Good Morning And Welcome to Way Too Early, the show that would drag race against President Biden and probably lose. Im Jonathan Lemire on this friday, august 6th. Lets start with the news. As the Delta Variant rages across the country, Hospitalization Rates are surging. According to the cdc, the number of people in the hospital with covid has almost quadrupled in the past month to over 45,000. Florida has a new record for the sunshine state. Over 2,500 of them are in intensive care. Florida has also seen a rise in pediatric cases. Texas is the only other state to conform more pediatric cases than florida. There, 142 children are hospitalized. A war of words between governor Ron Desantis and President Biden continue. Yesterday desantis was asked about the criticism of him when it comes to covid. Heres how it played out. Just two states. Florida and texas account for one third of all new covid cases in the entire country. I say to these governors, please help. If youre not going to help, at least get out of the way. Joe biden has taken to himself to try to single out florida over covid. What is his big solution . What is he so upset about florida . His solution is he wants to have the Government Force kindergartners to wear masks in school. He thinks that should be a decision for the government. I can tell you in florida, the parents are going to be the ones in charge of that decision. So why dont you do your job. Why dont you get this border secure. And until you do that, i dont want to hear a blip about covid from you. What is your response to Governor Desantis who is using your words about saying dont be in the way. And he says i am in the way to block too much decisions being made by the government. Your response to Governor Desantis . Good stuff. With schools across the Country Opening soon, Education Secretary Miguel cardona is looking at two u. S. Governors. What is your message to governors like Governor Desantis of Florida And Governor abbott of texas who have banned mask mandates. Dont be the reason why schools are interrupted. Our kids have suffered enough. Our decisions are being made where students are not put at the center and that may be why schools are disrupted. We know what to do. Dont let that be a disrupter. We have to keep our students safe. We have to keep our educators safe. Secretary of State Cardona will be a guest on Morning Joe. The cdc released new Data Yesterday showing cases in Nursing Homes are up 38 among Nursing Home residents while there was a 72 increase of residents who died from the virus. The number of cases due to death is still lower since the pandemic thanks to vaccines, but the rise in numbers are leading to calls for mandatory vaccines among the staff. 82 of residents are fully vaccinated. While there has been a hesitancy to require Staff Vaccinations for fear large numbers of staff will leave in protest, this latest rice has some requiring it regardless. Meanwhile, Secretary Of State Antony Blinken says he will meet with those affected by the hashanah syndrome. Blinken called the Health Incident as top Priority Writing in part, quote, employees going abroad are anxious about whether they or their families are at risk. Thats completely understandable. And i wish we had more answers for you. What i can tell you is that this is a top priority for me, the state department, and leaders across the u. S. Government. This is about the Health Security and were concerned about that. Over 200 americans have reported possible symptoms of the havana syndrome. The u. S. Suspected russia is behind it but lack hard evidence pointing to the kremlin. Joining us now is josh liebermann. Youve done a lot of reporting on this. Thanks for getting up so early. President Biden Hasnt mentioned at all the havana syndrome. Why do you think that is . Do you think that will change . Will it be a new priority for the administration . Well the biden administration is clearly signaling theyre trying to make this a priority. Theyve created a new Task Force and the cia as well as the national Security Council are trying to get to the bottom of this. I think the fact that biden isnt speaking about it publicly is a good indication they dont have a whole lot to say at this point in time, jonathan. You hear this message from blinken, this letter saying, guys, were on this, well figure this out, we wont let this go. But, look. This has been going on since 2017 when you and i were working alongside each other at the Associated Press and we were pointing it out to the state department. Four years later, you can see from the Email And Lack of concrete evidence, they still cant say whats going on, cant say definitively whats going on behind it, and they cant say what they can do to try to stop it or protect american personnel serve all over the world, and thats the reason why we see this growing frustration from u. S. Diplomats and other workers who are at risk along with their families and want the government to do something about it. Josh, we know that for years now russia has been circled as the prime suspect. Whats your sense . Have there been backchannel discussions between the two countries . What are the warnings that have been issued at a time when u. S. Has been warning of Safe Harbor against ransomware and Safe Harbor attacks . Part of the problem is the u. S. Basically pointed the finger at cuba when it first started because the first incidents were in cuba. So i think the fact that