Mayor gallego mayor gallego i believe our residents will do the right thing if they get accurate information. I am calling on every elected official from the president on down to send a message that Wearing Masks works and that staying home can slow the spread. Jonathan welcome to Washington Post live. I am jonathan capehart, opinion writer for the Washington Post. Phoenix mayor kate gallego is making headlines for her criticism of how the federal of how arizonas governor and the federal government has responded to the coronavirus pandemic. Her city and county have seen a surge in new cases, but not testing. Last sunday on this week with George Stephanopoulos, she said, it feels like they are declaring victory while we are in crisis mode. We are going to talk about all of that with mayor gallego. Welcome. Mayor gallego thank you so much for having me. Jonathan there is a lot to talk about. You have made multiple requests to fema, the federal Emergency Management agency, for help in covid19 testing sites, all of which have been turned down. It was reported that fema said it was getting out of the testing business. A funny thing happened after your appearance on this week with George Stephanopoulos this sunday. You actually heard from the white house . Mayor gallego yes. Sunday morning, the white house reached out. They said they wanted to work with us and help. The next day i had a meeting with the admiral in charge of testing for the United States, who said they were watching what was happening in phoenix. Jonathan now there is a new story from business insider. I might be getting these stories mixed up, because you have heard a lot of things about testing going on in your city. Now there is a testing site in west phoenix that you found out about via a tweet . Mayor gallego yes, our governor announced he was going to be working with the federal government to put a testing site in west phoenix. That is our area of greatest need and one i have been trying to draw attention to. I am thrilled they are coming and i will keep tuned on twitter to find out more. Jonathan as a mayor, does it enrage you you have to find out about these things via tweet, and not through conversation with people in the federal government . Mayor gallego the whole communication with the federal government has been very eyeopening and interesting. When we have conversations via zoom where it is a small group, it is very positive. Then you see the White House Briefing and the folks in charge of testing for the country are criticizing me by name, saying i am being unfair to them. I am happy as long as we get testing. We can have whatever politics people feel good about, but there is no question today in phoenix people are in line as we speak and are being told they need to be there for five to seven hours. Jonathan i was about to ask you about that. That was a story that hit just before we came on. I remember you saying at the South Phoenix testing site, the wait is five to seven hours, which makes me wonder, with people sitting in line for that long, is there a danger that they dont get a test . Because they have run out of tests . Mayor gallego it has happened over and over. I wish the federal government would see and know what its like. It may be easy to talk about blocks and blocks of cars in line, but when you go there and see the people waiting in line, they are individual people with families. There is one image i cant get out of my head. I watched a man whose car had run out of gasoline on a busy street, pouring gasoline into his car while he was gasping for air. To look at that and not want to do better is mindboggling to me. Jonathan given that story, it makes me think of what Vice President pence said, i believe yesterday or within the last couple of days, about how i guess he said bending the curve back down on coronavirus infections. Is that what you are seeing from your Vantage Point . Mayor gallego we were going at exponential rates in arizona, so the growth rate was really astounding. We are still seeing new cases all the time, and to say bending it a little lower his success doesnt feel that way to the people in our community waiting more than a week for a test. Doctors and nurses tell me they are exhausted in treating so many more patients than they were a few weeks ago. After memorial day in particular, we saw such a scary increase in the number of diagnoses. We are all holding our breaths and worried about the response to the july 4 holiday weekend. Jonathan i forgot to mention that those people waiting five to seven hours are also waiting where the temperatures are between 115 and 117 degrees, so folks are battling two things at once. Mayor gallego you sit and watch your gas gauge go down. A year ago if you were packing multiple meals and a gallon of water and filling up gas over the fourth of july weekend, you were going on vacation. Now thats how you prepare to get a coronavirus test in phoenix. You are sick. No one who feels just mediocre is probably going to wait as long as people have been waiting. These are people who believe they have coronavirus and are worried. People dont know how to make appropriate decisions. I heard one story of a mom who just brought home a baby from the hospital and she was feeling some respiratory symptoms, but she didnt want to leave her newborn baby unless she knew she really had the virus. She was struggling to get the right information to make a heartbreaking decision. Jonathan lets talk more about the pandemic in arizona. It seems arizona has lost control of its response, or control of the pandemic. On tuesday arizona hit a record with 117 deaths from covid19, a new single day high for the state and maricopa county, which includes phoenix. It is recording as many as 2000 cases per day, which eclipses even new york city on its worst day. You were just talking a moment ago about spikes in cases after the fourth of july. What is driving that . People not social distancing, reopening too early . What is it . Mayor gallego arizona was one of the last states to go to stayathome order and one of the first to emerge. When the governor decided to lift the stayathome order, we saw a lot of uses the centers for Disease Control did not recommend. Cdc did not recommend crowded nightclubs until the final phase of reopening, but we got them right away in phoenix. We had