Cuomo Is a Coronavirus Star, but Newsom Is Quietly Bending the Curve

On Tuesday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo used his daily coronavirus press briefing to chastise his younger brother, CNN anchor Chris Cuomo—who has now been diagnosed with a case of COVID-19—for having allowed their 88-year-old mother to visit his house. “My brother’s smart, he was acting out of love, luckily we caught it early enough,” Cuomo said. “But it’s my family, it’s your family, it’s all of our families. And this virus is that insidious, and we have to keep that in mind.”

The episode—vivid, personal, and making a specific point about the dangers of COVID-19—captured what has made Cuomo and his press conferences the most visible counterpoint to President Donald Trump’s daily briefings. While the federal response led by Trump largely sought to keep the public in the dark about the extent of the crisis, Cuomo’s briefings are hailed as the most reliable source of public information in the country.

But in recent days, it’s become clearer and clearer that Cuomo’s initial response to the crisis lagged behind that of some of his fellow Democratic governors—most notably Washington’s Jay Inslee and California’s Gavin Newsom. Newsom and Inslee both reacted more swiftly and forcefully to the crisis in ways that are saving lives on the West Coast, yet it’s Cuomo who is being hailed as a possible future president and strong national leader.

Both Los Angeles and San Francisco had their first cases—and deaths—weeks before New York, but New York has quickly become the global center of the pandemic while the situation in California has remained comparatively calm for now. From the point of each state’s 10th death and 100th case (testing has been more sporadic in California, so it’s not fair to compare overall positive tests necessarily), New York’s caseload and number of deaths have accelerated more steadily and rapidly. While the vastly greater density of New York City versus California’s major metropolitan areas partially explains this course, it is likely that California’s more aggressive and swifter social distancing actions helped as well.




https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/03/cuomo-coronavirus-star-newsom-bending-the-curve.html