the government has kind of changed their tune, nobody is saying cuba is behind this anymore, has complicated the messaging and has given other countries such as russia a little more ammunition to say, you guys dont know what youre talking about, you clearly havent figured this out, so dont be pointing fingers at us. We know the u. S. Government has sent very clear signals to russia as well as to other countries that they wont tolerate this kind of invisible attacks, harm on their troops, but at the same time, you know, this is the kind of thing that has been going on in one form or another for a long time, not necessarily in terms of Brain Injuries that are debilitating people permanently, but in terms of, you know, microwaves that have been beamed at the u. S. Embassy in moscow for decades now, other types of weaponry that we know russia and other countries have been developing that they used advanced technologies. Part of this is kind of the Wild West of Surveillance And Spy craft that the u. S. Government has been pretty flatfooted at this point in lee responding to. Nbcs josh lederman. Thank you. Weve got a live report from tokyo on Team Usas fight for the gold. Plus, Governor Andrew Cuomo refuses to go despied the allegations against him. Will the political standoff in New York impact that states battle against the pandemic . Those stories and much more when we come right back. Back finding new routes to reach your customers, and new ways for them to reach you. Is what business is all about. Its what the United States Postal Service has always been about. So as your business changes, were changing with it. With ecommerce that runs at the speed of now. Next Day And Twoday shipping nationwide. Same Day Shipping across town. Returns right from the doorstep, and deliveries seven days a week. Its a whole New World out there. Lets not keep it waiting. Customer Hi . burke happy anniversary. 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April ross, a threetime olympian has a complete Medal Set while klineman helps for the first time since 2012. Meanwhile on the indoor court, the u. S. Womens Volleyball Team is set to play for its Gold Medal after this Mornings Victory against serbia. Its now 54 in a row. The 7959 victory over serbia earns them a chance to play for a seveneth straight Gold Medal. Nelly korda still leads the womens golf tournament. Shes three strokes ahead of the field going into this evenings final round. As Track Events come to a close, with nine olympic medals, felix is the most decorated female runner in u. S. History. Nbcs Lester Holt sat down with the fivetime olympian ahead of this mornings race. Reporter its a lot more than about medals. Shes running for progress, equality, and her daughter. I feel like mothering changed me in every possible way. It showed me how strong i was. Reporter in 2018, felix at 32 weeks pregnant was admitted to the hospital with preeclampsia, a lifethreatening complication. Her daughter was born at 3 pounds, 7 ounces. Nothing else mattered. I was sitting there watching her fight every single day. Running was the furthest thing from my mind. All my energy was going into making sure she was okay. Kameron spent a month in the nicu. Now shes out watching you run. I cant believe it. Competition wasnt easy. She could hardly walk. 30 minutes on the treadmill left her in tears. You expect yourself to be superwoman. You expect to be superwoman as well and you go through a Reallife Experience and youre grateful for your life. That led felix to activism, testifying before congress about black maternal mortality. We need to provide women of color with more support during pregnancies. And penning an oped with nike. I asked nike to contractually guarantee that i wouldnt be punished if i didnt perform at my best in the months surrounding childbirth. If i, one of nikes most widely marketed athletes, couldnt secure these protections, who could. Nike declined. The way you stood up for women, women of color, mothers, that was a big risk. It was terrifying, you know. There had been silence around the culture of Pregnancy And Sport for too long, and what i was experiencing, i just couldnt sit back and let it go. Reporter soon after she and others spoke out, nike announced expanded protections for pregnant women. And this Year Felix started her own Shoe Company on her terms, now admired as much for her advocacy as for her athleticism. This is so much bigger than just running fast. Its showing women that we can be present at home and we can also thrive in our profession. Its showing my daughter, can you stay the course and can you keep doing things the right way with character and integrity. Our thanks to Lester Holt. And joining us now live from tokyo, Nbc Correspondent Stephanie gosk. Good morning. Thanks for being here. Well see felix go for gold. We saw volleyball and now theres a chance for gold for Team Usa in basketball. Just how Dom Continental Have Women been at these games . Reporter you know, youve seen it. Alix felix going for the Medal Tonight is going to be a tremendous highlight to this Track And Field event. Shes got a good chance. She qualified very easily for the finals. Sometimes it can be a challenge. So she looks fast. She also has the 4x400 as well. I had the opportunity to go and watch the womens beach volleyball, the final and the semifinal, and, you know, this is a team that is so dominant. They trounced their opponents both days in a