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Governor, attorney general throw down over COVID

Staff Report
The uneasy truce between Gov. John Bel Edwards and Attorney General Jeff Landry suffered a setback last week, when Landry challenged Edwards’ power to close bars and require masks, and Edwards accused Landry of lacking information about COVID-19.
Landry issued an attorney general’s opinion challenging Edwards’ authority to require masks, close bars and limit crowd sizes, which the governor did with a proclamation that took effect July 13.
“It reminded me of the famous line ‘you’re entitled to your own opinion, but not your own facts,’” Edwards wrote in a Thursday letter to Landry.
Edwards, a Democrat in his second term, and Landry, a Republican former congressman, had clashed frequently.
Landry had blocked state contracts let by the Edwards administration because they contained language forbidding discrimination against LGBQT vendors. Edwards sued to allow the contracts to go forward.
Landry had also sued Edwards to block some of his appointments. And a state task force issued a report over Landry’s objections saying a lawsuit targeting Obamacare and in which Landry was a participant stood to cost Louisiana $3.6 billion.
Yet the governor and the attorney general had appeared to be more in accord on the state’s COVID-19 response. Landry even appeared at one of Edwards’ COVID update press conferences in April, praising pharmaceutical companies that had provided medication, including hydroxychloroquine, for treatment of Louisiana people.
But Landry’s opinion was anything but a statement of unity.
The opinion was requested by six generally conservative lawmakers in response to a mask mandate imposed by the Shreveport city government.
Landry said all three requirements are too vague.
“As a general matter, the order does not define numerous terms, contains minimal statistics in support, and contains no geographical data,” Landry wrote.
The provisions for penalties and enforcement are even more vague, he wrote: “… Prohibitions must be clearly defined and government should articulate its aims with a reasonable degree of clarity. The restrictions contained in [the Edwards] Proclamation fail this basic test.”
Landry also objected to language in the Edwards proclamation that puts the burden of enforcement of the mask mandate on businesses.
“Although the rule contains exemptions that would or could apply to the vast majority of the public, it then purports to require both compliance and enforcement by ‘commercial establishments,’ on threat of the business … being issued a ‘citation.’
“The Proclamation does not say who would issue the citations and for what. It is likewise silent as to what the sanction may be, or the legal basis for conscripting businesses to enforce executive orders.”
The Edwards mask mandate includes exemptions for people under 8, for those with health conditions that make mask-wearing difficult, for those who are eating or drinking, for those making a speech or talking for broadcast, and for those who take off masks so they can be identified.
In his letter of response Thursday, Edwards emphasized the serious nature of the COVID-19 resurgence, said Louisiana is following guidance from White House Coronavirus Task Force coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx, and took Landry to task for not participating in state-level meetings on the COVID response.
The governor also said Landry’s views appear to have changed since a March press conference. “You stated that day that ‘some have asked me if the Governor has the authority to take action like limiting the size of public gatherings, suspending legal deadlines, and order restaurants and bars to limit their service, the short answer is: yes.’”
Edwards closed by saying he wouldn’t waste time by cataloging misstatements or misunderstandings in Landry’s opinion. But then he brought one up:
“… You seem mystified by what a face covering is, when this is term used by the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] and is, ironically, contained in a sign on the front of your office stating “STOP — Face Coverings MUST be worn in this building Upon Entry and in all Common Areas.”
Landry announced recently that he has tested positive for COVID-19 and is in self-quarantine.

The attorney general's opinion is here: http://www.agjefflandry.com/Opinion/Download/22924
The governor's letter is here: https://gov.louisiana.gov/assets/docs/Letters/Landry-Letter-7-17-20.pdf

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