May 20, 2020 3 min read

I am a registered Democrat but I have voted for many Republicans for local and state offices, including votes for Commissioner Diana Irey Vaughan and District Attorney Gene Vittone in each of the last two elections. That will not happen again, I’m afraid, as I will not support any elected official who engages in political grandstanding during this pandemic. I would go as far as to demand that any local or state politician who declares or advocates defiance of the law or the upholding of it during this emergency should resign their office and allow it to be occupied by someone who will faithfully execute laws regardless of their personal or political beliefs.

The commissioner is fond of referencing the Constitution when she panders to the public on a host of issues. If she would read it she would know that it clearly gives the governor the power to declare and act, in time of emergency, on behalf of public safety. That is what he has done and continues to do. Nowhere in the document does it give local or county officials the power to defy such actions, nor does it give them the right to advocate that others do so. We all know that businesses are hurting during the lockdown. The governor himself admits that. He has called for responsible steps to reopen businesses so long as they maintain reasonable precautions to ensure public safety. What is the response by our local officials? A lawsuit?

Now the district attorney declares he will not prosecute business owners who open in defiance of the emergency orders from Harrisburg. How can you do so? If Mr. Vittone, state Rep. Tim O’Neal and Commissioner Vaughan are so appalled at these mitigations, I would like to ask when they will be declaring that they will no longer enforce drunken driving laws, health code violations, seat belt laws and other such statutes put in place for the promotion of public safety, since they all similarly interfere with our right to do as we please.

And what is the contingency for handling the inevitable fights and disputes that will come with allowing businesses to just make up their own rules for reopening and the enforcement of them? Here’s a thought: Drop the lawsuit, do your jobs and let the governor do his. No elected official should advocate defiance of law no matter how much political pressure they are feeling. No one should patronize a business that defies the law nor one that does not take meaningful steps to protect the public and enforce them. And any business that does should be liable for the consequences to a person who suffers because of the failure to do that. And that should include school districts as well.

Robert Thornton

Washington