row. April ross won her first olympic Medal Back in london. She got a silver. In rio, she got a bronze. Today was a trifecta winning that gold. Women have shown up in this profound way. You have to talk about gymnastics. Even with Simone Biles pulling out, you saw the other gymnasts on that team, many names we hadnt even spent that much time talking about before these olympics. Suni lee getting the medal was a terrific medal. And also in the pool, jacoby winning a Gold Medal as well was a surprise. Its definitely a win for all of the women in olympics who have come here. We continue to see cases rise in tokyo, but the Covid Outbreak has yet to appear to have affected many athletics. Im not trying to jinx anything. The games arent over yet. To this point the fact that there hasnt been a major Covid Outbreak, would that count toward success of these games . Reporter theyre really starting to talk about this bubble of success. Its really two stories. Its really outside the olympics, whats happening in tokyo and the greater tokyo area. And whats happened here, while there have been over 300 cases in the olympic bubble among the people who are here, there havent been these outbreaks, and organizers of the events say really largely that has to do with the percentage of people in the bubble who are vaccinated. Those numbers are between 70 and 80 . That includes athletes, organizers, media, all of it. It ends up being in an interesting kind of way this Case Study of how a highly vaccinated Population Deals with the Delta Variant or, you know, any kind of virus spreading rapidly. So it will be a success, i think, viewed by organizers and something that they take with them to beijing for the winter olympics, jonathan. Stephanie, you led me to my last question. Its hard to believe sunday is closing ceremonies, but its even harder to believe in six months well be doing it again for the winter games in beijing. Quickly, what lessons do you think the olympics takes from tokyo . Reporter one of the big issues back to the topic of vaccination, there wasnt a mandate for anyone who was here for the olympics to be vaccinated. It was something that raised some questions, and you have to wonder whether the ioc and chinese government come up with perhaps a mandate or perhaps a more forceful kind of suggestion that people get vaccinated. But otherwise, i think What Tokyo has done is set up a model for what the games can be during a pandemic, and i think they will point to the successes here and some of the strict regulations including no spectators, which, to be honest, is sad, jonathan. Nbcs Stephanie Gosk live in tokyo. Thank you. Still ahead, a terrifying Wildfire Tears through a california community. Well have an update on what if anything withstood the wall of flames. Were back in just a minute. E b. If youre 55 and up, tmobile has plans built just for you. Switch now and get 2 unlimited lines and 2 free smartphones. And now get netflix on us. 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Reporter a Wildfires Wrath leaving another California Town in ash, greenville, california, destroyed, a town of about 800 that has stood since the gold rush. It was scary, like one of those apocalyptic movies you see with Fire And Wind and people going everywhere. Reporter the powerful winds sent the fire tearing through town. Residents were told to evacuate, but not everyone did. We had firefighters getting guns pulled on them because people dont want to evacuate. Reporter the fire is now the size of Los Angeles and the sixth largest fire in californias history. More than 60 structures burned with the number expected to rise. There were towers of flames twice as tall as the trees. Reporter and firefighters on the Front Line of a new threat. The growing River Fire is burning in an area that hasnt seen flames in 100 years with Droughtbrittle Brush ready to ignite and pleas to evacuate should the time come. When allowed to go back in there, its either standing or a pile of ash. Thats when it will hit us. Reporter at the doorstep of another community, another tense night lies ahead. Our thanks to Steve Patterson for that report. President biden is setting a national goal for zero emission vehicles to make up half of the new cars and trucks sold by 2030. He signed the order. The order will kick off the process to replace former President Trumps relaxed plan with restricted ones. The president took a spin in a rubicon. He joked with g. M ceo mary barra. I want to be the first to say publicly when they make the first electric corvette, i want to be the first to drive it. The entire secret Service Team said, oh, my god. Thats a car guy. The Police Officers who defended the capitol on Jan 6th deserve to be honored, not vilified. Well talk about the new effort to recognize their service. Before we go to break, we want to know, why are you awake . Please, tell us. Email us at waytooearly msnbc. Com or tweet me jonlemire or waytooearly. 