SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – San Diego County Supervisor Nathan Fletcher and other local health and community leaders urged San Diegans to put their focus on the fight against the coronavirus instead of the restrictions placed on businesses due to the pandemic.
During a Monday morning press conference, Fletcher specifically called out fellow Supervisors Jim Desmond and Kristin Gaspar, who have been pushing for reopenings.
“In particular Supervisors Jim Desmond and Kristen Gaspar are inciting a fight between government and small business. They’re exploiting the pain and suffering that small businesses are going through as a result of a global pandemic as a wedge for political gain. It is reckless and irresponsible leadership,” Fletcher said.
Fletcher’s comments come as San Diego County inches towards the possibility of moving from the red tier into California’s most restrictive purple tier.
In response to Fletcher’s remarks, Gaspar issued this statement:
“This morning Supervisor Fletcher held a hellfire and brimstone press conference in which he ironically and incorrectly blamed me for playing politics with COVID. Let me set the record straight: I have never supported any approach to re-opening that was not specifically supported by our Public Health Officer and clinical leadership team. Supervisor Fletcher knows this but prefers to continue spreading this false narrative because he is actively running a campaign against me. I measured the distance between our office doors, and it is 7 feet, so he and I can actually have a socially distanced conversation anytime he isn’t holding a press conference. I will continue to do my job protecting public health and working with small businesses and leave the politics to Supervisor Fletcher.”
Desmond did not immediately respond to Fletcher’s comments.
On Monday afternoon, numerous local business owners will rally in front of the County Administration Building and call on county leaders to take local control of San Diego County’s reopening plan.
