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ICYMI: Midwestern Democratic Governors Featured in Bipartisan PSA Urging Residents to “Mask Up” Heading Into Holidays

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Yesterday, a group of Midwestern governors released a bipartisan PSA calling on their constituents to mask up and follow health and safety guidelines going into the winter. The video featured Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, who were joined by the Republican governors of Ohio and Indiana.


The governors said, “We understand that our fight against COVID-19 will be more effective when we work together.”


As coronavirus cases resurge in the Midwest and across the United States, Democratic governors have been leading in expanding testing, re-implementing mitigation measures, strengthening mask mandates, and encouraging Americans to keep their social circles small.


Some Republican governors are refusing to implement safety measures that could save lives – 14 Republican-led states still don’t have a mask mandate. Even though her state is suffering one of the worst outbreaks in the world, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem continues to play politics with the virus, refusing to mandate masks, limit gathering sizes, and listen to public health experts.


Watch the PSA here and read more about the video below.


ABC News: Midwestern governors share bipartisan message on COVID-19 safety over holidays


Several Midwestern governors have come together to urge residents to be careful this holiday season, as COVID-19 surges across the region.


In a video posted to YouTube on Tuesday, the governors of Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin joined together in the bipartisan message.


“As we head into the holiday season and the cold winter months, we wanted to take a moment to talk to our families in our region about how you can protect your loved ones and our front-line workers, as well as our small business owners, from COVID-19 and the pandemic,” Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said at the top of the 2 1/2-minute PSA.


The governors acknowledged the encouraging news from Pfizer last week, that an early analysis showed its COVID-19 vaccine appears to be at least 90% effective against the virus. But that “doesn’t mean we can let our guard down,” Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said, since the vaccine will take time to distribute.


[…]


With Thanksgiving approaching, the governors reminded residents to follow health protocols, such as getting a flu shot and adhering to social distancing, frequent handwashing and mask-wearing. One governor — Tony Evers of Wisconsin — even sported a mask in the video.


“All of these measures are crucial if we want to keep our small businesses and our schools open,” said Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.


Several of the governors featured in the video recently announced new restrictions in response to the increase in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in their states.


[…]