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At Fisher Investments were clearly different. Welcome back to Way Too Early. Its 5 30 on the east coast, 2 30 Out West. Im Jonathan Lemire. President biden expressed immense gratitude to the Police Officers who responded to the January 6th Capitol Riot as he signed legislation to award them the congressional Gold Medal for their service in protecting the nation. My fellow americans, lets remember what this was all about. It was a violent attempt to overturn the will of the american people, to seek power at all costs, to replace the ballot with bruit force, to destroy, not to build. Without democracy, nothing is possible. With it, everything is. We cannot allow history to be rewritten. We cannot allow the heroism of these officers to be forgotten. We have to understand what happened, the honest and unvarnished truth. We have to face it. The Bill Signing comes days after two metropolitan Police Officers who responded to the attack recently died by suicide, bringing the total to four. A Gold Medal will be awarded to the Capitol Police and the washington, d. C. , police department. The Senates Goal was not to reach a unanimous agreement. This despite them working the Senate Floor all night to convince members. They did not convince members after working nearly two dozen over the last two days. Senator Big Haggerty of tennessee objected to moving forward. The report released yesterday shows Infrastructure Package will add more than 250 Billion to the deficit over ten years. They had previously promised the bill was completely paid for. Despite the Setback T Bill is on track for a final vote this weekend. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said theyll move to the Reconciliation Package immediately after that. Joining us now, cofounder of punchbowl news, anna. We keep hearing were close, were close, were close, were close. Walk us through the timeline and the package. The senate is just being the senate. The senators were hoping to head out this weekend for their august recess, but it shows how power can be exercised where one single senator can really gum up the process. This time, senator haggerty, kind of a no name, first senator under the Trump Administration, who took over the alexander seat, somebody to watch in this process. To your point, this is going to happen. Its just a matter of when. So right now we expect the senate to come in on saturday to do the Culture Vote and theyll try to come to an agreement, to maybe get some of that time back, but we expect at this point probably passage into early next week monday, tuesday, depending on how those agreements go between the senate leadership. A quick followup on this before we move to another topic. You dont believe the score will affect republican support . I think this is a bill thats basically cooked. The fact that haggerty decided to object, he was really a lone voice on this issue. In the postdonald Trump Era of trumpism, deficits didnt really matter. You havent seen a lot of republicans who said they werent going to vote for it. I think you can expect to see Up To 70 Senators Vote on the final pack and. If thats the case, the republicans and the house are going to face pressure to support it as well. Lets circle back to that Gold Medal legislation we were talking about. We know it comes in the face of a number of republicans on Capitol Hill downplaying what happened on January 6th. President biden talked about this should be a moment that brings a nation together and yet its another seemingly partisan situation on Capitol Hill thats been tragic to so many. What have you picked up from both sides of the aisle, the decision to award these Gold Medals . A lot of democrats in particular, they were very supportive of it. I think theres clearly distrust among members and what happened to the Capitol Police. Theyre trying to uncover exactly what happened. Clearly republicans dont want to be talking about this, and there is some support for this among the rank and file. But there has certainly been as you noticed, the gaslighting, rewriting of history among many republicans who as someone who works up in the capitol, our entire team does, its pretty scary for the future of america. Hopefully well be able to have these medals go forward. The fact that these people, these police i mean they risked their lives for the safety of these members of congress, and its something that i dont think should be forgot snoon speaking of January 6th, whats the latest in terms of the select committee . What do they plan to do, and have we learned more about what the republican response might be . Its really been a democratic proposition. Weve had kind of the beginnings of hearings hearing from the police that were there on the ground. But were going into august recess, so i wouldnt expect for the next couple of weeks were going to hear more details, but certainly the work continues. Theyre staffing up. I expect in september were going to hear more. Theyre going to have a regular drumbeat in the investigation of what happened, and the real question, whats going to happen with the calling of former trump officials, will the former Trump Administration say theres white House Executive Privilege or not . These things are still being debated and something were still covering closely. Anna palmer of punch bowl, thank you so much. Still ahead, the accomplishment of a diver. Way too early is back on this friday in a moment. Way too early is back on this friday in a moment did you know that your toughest Cleaning Problems can be caused by Hard Water Metals . They lock in residues like a glue, on your hard surfaces and fabrics. Try 9 elements. 