NEW YORK (TURKISH JOURNAL) – By Janet Ekstract – In Thursday’s press briefing, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said that even though the stimulus package will help many, he commented: “The congressional action simply failed to address the governmental need.” Cuomo said: “I find it irresponsible. I find it reckless.” He echoed what Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi commented on when she gave her press conference Thursday. Pelosi emphasized that the Democrats made a case for including generous monetary provisions for state and local governments in the U.S. but that the Republicans rejected that portion of the stimulus package. As Pelosi reiterated earlier this week, the most important thing was to get the stimulus package passed with as much productivity as they could despite not receiving everything they wanted the Republicans to agree on.
Cuomo pointed out that there are two levels to the coronavirus pandemic: an economic and a public health level. The governor said with “public health we’ve had a two-prong agenda to flatten the curve to reduce the flow into the hospital system. He said the best case scenario is not to have an apex – meaning a spike of new cases. He added: “We have to increase the hospital capacity and we are doing that everywhere we can – we are also scouting new sites now – our goal is to have 1,000 plus overflow facility in each of the boroughts downstate in the counties. So every county has a 1,000 plus bed overflow facility.”
The governor said the economic impact has to be addressed because as he explained there are increased expenses because of the virus. He added: “You have increased loss of revenue. Businesses are closed, so we’re spending more and we’re receiving less and in the middle of all this, we have to balance a budget.” Cuomo estimates that New York is looking at a loss of between 10-15 billion dollars. The governor said with no additional money earmarked to assist state and local governments – the situation remains precarious. New York is receiving 5 billion which he said is only earmarked for the coronavirus expenses and nothing else. He said it will do nothing to make up for the state’s lost revenue.
Cuomo said he is working with everyone to increase hospital capacity and noted “we are doing that everywhere we can, we are also scouting new sites now. Our goal is to have 1,000 plus overflow facilities in each of the boroughs downstate in the counties.” He added: “We mandated the hospitals to increase their capacity to 50 percent,” even though he said he would like to see 100 percent capacity but that currently that’s a stretch considering the dire situation in New York. Getting enough medical equipment and protective gear (PPE) is an “ongoing issue” Cuomo explained. As Cuomo said earlier in the week, New York needs 30,000 ventilators and they are doing all they can to get more and to use the new splitting technology where two patients can use the same ventilator. Cuomo said there shouldn’t have to be competition for resources or price gouging or leaving American states on their own in such a time of crisis. As New York’s governor said, he found the federal government’s response shocking, as he explained: “I spoke to everyone involved. I’m disappointed. I find it irresponsible. I find it reckless.”
When Cuomo was referring to the Trump administration, he advised: “This is the time to put bipartisanship aside and to put politics aside. This is the time to do your job. This is not a time to point fingers. This is not a time to make excuses. This is not a time to blame everyone else.”
When Cuomo was asked his view on this virus, this is what he had to say: “My personal opinion – this is a life moment, a moment in the life of this country, it’s a moment in the life of the world, it’s a moment in our family life. My observation is when the pressure is on you really see what people are made of. What does a person do when the pressure is on them – you can get to see what people are really made of and you get to see the beauty in people and you get to see the opposite.”
New York’s governor was stoic as he summed up the situation: “The truth is this is not a sprint, this is a marathon.” He said: “When I feel tired I think of the first responders every day who are showing up. “We’re tired but look at what others among us have to do and how they’re stepping up.”
Cuomo concluded: “This is going to be transformative and informative for society.” People are rising to the occasion, let’s make sure we’re teaching our children the right lessons and the right response. Let’s listen to the voices of our better angels – the only question is how we get through it and when we get through it”
