7 Major Coronavirus Developments — Police Unions and Raimondo at Odds Over Enforcement — May 9, 2020
GoLocalProv News Team
7 Major Coronavirus Developments — Police Unions and Raimondo at Odds Over Enforcement — May 9, 2020
The police unions have criticized the order as being heavy-handed and believe that issuing citations will be detrimental to the relationship between officers and the community.
For months, Raimondo has refused to take enforcement actions against violators of her different executive orders.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST“We draw the line at the draconian measures Governor Raimondo has chosen to include in her Executive Order of mandating that all people wear masks in public under the threat of civil penalties being issued to them. Our officers work every single day to bridge the gap with our community and earn their trust. We will not stand idly by and allow Governor Raimondo’s overreaching Order to tear that bridge down, and we will certainly not be a part of it by enforcing this Order against our community,” said Jedidiah Pineau, President of the Warwick Fraternal Order Of Police Lodge 7, in the letter.
North Providence's FOP President Thomas Jones issued a similar letter.
The Raimondo administration refused to respond to questions after the North Providence FOP issued their letter.
READ 7 Major Coronavirus Developments BELOW
EDITOR'S NOTE: Raimondo does not allow Rhode Islanders to hear reporters' questions during her briefings. Nearly all governors across the country and the White House allow reporters to ask questions directly and for the public to hear the questions and the responses.
7 Major Coronavirus Developments — May 9, 2020
Dr. Michael Fine Says "It's Time to Admit Our Failure"
Dr. Michael Fine, Former Rhode Island Director of Health, warns that more need to be done to protect public health.
"It is time to grow up. Its time to admit our failures...we messed this up," said Fine.
He warns that the coronavirus is difficult, "but this is not the big one" -- predicting the state and country will have to deal with more rounds of the virus.
Fine made the remarks during his daily appearance on GoLocal LIVE.
Raimondo Lifts Stay at Home Order
On Friday, Governor Gina Raimondo signed an executive order officially lifting Rhode Island's stay-at-home order.
The order gives the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) the ability to enforce public health guidelines and business regulations, including by levying fines against individuals or businesses.
Warnings of Colleges and Universities Closing
"Higher education has been one of the most severely impacted sectors by the coronavirus. College-bound students and their families are wondering what they’ll be paying for: whether college campuses will (or should) reopen in the fall or remain online. Increasingly, as the depth of this crisis becomes more clear and stories hit the headlines about college layoffs and closures, students and their families are questioning whether their college will open at all," writes Edmits.
SEE THE FINANCIAL HEALTH OF RI SCHOOLS
"Even before COVID-19, 30% of colleges tracked by rating agency Moody’s were running deficits, and Fitch and Standard & Poor’s rating agencies reported negative outlooks for the higher education sector. Moody’s had issued a stable rating late last year, but has since revised it to negative after COVID-19. The American Council on Education, led by former U.S. Department of Education Undersecretary of Higher Education Ted Mitchell, believes revenues in higher education will decline by $23 billion over the next academic year."
Numbers
10,779 Cases in Rhode Island
75,333 Cases in Massachusetts
399 Deaths in RI
4,702 Deaths in Massachusetts
1,322,215 Cases in the United States
78,622 Deaths in the United States
4,037,122 Global Cases
276,832 Global Deaths
1,401,068 Global Recoveries
Could Unemployed Become Permanent?
The New York Times writes, "At least 20 million Americans are unemployed and a large share of the nation’s small businesses are shut and facing possible insolvency.
Policy errors in the coming weeks could turn the 18 million temporary layoffs recorded in April into permanent job losses that could plunge the United States into a deep and protracted recession unrivaled in recent history."
Mortgage Industry
While the Federal Reserve has stepped up to try to backstop the mortgage industry, the Wall Street Journal is reporting that the industry is facing significant challenges.
"The coronavirus pandemic has delivered a gut punch to the economy and the mortgage market is particularly exposed. The virus has forced millions of homeowners to suddenly stop making payments. At the same time, many mortgage companies aren’t built to handle an economic collapse or help their customers through it. Many of them are nonbanks that don’t have deposits or other business lines to cushion them, and they have raised concerns that fronting payments for struggling borrowers...Years ago, the financial crisis revealed the folly of churning out 'liar loans.' Regulators cracked down, and mortgages made today are generally more conservative. What regulators didn’t focus on was the strength of the mortgage companies themselves. Though the loans are sturdier, the infrastructure largely didn’t change."
This Pandemic Is Not Equal
Unemployment numbers show some significant disparities:
Hispanic Unemployment: 18.9%
Black Unemployment: 16.7%
White Unemployment: 14.2%