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Now to an olympic update. We saw british Diver Tom Daley has finished knitting his sweater. So i finished the jumper, and here we are. Very bright right now. This says tokyo. Youve got gbr, youve got this and that. Thoughts and opinions, please, but be nice. Looks great. Still ahead, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has been given until next week to give his defense regarding Sexual Harassment. But have they made up their minds about drafting articles of impeachment . Way too early when we come right back. Peachment . Way too early when we come right back front desk. Yes, hello. Im so. Please hold. Those days are done. I got you. All by yourself. Go with us and find millions of flexible options. All in our app. Expedia. It matters who you travel with. Feeling sluggish or weighed down . Expedia. It could be a sign that your digestive System Isnt working at its best Taking Metamucil Everyday can help. Metamucil psyllium fiber, gels to trap and remove the waste that weighs you down. 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The clock is ticking on New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. He and his lawyers have been given until next week to provide evidence next week as they wrach up their Impeachment Probe over allegations he sexually harassed 11 women. In a statement Cuomos Office writes in part, the governor appreciates the opportunity. We will be cooperating. But some lawmakers are ready to draft Impeachment Articles now. The New York times reports they call for the assembly to move to impeach the governor within a week to ten days according to a note taken by a participant. Theyre concerned if he takes more time, he would find a wade to survive the scandal. The governor disputes the allegation, denies any broncdoing, and has said he will not step down. Joining us now, republican Strategist Susan del percio. The state has given Governor Cuomo a week to present evidence. What do you think . Is that too much time for him to act . No. I think they gave Governor Cuomo a week to get his affairs in order and be ready to vacate the governors mansion. This is probably the easiest way to let the governor take some time. He will probably want a response in the record, but this is the end of everything. The governor will not let himself be impeached. He will not go down in history that way. His ego, what it will do to the family name, he will not let it happen. It was especially kind for the assembly to give him that time. As you said, theyre champing at the bit to get these articles of impeachment over to the state senate. Susan, you wrote about your own stint at your time. Tell us about your reflection in working for Governor Cuomo . In reading the report, especially when it came to the State Trooper and how she lived in fear basically for her job and afraid to tell anyone of what happened as well as some of the other victims, it made me really think about just how bad that office really was and how that culture allowed this kind of behavior to eventually fester. As i said in the piece, i was not sexually harassed by Governor Cuomo. I didnt see Sexual Harassment occur, but i did see a horrible toxic environment. And even though it was just seven or eight years ago, i think its really important now that we have more of an environment to speak out about that kind of you know, not just bullying, but retribution, the threat, the fear that people lived in because he is Governor Cuomo is not only just a powerful governor. He is someone whos very vindictive. So, susan, we were talking about earlier how possible the scandal and possible impeachment proceedings, how they could impact the States Ability to do its business with the governor in the spotlight like that. I asked white House Press Secretary Jen Psaki if the White House still had confidence in him leading the state in the pandemic. What do you think . Is this something thats going to potentially harm the citizens of new York State and getting the government and services they need while this takes place over the coming weeks and months . Jonathan, thats a great question. Yes, Governor Cuomo knew how to act. He knew where all the levers of government operated. For example, one of the big things he was able to do was network all of the states hospitals, especially the city hospitals. Get ready to hear the Name Governor kathy hochul. Shell be a confident woman to go into that position. Yes, it will be difficult because shell have virtually no transition time and the governor of New York is usually on the sidelines, but there is a very competent staff. And i think, actually, it will be handling the pandemic at this stage, the incoming governor will look at it as a partnership with local government, something she believes in, and it can excel in different ways. Frankly youre not going to have local governments living in fear if they say the wrong thing about what would be about former Governor Cuomo. Susan del percio, thank you for being with us and writing about your personal experiences. Early we asked you that immortal question, why are you up Way Too Early . Susan writes im in maine. Shirley says im up Way Too Early to make blueberry pie. Save me a please. And sophie is pondering lifes most important question. Ponder question, im up Way Too Early to find out who actually selects the tweets emails you select is it an Elite Panel of judges . We have a Crack Panel to discuss which emails i will lead, actually its a Team Led by my social producer ally, couldnt do it without them. Up next one of donald trumps biggest supporters in the senate is asking him to promote the coronavirus vaccine. And Larry Hogan is one of the latest to mandate vaccines for state employees. Well hear from Miguel Cardona about the debate on masks to reopen schools in the fall. Morning joe just minutes away. E fall Morning Joe just minutes away. Hey joshie. Wrinkles send the wrong message. Help prevent them with downy wrinkleguard. Feel the difference with downy. Experience, hyper performance that takes you further. At the lexus golden opportunity sales event. Get 0. 