nightclubs handing out free champagne to celebrate. Public Health Officials tell me nightclubs are one of the most dangerous environments. People are very unlikely to be wearing a mask while they are drinking. There is also about music, so people might be raising their voices and you have increased droplet spread because of that. We have had many younger arizonans on the news talking about how it felt like a celebration and a party and it didnt feel like they needed to be careful. We have had the majority of our new cases come from younger arizonans. There was a message we had defeated covid and you could go back to life as normal. Which i understand. It is not fun to be at stayathome. I am the mother of a threeyearold and this morning we were having a debate about how hangers are not toys. It is a struggle for everyone, but i think the way arizona reopened really contributed to people going back to behaviors that are no longer safe, and also there was this impression it was only something that impacted people over 65, covid19. It is true that the majority of fatalities are older adults, but if you are a young person hospitalized for a week, that is not success. Jonathan to that point, i believe more than 60 of these new cases are people under the age of 44. Can we talk about your relationship with governor ducey . I believe you have criticized him, saying he closed the state too late and reopened too soon. Hindsight being 2020, what do you believe he knew that you didnt know in making these difficult decisions . Mayor gallego i have tried to talk regularly with public Health Officials. I want to lead with data and understand what scientists and public Health Officials are saying is important. I think it is also different values. I am very concerned about the lives of my residents. My parents lives are not optional. My grandparents lives are not optional. I put a very high value on saving lives. I understand there are elected officials to make a different calculus and put Economic Vitality at the top of their list. I would argue they are not separable, that communities that took the virus seriously have recovered more economically than those who did not, so we can care more about peoples livelihoods and their lives. It is heartbreaking to see people in my community waiting for a test and medical professionals exhausted. I am nervous about whats to come. Jonathan in may, the governor issued a rule that cities in arizona had to abide by state guidelines, but by june reversed course, allowing cities to impose their own face mask requirements, for instance. Why do you think he made that change . Mayor gallego i joined with several mayors in asking him to allow local governments to require face masks. In looking at data from communities that had implement it a face mask requirement, it slows the spread. It is a great Public Health tool that is much easier than many other options we have. The governor told me my request did factor into his decision to allow local government to make this step. I want the tools to protect phoenix and i think a face mask, while uncomfortable in our heat, can save lives, and that is so worthwhile in my book. Jonathan we have seen videos from around the country of people defying face masks, wearing a face mask, being asked to wear a face mask. In phoenix, what has been the reception . Are people abiding by the rule . Mayor gallego the day after we implement it the program, people were texting me pictures of everyone shopping in a mask. That was very different than before we put in place the masking requirement. We have had stories that have been happy to put in place intercom messages reminding people about the benefits of face masks. The overwhelming majority of people in the community have embraced it, but there has certainly been a political debate. We had a Council Meeting where we voted to implement the face mask requirement, and we had some amazing public comments. You should see my email. It is fascinating, some of the responses. Apparently people have now started posting porn videos where people are wearing face masks, although my staff is amazing and have been quick to delete it. But apparently the porn industry has adopted face masks. I dont think they were sending it to me as a compliment of my good decisionmaking. Our neighboring city of scottsdale had a very prominent rally against face masks where an elected official took one off and said, i cant breathe. Jonathan thats right. The Council Meeting that you are talking about was on june 19, and i think the timing is interesting because on june 23, President Trump came to town, held a rally, decidedly did not wear a face mask. So a bunch of folks, a lot of folks who were there at the rally, also didnt wear a facemask. What signal do you believe it sends that the president of the United States refuses to wear a facemask, at least publicly . Mayor gallego im concerned that it adds a political element to what should be a Public Health debate. He sends a signal that hes not taking this seriously and that its not mandatory. The president of the United States has access to the best Public Health information available, and for him to decide to not wear a mask gives anyone whos uncomfortable and doesnt want to or for other reasons would like to pass on a facemask an excuse to not wear it. So to me it is a poor decision. At the local level, it has not been as political. Many republican mayors in the greater phoenix area have implemented facemask programs. Our county board of supervisors, which is the Public Health agency for my community, is super majority republican and they voted unanimously to require face masks. So i do feel like at the local level it has not been a partisan issue, but we do hear from people who say one of the reasons they are declining to wear a face mask is to show support for the president. Jonathan mayor gallego, we have a question from the audience and this comes from vicki anglin from virginia and she asks, autonomy cuts two ways. In the lack of unified federal leadership on covid19, in which ways has your job been made easier and more difficult . Mayor gallego i would love to see strong leadership from the federal government on face masks, on unified National Strategy for deployment of resources. We struggle in this community with everything from lack of reagents to perform