Some politicians in Calif. ignore own virus edicts
SAN FRANCISCO — Their messaging has been clear: wear a mask, stay 6 feet apart from others, and most importantly: Stay home!
But their actions aren’t living up to the rhetoric, creating a real political problem for some of the most vocal leaders in California’s fight to contain the coronavirus.
First came Gov. Gavin Newsom, who won plaudits for issuing the first statewide stay-at-home order in the U.S. in March. He broke the state rules when he and his wife were caught dining with 10 others at the posh French Laundry restaurant in Napa in early November with lobbyists and others from numerous different households, sitting close together, maskless.
San Francisco’s mayor, London Breed, was at the same $350-a-plate restaurant a day later, dining with a San Francisco socialite and six others. Breed has also won accolades for imposing some of the strictest rules in California, keeping coronavirus rates relatively low. Her spokespeople haven’t responded to queries about how many households were there — state rules cap those at three. Her spokesman rubbed salt in the wound by saying she has been trying to support local restaurants. The French Laundry is 60 miles out of town.
San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo on Tuesday fessed up to an outdoor Thanksgiving dinner at his parents’ home with people from five households after tweeting that everyone should just stay home this Thanksgiving. And a Los Angeles County supervisor headed to dinner at an outdoor restaurant hours after she voted to ban outdoor dining, calling it “a most dangerous situation.”
“We’re all really feeling the strain of this, but there is really that element of hypocrisy. So many who are struggling right now, and then you see them going to these very fancy social affairs and mixing with folks outside their immediate bubble,” said Melinda Jackson, a political science professor at San Jose State University.
The revelations come at a critical time as the nation deals with a dramatic spike in case rates, hospitalizations and deaths. It’s more important than ever that we follow the rules, the public is told. But when the same leaders aren’t following the guidelines themselves, their credibility is shattered and it makes it harder to trust that their guidance is solid.