California lawmaker tells people 'go to your local pub,' hours before state closes all bars
VISALIA, Calif. – While on a Sunday morning news show, Rep. Devin Nunes contradicted public health experts and encouraged Americans to “go to a local restaurant” during the coronavirus crisis.
“There’s a lot of concerns with the economy here because people are scared to go out,” Nunes said on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures.” “But I will just say, one of the things you can do if you’re healthy – you and your family – it’s a great time to just go out, go to a local restaurant. Likely you can get in easily.”
Nunes, who has served in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2003, added: “Let’s not hurt the working people in this country that are relying on wages and tips to keep their small business going. So, don’t run to the grocery store and buy, you know, $4,000 of food. Go, you know, go to your local pub.”
Later Sunday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom may have made the issue mostly moot. He called for the closure of all bars, wine bars, breweries and pubs, and called for restaurants to reduce their occupancy by half.
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At least some of Nunes' constituents were taking his earlier advice. Several downtown Visalia hot spots were busy with St. Patrick's Day revelers on Saturday evening.
"Alcohol is a disinfectant, too," customers at Stacked Bar and Grill in Visalia told the Times-Delta/Advance-Register, part of the USA TODAY Network.
Nunes directly contradicted the advice of health experts and Trump administration officials who have warned the public to stay home as much as possible in an effort to slow the spread of the virus.
At almost the same time Nunes was on Fox News, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, was on NBC's "Meet the Press" saying people "should be prepared that they're going to have to hunker down significantly more than we as a country are doing" to fight the growing COVID-19 outbreak.
Fauci went even further when asked if the country should order a national shutdown similar to Italy or Spain, saying, "I would prefer as much as we possibly could. I think we should really be overly aggressive and get criticized for overreacting."
Nunes or his office did not immediately return messages from the Times-Delta/Advance-Register about his contradictory advice.
Fauci and other health experts argue limiting public gatherings and social distancing will "blunt" the number of coronavirus infections cases, keeping the number of those ill low enough so as to not overwhelm the U.S. hospital system.
As of Monday, there have been more than 3,400 confirmed cases and 68 deaths tied to the coronavirus in the United States. The actual number of those infected could be much larger because testing isn't yet widespread in the United States.
The coronavirus that causes COVID-19 is a novel virus first recognized near the end of 2019. Symptoms range from mild to severe and typically appear two to 14 days after you are exposed.
Lower-respiratory symptoms including cough, shortness of breath and fever have been reported so far.
Frequent handwashing, avoiding close contact with people who are sick, staying home while sick, covering your sneeze and cough, and avoiding touching your eyes, nose and mouth are great ways to help prevent the spread of respiratory diseases like COVID-19, public health officials say.
Major tourist hot spots across the country, including the White House, Broadway and Las Vegas, are taking precautionary measures by closing to help prevent the spread of coronavirus.
Contributing: USA TODAY and the Associated Press
Follow reporter James Ward on Twitter.
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This article originally appeared on Visalia Times-Delta: California Rep. Devin Nunes on coronavirus quarantine: Go to the pub