the tests, to medical personnel to, as well, implement the tests. It would be nice to have a more robust National Strategy. I have learned my lesson and i do want to say the federal government is involved. Its just not sufficient right now. I think theres certainly some ability with local control to adapt to very different weather situations. For example, phoenix right now is quite hot and we have different requirements to that. We are primarily spending time inside this time of year while as much of the country is outdoors, and so that may contribute to different but generally i would love to see more National Support and a more unified message at every level from all elected officials. Jonathan so it sounds like what you would really like to see is a National Strategy. Mayor gallego we need a more robust investment from our federal government. I have been asking for months and months for a federal fema search testing. Early on when i requested it, we got the response that there were not enough cases in arizona to justify it, and thats why they were going to other communities before us. But now we literally have the highest positive test rate in the country and so much need here. So it was frustrating for me to see the federal government announce baton rouge and texas and florida before they announced phoenix, but now i am thrilled that they will be coming to my city. We need that partnership. My First Federal emergency was when i was a city councilmember and we had a lot of flooding in phoenix. And what they told us at the time, we got a federal emergency declaration, and they said when communities have stresses that go beyond local resources, we come in and partner. That is very much what it feels like on the ground right now. We are stretched beyond our local capacity and need that partnership. In this country new york had an apex before we did in phoenix and so it does seem like the federal government can help distribute resources where they are needed. Because were not all hitting our apex at exactly the same time. Jonathan mmhmm. Can we talk about capacity in hospitals during this surge . How confident are you that phoenix has enough beds to handle the Current Situation . Are you seeing an increase in hospitalizations especially since the july 4 holiday . Mayor gallego so for anyone in phoenix who is listening, if youre feeling symptoms of a stroke or a heart attack, i encourage you to seek medical care. It is available. But if you look at the statistics about icu beds in our community and capacity, we have already hit levels above 90 icu bed usage. We dont know what well see as a result of the july 4 holiday, but i can tell you our Hospital Systems are trying to bring in nurses from other communities. They are doing surge planning. Theres been heartbreaking stories of individuals. One, a man was matched with the transplant for a kidney, but because of the lack of bed capacity he was not able to get that very important surgery. So what the hospitals will say is they are only doing essential services, but i can tell you the man who was hoping to get a kidney transplant felt that that was very essential to him. I have a lot of coworkers from my time before i ran for office who have been diagnosed with cancer. Some of them have been unable to have the procedures to treat their cancer. So while we do have some resources left, its a scary situation out here and we are very nervous. Jonathan we were talking a moment ago about the need for a National Strategy in addressing the coronavirus pandemic. One area where President Trump now seems to be focused on in terms of a National Strategy is reopening the schools. Can we talk about that for a moment . The governor has said, governor ducey has said, arizona was going to push back the opening date for schools and that the target date for opening schools will be based on covid19 trends. When do you see phoenix schools opening . Mayor gallego we are seeing such a dangerous level of covid19 in the community that i am very concerned about making the right decisions. We should lead with Public Health. I dont want to put our teachers, who are such heroes of this community, in any type of danger. I dont think we have all the data that i would like to see on what levels of transmission occur through through young people. Certainly with the seasonal flu you see a lot of transmission linked to schools. My child is not yet old enough for school. He is still three, but he was in daycare until march and now hes been at home. For the first seven weeks we didnt see my parents, so i was trying to be mom and mayor. And i understand it is good for his development to be with other young people, and its also as a parent you are trying to do your job and still educate your child. So its very difficult, but from my perspective, we have to lead with Public Health care. Im concerned that some federal elected officials are too rushed to reopen schools and are not putting Public Health first. Jonathan you mentioned your threeyearold was in daycare and has basically been home for weeks, if not months now. Is your threeyearold wondering, even asking, why am i seeing you all the time . Mayor gallego he is very happy at my dog is very happy that the dog walks have now become the highlights of the day, which the dog has always felt was the appropriate decision. Its funny, we are now spending time with grandparents and i am so grateful for their help as i tried to do mom and mayor simultaneously. But my son is starting to talk like my mother. Yesterday he was like, your water glass is too close to the edge of the table. That something my mother has been telling me for decades, and so now i am getting it from both sides. When my son, who is three, is talking like my mother, i understand, weve got to get him around some more threeyearolds. Jonathan [laughter] it is good to have a reason to laugh in a time of such stress and such sorrow for a lot of people. Madam mayor, there is another question i want to bring to you from a fellow arizona, james shank. I am hoping i am pronouncing his name right. How can phoenix help rural arizona towns of less than 10,000 residents . Mayor gallego that is a great question, and one of the great things that has come out of covid19 there are some Silver Linings is that i feel so much closer to the other arizona mayors. We talk much more