California, Oregon, and Washington Alliance..

[_Only]

Quote

 

Today, [April 13] California Governor Gavin Newsom, Oregon Governor Kate Brown and Washington Governor Jay Inslee announced an agreement on a shared vision for reopening their economies and controlling COVID-19 into the future.

Joint statement from the Governors:

COVID-19 has preyed upon our interconnectedness. In the coming weeks, the West Coast will flip the script on COVID-19 – with our states acting in close coordination and collaboration to ensure the virus can never spread wildly in our communities.

We are announcing that California, Oregon and Washington have agreed to work together on a shared approach for reopening our economies – one that identifies clear indicators for communities to restart public life and business.

While each state is building a state-specific plan, our states have agreed to the following principles as we build out a West Coast framework:

–Our residents’ health comes first. As home to one in six Americans and gateway to the rest of the world, the West Coast has an outsized stake in controlling and ultimately defeating COVID-19.

–Health outcomes and science – not politics – will guide these decisions. Modifications to our states’ stay at home orders must be made based off our understanding of the total health impacts of COVID-19, including: the direct impact of the disease on our communities; the health impact of measures introduced to control the spread in communities —particularly felt by those already experiencing social disadvantage prior to COVID-19; and our health care systems’ ability to ensure care for those who may become sick with COVID-19 and other conditions. This effort will be guided by data. We need to see a decline in the rate of spread of the virus before large-scale reopening, and we will be working in coordination to identify the best metrics to guide this.

–Our states will only be effective by working together. Each state will work with its local leaders and communities within its borders to understand what’s happening on the ground and adhere to our agreed upon approach.

Through quick and decisive action, each of our states has made significant progress in flattening the curve and slowing the spread of COVID-19 among the broader public. Now, our public health leaders will focus on four goals that will be critical for controlling the virus in the future.

• Protecting vulnerable populations at risk for severe disease if infected. This includes a concerted effort to prevent and fight outbreaks in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.
• Ensuring an ability to care for those who may become sick with COVID-19 and other conditions. This will require adequate hospital surge capacity and supplies of personal protective equipment.
• Mitigating the non-direct COVID-19 health impacts, particularly on disadvantaged communities.
• Protecting the general public by ensuring any successful lifting of interventions includes the development of a system for testing, tracking and isolating. The states will work together to share best practices.

COVID-19 doesn’t follow state or national boundaries. It will take every level of government, working together, and a full picture of what’s happening on the ground.

In the coming days the governors, their staff and health officials will continue conversations about this regional pact to recove

 

https://www.gov.ca.gov/2020/04/13/california-oregon-washington-announce-western-states-pact/

 

What are your guys' opinions about the point of this 'alliance' between 3 western states? I admit, though they state that the pact was made to put needed action above politics, I feel it could be a politically motivated move in defiance, which could be a volatile step in uncertain times. I see no real need for 3 states to form a group to do what they feel is right in the situation, as much as 3 states joining together to hold more weight in defying against national decisions. I get bad vibes from this, though I hope my worries are unwarranted.

[+OverSword]

Just the other day a friend and were complaining that Inslee is just a proxy governor for California.  If California does it  then you can be sure Inslee will soon copy it.

[+and-then]

This alliance will show what it's about in relatively short order, I think.  I'll be amazed if it isn't a political move aimed at Trump to make him seem weak.  That's cool... if they want to lockdown their residents and industries longer than he'd like, it will be THEY who suffer from it.  I just feel bad for the residents who get caught up in it.  Ultimately, it's the governor's call to make.

[+Desertrat56]

New Mexico governor said the same thing when she was interviewed on CNN Sunday, First priority is the health of the people in New Mexico and politics will not guide policy for when the restrictions are lifted.

My opinion is that being cautious will protect the ecconomy better than reopening everything before the virus has run it's course.   More dead and sick workers is worse than non-essential shut downs for longer periods of time for the economy in the Long Run.

[_Only]

30 minutes ago, OverSword said:

Just the other day a friend and were complaining that Inslee is just a proxy governor for California.  If California does it  then you can be sure Inslee will soon copy it.

Looks like internal conflict is what hindered that, according to Idaho Governor, Inslee:

https://www.kxly.com/idaho-left-out-of-western-states-pact-gov-inslee-points-to-lack-of-unity-as-the-issue/

[_Only]

13 minutes ago, and then said:

This alliance will show what it's about in relatively short order, I think.  I'll be amazed if it isn't a political move aimed at Trump to make him seem weak.  That's cool... if they want to lockdown their residents and industries longer than he'd like, it will be THEY who suffer from it.  I just feel bad for the residents who get caught up in it.  Ultimately, it's the governor's call to make.

