Gov. Lujan Grisham’s announcement today regarding her public health order is too little too late. The Chief Executive continues to violate the principles of fairness and justice for all.
The decision to restrict small businesses to only 25% capacity when national chains are going at full steam, making obscene profits, is ludicrous and unjust. This latest order will continue to gut our locally owned mom-and-pop businesses, establishments that are going broke after exhausting their life savings during the past weeks.
The governor remains out of touch with her constituents, turning a blind eye to the cries of New Mexicans desperately trying to survive in our economic drought. It’s simply not fair that big box stores are packing in thousands of customers, while small businesses have severe limitations on the numbers of customers allowed. Our local economies may never recover from the costs incurred by these restrictions.
First and foremost, RPNM has always made New Mexicans’ health and safety the top priority and has argued that social distancing can be practiced at small businesses. Now it seems the governor finally recognizes that, but too many New Mexicans have suffered from financial damage and personal pain. Local economies and livelihoods will continue to crash. It seems each day businesses are folding or are poised to shutter their doors.
Industries are dying, businesses are crumbling and hope is withering.
The governor, as an attorney, should know that equity, justice and fairness should be the goal of government.
Under the order, churches continue to be discriminated against with 10 percent capacity allowed. What happens to the other 90 percent of the congregation’s faithful?
The governor’s order continues to impose on the civil rights of New Mexicans, deny them the right to worship as a full congregation, ignore peoples’ right to free commerce and threaten businesses that don’t comply with her order.
Is this leadership or autocracy? The truth lies in the fact that the governor’s actions are discriminatory and unfair.
There’s no logical or legal reason to keep small establishments closed or restricted to 25% capacity when national chains aren’t. Restaurants and bars are still banned from walk-in traffic. This is not a sound, logical or fair solution for New Mexicans.
“Our position has been to safely and responsibly get New Mexico back to work. The Democratic Administration has not only destroyed our economy, but peoples’ lives and livelihoods,” said Republican Party of New Mexico Chairman Steve Pearce. “By her continuing to favor national chains over our small business, the governor has inflicted economic and personal hardship on hundreds of thousands of her constituents. She has selectively targeted parts of the population with her order, and refuses to acknowledge the implications. Questions still must be raised about fairness, freedoms and violations of our civil rights.”
RPNM’s recent letter to U.S. Attorney General William Barr addresses all of the these concerns.
