1 00:00:02,066 --> 00:00:04,100 AMNA NAWAZ: Georgia Governor Brian Kemp's order has put the issue of masks front and 2 00:00:04,100 --> 00:00:06,233 center in that state. 3 00:00:06,233 --> 00:00:10,533 With me now is Kelly Girtz. He is a Democrat and the mayor of Athens-Clarke County, Georgia, 4 00:00:10,533 --> 00:00:14,933 which moved to require people to wear masks in public earlier this month. 5 00:00:14,933 --> 00:00:17,633 Mayor Girtz, welcome to the "NewsHour," and thanks for making the time. 6 00:00:17,633 --> 00:00:21,466 I want to ask you about some late news we have just gotten about Governor Brian Kemp 7 00:00:21,466 --> 00:00:26,100 and the state attorney general suing the Atlanta mayor, Keisha Bottoms, and the City Council 8 00:00:26,100 --> 00:00:30,966 for their requirement for public mask wearing. What is your reaction to that? 9 00:00:30,966 --> 00:00:34,133 KELLY GIRTZ (D), Mayor of Athens-Clarke County, Georgia: Amna, this has all been so deeply 10 00:00:34,133 --> 00:00:36,166 frustrating. 11 00:00:36,166 --> 00:00:40,566 We simply want to create a platform for health and safety for the local population. I have 12 00:00:42,600 --> 00:00:44,700 been in constant contact with Mayor Bottoms and other mayors throughout the state. 13 00:00:44,700 --> 00:00:49,666 And, in lieu of action on a statewide basis, as we have seen in other Republican-led states 14 00:00:51,700 --> 00:00:55,033 like Alabama and Arkansas, we need to act as local boots on the ground who are keeping 15 00:00:56,266 --> 00:00:58,333 people in our communities safe. 16 00:00:58,333 --> 00:01:01,700 We are going to continue with our order in Athens-Clarke County, as Mayor Bottoms has 17 00:01:01,700 --> 00:01:06,700 also indicated she is going to do, and Mayor Davis in Augusta and Mayor Johnson in Savannah, 18 00:01:08,700 --> 00:01:12,300 because we understand that, as science has demonstrated over the last many months, it 19 00:01:13,700 --> 00:01:17,066 is simply safer to have a mask on for those around you. 20 00:01:17,066 --> 00:01:22,066 The droplet dispersement, the aerosol dispersement is diminished by use of a mask. And so we're 21 00:01:23,233 --> 00:01:25,333 going to follow this. And I have to say... 22 00:01:25,333 --> 00:01:27,700 AMNA NAWAZ: Mayor Girtz, let me -- let me just ask you, if I can. I apologize, sir, 23 00:01:27,700 --> 00:01:29,766 I know your time is limited. 24 00:01:29,766 --> 00:01:33,066 But even the head of Georgia's Restaurant Association has said it's confusing for people 25 00:01:33,066 --> 00:01:37,066 to have different rules in different counties. You need one set of guidelines. Let businesses 26 00:01:37,066 --> 00:01:39,600 decide if they should require masks. 27 00:01:39,600 --> 00:01:41,766 What do you say to that? 28 00:01:41,766 --> 00:01:45,800 KELLY GIRTZ: It's been interesting, because large and very small retailers have said to 29 00:01:47,766 --> 00:01:52,300 me, we like a mask order, because that sets a citywide or a countywide standard, and so 30 00:01:54,300 --> 00:01:58,100 we know, from one block to another, one vendor to another, the public is going to have the 31 00:01:58,733 --> 00:02:00,900 same experience. 32 00:02:00,900 --> 00:02:05,166 We're also the flagship host for the University of Georgia here in the state. And just a couple 33 00:02:07,466 --> 00:02:11,566 of weeks ago, the university system indicated that every student, faculty member and staff 34 00:02:11,566 --> 00:02:16,233 member was going to have to wear a mask in interior spaces at the University of Georgia 35 00:02:16,233 --> 00:02:19,000 and in all other public universities in the state. 36 00:02:19,000 --> 00:02:24,000 And so what we want to do is be able to provide the same solid foundation on campus and off 37 00:02:24,000 --> 00:02:25,200 campus here in Athens. 38 00:02:25,200 --> 00:02:27,666 AMNA NAWAZ: Mayor Girtz, let me ask you. 39 00:02:27,666 --> 00:02:31,833 Both your hospitals in Athens were full yesterday. You had to divert patients to other facilities. 40 00:02:31,833 --> 00:02:36,266 Experts say you are not yet at your peak. Do you have what you need now to meet the 41 00:02:36,266 --> 00:02:38,400 moment and to handle the influx of patients? 42 00:02:38,400 --> 00:02:41,800 KELLY GIRTZ: Unfortunately, we don't have what we need. 43 00:02:41,800 --> 00:02:46,566 The hospitals are very nimble, and they're able to open up some overflow wards interior 44 00:02:46,566 --> 00:02:51,566 to their spaces. But it's taken longer to get test kits here. And it's taken much longer 45 00:02:52,466 --> 00:02:54,566 to get test results here. 46 00:02:54,566 --> 00:02:58,833 People call me every day here in my office and say, I'm feeling sick, I have come into 47 00:03:00,900 --> 00:03:02,900 contact with somebody who's COVID-positive, and it's going to take me five days to even 48 00:03:02,900 --> 00:03:05,500 get an appointment to get a test. 49 00:03:05,500 --> 00:03:08,533 And then I'm hearing that it's taking somewhere between four days and eight days to get results 50 00:03:08,533 --> 00:03:13,533 after that test. That's antithetical to the kind of things that need to happen. I mean, 51 00:03:15,400 --> 00:03:17,800 I sit here in front of you, and I wonder, can I get annexed into Germany or at least 52 00:03:17,800 --> 00:03:19,866 North Carolina? 53 00:03:19,866 --> 00:03:23,933 AMNA NAWAZ: Mayor Girtz, I should mention, as you said, students are coming back to campus 54 00:03:23,933 --> 00:03:26,133 at the University of Georgia next month. 55 00:03:26,133 --> 00:03:30,733 With all this confusion over which rule stands on the face masks, in a matter of seconds, 56 00:03:30,733 --> 00:03:34,133 are you worried about compliance and the virus spiking in a few weeks? 57 00:03:34,133 --> 00:03:36,133 KELLY GIRTZ: Absolutely. 58 00:03:36,133 --> 00:03:40,733 Here we are in July, and we haven't even had the student population return. I wonder very 59 00:03:40,733 --> 00:03:44,966 much, where are we going to be in September in October and November, when more people 60 00:03:44,966 --> 00:03:48,033 are inside, and not in outdoor spaces? 61 00:03:48,033 --> 00:03:53,033 AMNA NAWAZ: That is Mayor Kelly Girtz of Athens-Clarke County in Georgia. 62 00:03:54,500 --> 00:03:55,466 Thank you so much for your time. Please stay safe. 63 00:03:55,466 --> 00:03:55,966 KELLY GIRTZ: Thank you, Amna.