New York City has announced it will fully reopen on July 1st. New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has recently said that he’s aware of what is happening in New York City, but New Jersey as a state isn’t there yet. Now, faced with the prospect of New Jersey residents fleeing to New York for personal freedoms, Murphy has been forced into a corner on his policy to keep the state in extended lockdown.
“Literally was on with New York colleagues earlier today having a very similar conversation I don’t want to make news, but I think on Monday, I think Monday, you can expect two things from us. Number one, I had mentioned past Monday; I think it’ll be this now coming Monday where we talk about a suite of proactive steps that we will take as it relates to getting everybody vaccinated and reaching our goal by the end of June,” Murphy said when asked why New Jersey will continue to lag behind. “Some of these steps we’re already taking. You’re going to see us accelerating opening up of the state. There’s just no other way to put it. My guess is if I had to predict, we’ll have more news on that front on Monday, so bear with us on that.”
New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio promised to “fully re-open” New York City by July 1st. Governor Murphy has made no such promise to the residents of the state of New Jersey more than one full year into his extended business lockdown.
New Jersey has been one of the most locked down and restrictive states in America under Murphy during the global COVID-19 pandemic. Even as millions of residents are fully vaccinated and vaccination supplies have finally outpaced demand, Murphy has kept a tight grip on the economy with thousands of businesses going out of businesses and millions of residents facing foreclosure and eviction in the post pandemic months ahead.
Sixty days after Murphy ends the emergency declaration landlords can begin evictions and mortgage holders can begin the foreclosure process against millions of homeowners which could spark a financial and housing pandemic within the pandemic.