Governor Bill Lee was appointed the co-chair of the National Governors Association’s (NGA) Pandemic and Disaster Response Task Force on Wednesday. The other chair selected was Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont.
Lee and Lamont will oversee the Federal Emergency Management administration (FEMA), the National Guard, cybersecurity, healthcare, and all issues related to addressing and recovering from COVID-19, such as testing and personal protective equipment (PPE). Other members in the task force have yet to be announced; as of Wednesday, the two staffers on the task force were legislative directors Mary Catherine Ott and Maribel Ramos.
Lee issued a brief statement on his appointment.
“I look forward to working with my fellow governors in this role as we continue our fight against COVID-19,” wrote Lee.
I look forward to working with my fellow governors in this role as we continue our fight against COVID-19. https://t.co/ylfgKFjjnv
— Gov. Bill Lee (@GovBillLee) January 20, 2021
The governor’s office hasn’t issued a press release further explaining Lee’s appointment as of press time; Lee’s spokespersons also didn’t respond to request for comment. It is unclear what policies Lee’s task force will propose first.
The task force is one of three created to address the COVID-19 pandemic, and its economic and social strains. As with Lee’s task force, the members of these two task forces have yet to be determined.
South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster and Kentucky Governor Andy Beshar will co-chair the Economic Recovery and Revitalization Task Force. They will oversee issues pertaining to infrastructure, state stabilization, energy, environment, land management, and taxes.
U.S. Virgin Island Governor Albert Bryan and Missouri Governor Mike Parson will co-chair the Community Renewal Task Force. They will oversee issues pertaining to workforce, nutrition, education, criminal justice, agriculture, and broadband. Throughout their operations, all three task forces will work with NGA’s Executive Committee.
Apart from these three task forces, the NGA only has two other bodies within its association currently: the Executive Committee and the Legal Affairs Committee.
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Corinne Murdock is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and the Star News Network. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to [email protected].
Biden plans on eliminating states from making their own decisions on dealing with the chinese virus. In true liberal fashion the federal government knows what’s best. I believe by bringing Governor Lee onto this group he will be pressured to fall in line with whatever mandates are forced on us.
And as a side comment, as the number of “cases” falls it will make no difference in the easing of restrictions. Masks will become our reminder of subservience to the government.
Yeah…. THAT will be effective….
/S
Welcome to my parlor said the spider to the fly. Great, now our governor is going to be indoctrinated into Chinese virus fear mongering. Actually I thank Governor Lee for not instituting draconian lock down mandates these last few months, because the virus is not as bad as the donks and the MSM are making it out to be.
Coincidentally, now after the thief who stole the election is inaugurated, the WHO downgrades the definition of an infection, which will greatly reduce the number of “cases” that the MSM loves to throw out every chance they get.
https://redstate.com/michael_thau/2021/01/20/total-coincidence-alert-who-issues-new-c19-guidelines-requiring-2nd-test-for-symptom-less-on-day-biden-takes-office-n313400
Anyone with half a mind who hasn’t been brainwashed by the MSM has figured out for themselves that the chinese virus has been used to the max to destroy our free market economy and strip Americans of their Constitutional freedoms as the practice run for the next four years. While the number of “cases” is falling (less testing perhaps), one of the first acts of the “pretender in chief” is to require more restrictions on Americans. Masks must be worn on all federal property. I’m still waiting for an explanation from the forest service if that means my wife and I have to wear masks while we are hiking in the national forest (like I’m really going to follow that rule).
Please Governor Lee, continue to use common sense and go outside the MSM to collect the data you use in your decision making process. Thank you very much.
Steve – I am certainly in step with your thinking that at the national level Bureaucrats have done the best they can do to strangle American capitalism, etc.
However, I differ with your opinion that “Actually I thank Governor Lee for not instituting draconian lock down mandates these last few months”.
In my opinion, Mr. Lee just ducked responsibility by passing the buck down to less than competent county “mayors” such as Anthony Holt of Sumner County. Based upon my limited knowledge, the governor has not authority to do that. But of course the state legislators pulled a Joe Biden and hid in their basements while Lee made mincemeat of the state constitution with respect to enacting “emergency” orders. Lee is a loser.
Does anybody else see the irony and duplicity in a National Governor’s Association? Not to mention them having a Pandemic and Disaster Response Task Force!
Isn’t that the reason why we have a union of 50 states? Why do we have to pay for our Governor to be part of an exclusive membership in this NGA club, when we pay millions of dollars to the Federal Club?
And boy did we get hoodwinked by the true intention of the 17th Amendment to the US Constitution!