9 Apr Financing on all 2021 Lexus Hybrid models. Experience amazing at your lexus dealer. I dont just play someone brainy on tv im an actual neuroscientist. And i love the science behind Neuriva Plus. 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Graham said his symptoms had been improving although monday and tuesday were, quote, tough days he believes he would have been in tough shape had he not been vaccinated. Joining us is Sam Stein from politico. Given that more and more republican lawmakers are endorsing the vaccine do you think President Trump would encourage it publicly . Weve heard him say now and then you should get the vaccine. But hes never offered the fullthroated endorsement of the shot. When we hear about it at all its usually to complain that he doesnt get enough credit to develop. I cant see him participating in a psa around the vaccine. Nor do i necessarily think it will make as big an impact as people think. A lot of it is about access, disinformation, weve spoken to people that are unvaccinated and asked if trump endorsed it would you take it, they say no. Some of the stuff is cultural and its difficult to overcome, a psa by the former president may not be the big elixir that people think it would be. Were seeing for the first time since President Biden took Office Coronavirus cases going up. And some republicans are pointing to it and questioning his leadership. And poll numbers suggest that americans, their view of how hes handled the pandemic has slipped a little. How effective do you think this could be as a Campaign Issue for republicans, considering its largely republican voters in Red States that are unvaccinated and leading to the rising cases . There has been slippage for biden on this issue but relatively stable Approval Ratings across the board. And there is republicans saying you inherited a situation you had the vaccine, you had to go administer it you only got so far. That was only so fair, there was a chaotic situation he inherited, the Vaccine Situation was a mess from the reporting we had about it. But the question is does that affect him politically that they can use against him. If youre biden, you dont want to enter a situation where the country is locked down again, where the economic recovery is not as robust as you were hoping it to be. His people understand this, and theyre working hard, and we have a lot of time. I think if we get to a point you can beat back the Delta Variant, you get the country open, more people vaccinated as were seeing now. They feel pretty good that would be advantageous for them. There was the news of the passing of Labor Leader richard trumpka, they lost a close friend and ally. What does this mean . I had the pleasure of talking on and off with are Rich Trumka for a dozen years. He was a fixture from The Union world. He came from the mines and thachs reflected in his disposition and politics. For Union Leadership the past couple decades has been a defensive crouch and me manned the last from them. He beat back historic loss in membership, laws that would have made it harder to unionize, trade deals, pension plans, Health Care negotiations and its going to be difficult to replace the Work And Expertise he had in those defensive crouches. Im certain theres another Union Member to take the reins, obviously, but its hard to imagine filling the void that trumka had. He was a fixture of democratic politics, he was an ally for democratic parties. We saw them get emotional on the floor when they announced his death, President Biden noted it as well. Is this The Union diminishing sway over politics, do you think . The import of unions comes in their numbers and their organization. What weve seen for the past couple decades, Union Numbers are on the decline. But big ones, for instance at amazon factories have ended up not success. So unions are struggling with how you organize in a modern economy with the restrictions that have come through the legal system and political system in various states. So if they can figure out that puzzle, theyll be better auch but its a tough one. Sam Stein Thanks for being with us. Thanks to all of you for getting up Way Too Early with us all week. Enjoy your weekend. Two states, florida and texas, account for one third of cases in the country. I say to these governors, please help. If you arent going to help, please get out of the way. Joe biden has taken to himself to try to single out florida over covid. What is his big solution . What is he so upset about florida . His solution is he wants to have the Government Force kindergarteners to wear masks in school. He thinks that should be a decision for the government. I can tell you, in florida the parents are going to be the ones in if charge of that decision. So why dont you do your job, why dont you get this border secure and until you do that, i dont want to hear a blip about covid from you. Whats your response to Governor Desantis whos using your words about dont be in the way hes saying i am in the way. Whats