regularly and are trying to have shared messages. For example, we are all working together to encourage congress to provide Additional Resources for cities, because cities have to help lead the economic recovery. Several mayors have asked me can we help spread a message that our smaller towns do not have the same Health Care System even as phoenix does . And so Rural Health Systems are very, very stretched. In arizona, our northern part of the state has much cooler weather, and forested areas, which are very attractive right now during the summer for vacation, but were trying to spread the message that staying home is the best way to get through this, even though a vacation is very, very promising right now. But Rural Health Systems just dont have the capacity for a significant increase in covid19 patients. We also are trying to use phoenixs resources to tell some of the stories about whats happening in rural arizona. So once it becomes safe to do so, we are hoping that at sky harbor airport, which is phoenixs airport, we will be broadcasting messages about the great tourism attractions in arizona. Weve spoken with the navajo nation, which is partially located in arizona and very hardheaded by covid19 about whether we could help them, again, when it is safe to do so, promote the wonderful, beautiful landscapes of the navajo nation, their great food and tourism sites, so that perhaps more arizonans can visit our smaller communities and help them with critical economic development. Because we do have scary times ahead for budgets at every level of government. Local governments in arizona are quite dependent on sales tax, and people who are not working are not shopping at the same rate. So just when our communities need us most and need more services, we have more limited resources. Jonathan madam mayor, you just mentioned a moment ago that one of the things you are happy about is that you have been in touch with other mayors. Whats interesting is many larger u. S. Cities are now run by women mayors, including tucson and flagstaff. Also atlanta, San Francisco, washington, d. C. , of course. Do you ever consult with your fellow mayors . Mayor gallego my fellow mayors have been wonderful resources for me. London breed, who is the mayor of San Francisco, has been such a leader in responding to covid19. When we were setting up hotels so people experiencing homelessness in phoenix would have a safe place to go, she talked to me about all the things she had learned, because San Francisco i believe was the first to do that. She just explained things like overnight Staffing Levels that helped me make sure we adequately funded the programs and did a much better job. So its been a Great Network who has helped me do a much better job for my community. My arizona mayors and i talk regular. I will be speaking later today with the mayors of tucson and flagstaff. We have shared stories about tough moments but also advice about whats working in our community, so it really has brought mayors together. I am proud nationally of the role mayors have played in covid19. I think mayors have been powerful voices for safer communities, and its an honor to be part of that community. Jonathan for my final question, let me ask you a baldly political question. You are a democratic mayor in a state that was once considered a red state, but now arizona in the 2020 election is viewed as a battleground state. To your mind, what has changed in arizona to make it so competitive and possibly give the democrats an edge . Mayor gallego it has been an incredible transition during the time i have been in office. Last election cycle, we elected four Democratic Women to statewide office, including u. S. Senator kyrsten sinema. Sinema. Have had much stronger urban community now and a lot of growth in more vibrant downtowns like places like phoenix. Those voters have strongly supported our democratic candidates. But we have also seen suburban women who care so much about education and the future of their children also supporting democratic candidates. Now, voters are very focused on health care and say that they are more likely to. Rust democrats so i think if that continues to be the top issue as we head into the election cycle in november, that we will see a result. Mayor kate gallego of phoenix, arizona, thank you so much for being here. Thank you so much for having me. Stay safe out there. Thanks. You, too. Stay tuned to Washington Post today. 4 p. M. Eastern my colleague will discuss race in america with a fashion designer, aurora james. And tomorrow, mr. Costa will talk with governor of new jersey , murphy to see how his state has handled the coronavirus pandemic. To find out more information, go to our website. , opinionthan capeheart writer for the Washington Post. Thanks for tuning in. Everyday we are taking your calls live on the air on the news of the day, and we discuss policy issues that impact you. Tuesday morning, a discussion about campaign 2020 and the battle of the senate with elections. And we talk about tax policy and coronavirus with committee for responsible federal budget president. Watch cspans washington journal live at 7 00 eastern tuesday morning. And be sure to join the discussion with your phone calls, facebook comments, Text Messages and tweets. Heres a look at our live coverage tuesday. At 10 00 a. M. Eastern, the House AppropriationsCommittee Considers 2021 spending bills for defense, commerce, transportation, housing, and the justice department. On cspan2 at 10 45 a. M. Eastern a sub, or maybe hearing on efforts to developing Coronavirus Vaccine followed by former Vice President joe biden talking about his Clean Energy Plan at a Campaign Event in delaware. At 4 00 p. M. Eastern, dr. Anthony fauci speaks at Georgetown University about the coronavirus and slowing the spread. Then on cspan3, the Energy Secretary testifies about his agencys response to the pandemic at noon eastern. Oft, a hearing on oversight i. C. E. Detention facilities pandemic. Coronavirus the house Panel Focused on conditions in detention facilities for detainees and staff, federal aid, masks, testing, and quarantine procedures. This is just over two hours. The subcommittee on Border Security will come to order. Today the subcommittee meets to examine the response to covid19 by four of the contractors responsible for managing