If it is a political move (which it really appears to be, though explicitly denied in the carefully worded statement), I really hope that's as far as it goes, but any moves made like this in this volatile, uncertain time could potentially lead to further, more dangerous moves, and I don't like seeing those floodgates potentially cracked here. I know 'can't we all just get along' is an unreasonable request in these ridiculously over the top political times, but it should really be a goal, and ultimately lead to less potentially dangerous conflict in a time when people are hoarding supplies and out buying guns. I'm not trying to fear monger, but there are real potential outcomes if certain timelines are left to play out. I just don't want this to be a part of one.

[+OverSword]

34 minutes ago, Desertrat56 said:

New Mexico governor said the same thing when she was interviewed on CNN Sunday, First priority is the health of the people in New Mexico and politics will not guide policy for when the restrictions are lifted.

My opinion is that being cautious will protect the ecconomy better than reopening everything before the virus has run it's course.   More dead and sick workers is worse than non-essential shut downs for longer periods of time for the economy in the Long Run.

Non essential for who? 

[+OverSword]

28 minutes ago, _Only said:

Looks like internal conflict is what hindered that, according to Idaho Governor, Inslee:

https://www.kxly.com/idaho-left-out-of-western-states-pact-gov-inslee-points-to-lack-of-unity-as-the-issue/

Inslee is governor of Washington not Idaho.

[Tatetopa]

 

On 4/15/2020 at 2:54 PM, _Only said:

I see no real need for 3 states to form a group to do what they feel is right in the situation,

 

In Oregon, we sit between two larger economies, Washington to the north and California to the south.

I-5 is the transportation corridor  that runs between our states  and carries both freight and people.  It is a vital link in all three economies.  

The aerospace companies I have worked for sold large amounts of components and products to businesses in those two state.  Some of our suppliers by contrast are located in those states.

It makes some sense for them to coordinate responses and activities.  If our businesses that make aerospace components, computer chips and agricultural products are shut down,   in Oregon, that affects businesses in both other states. All three states have component or sub assembly plants that  supply the needs of the other two.

States have realized that they have to help themselves, maybe that is a change from depending on the federal government for everything.  Oregon sent ventilators to New York during their peak.  It was only 100, bu it was what we had.  California and Washington sent another 900 for a total of right around 1000.   If states can pool them in times of need, that makes a lot more sense than every state buying many more than they need.

The three states are not a country, and neither are the Eastern states around New York.. We can work together on some things and disagree on others.  Even people within the state disagree on a lot of topics.  We are not seceding from the union, but sometimes each one needs help the other can provide.

Do you want states to sit back and whine and wait for the federal government to take action, or do you want states to try to deal with their problems on a local level?

I would think all of you small government people would be happy about this if it pushes responsibility for local situations down to local level.

 

 

 

 

 

[_Only]

58 minutes ago, Tatetopa said:

 

 

In Oregon, we sit between two larger economies, Washington to the north and California to the south.

I-5 is the transportation corridor  that runs between our states  and carries both freight and people.  It is a vital link in all three economies.  

The aerospace companies I have worked for sold large amounts of components and products to businesses in those two state.  Some of our suppliers by contrast are located in those states.

It makes some sense for them to coordinate responses and activities. 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks, I was looking for examples like the above of a partnership being fruitful/positive in the scenario, not trying to doom and gloom or say the partnership = civil war, but I do think negative complications can arise from politics in the scenario, but hopefully not; though it's hard to be hopeful like that with the state of politics today, and examples like the governor of New York saying the President trying to quarantine his state akin to "an act of war", and that the President doesn't want to face his state like that. I don't think mentalities/talk like that in this situation can lead to anything positive, but he's already said it. I hope my state and the couple with it don't take mentalities like that.

[Tatetopa]

3 hours ago, _Only said:

it's hard to be hopeful like that with the state of politics today, and examples like the governor of New York saying the President trying to quarantine his state akin to "an act of war", and that the President doesn't want to face his state like that. I don't think mentalities/talk like that in this situation can lead to anything positive, but he's already said it. I hope my state and the couple with it don't take mentalities like that.

I have seen a couple of segments of Cuomo briefing.  Mostly he seems pretty businesslike.  He praised Trump for the travel bans.  He did not think his state got enough help from the feds, and when asked he did say the president is not given total authority over the states by the Constitution.   He said he and Trump talk frequently, sometimes they disagree but for the most part the president  is reasonable.  He was not on a partisan attack in the parts I heard, but he calls it like he sees it  both good and inadequate.

He thanked a lot of people for helping, including Oregon for their respirators   He also admitted being wrong a time or two.  

He seems basically like an old school Democrat, moderate, business friendly, not left enough to suite the progressives and still in possession of all of his faculties.  Up close, people in New York may not like him as well, but he seems pretty good from a distance.

So far we haven't come to the National Guard stage like when Wallace and Maddox defied federal orders on ingratiation.   We made it through that one, next time, I guess we will have to see.

[+DieChecker]

I'm not against a corrdinated state reopen, but I just want to make sure Oregon doesnt become a vassal state to California.

Oregon tends toward progressive, but California is ruining itself with stupid laws, and crazy amounts of taxes.