pandemic. Texas is following the most permissive conceivable interpretation of the evidence; California is deploying what is just about the most restrictive possible interpretation.