COVID-19 trend lines continue to fall during phase two of Oklahoma reopening
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This is a rush transcript from "Your World with Neil Cavuto," May 19, 2020. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.
NEIL CAVUTO, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Let the reopenings continue.
And in Oklahoma, four days now into phase two reopening, that state’s governor, Kevin Stitt, joining us right now.
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Governor, good to have you back.
GOV. KEVIN STITT (R-OK): Oh, thanks, Neil. Good to be with you.
CAVUTO: How’s it going today?
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STITT: Well, it’s going really good.
We actually started phase one of our reopening plan in -- on April 24. So, we’re -- we’re 24 days in, and we’re continuing to see the trend lines go down.
We currently have 167 people across the state of Oklahoma in the hospital. And we have built our hospital capacity to 4,600 beds. So, Oklahomans have done a great job. But they’re ready. The consumer confidence is coming back. And we’re ready to measurably reopen and go to phase three here June 1, if everything -- if the data continues to look good.
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CAVUTO: So, Governor, if you can update me, what is opening right now, or this week? And then what comes next with phase three, assuming all that goes as planned?
STITT: Sure.
So, phase -- phase two is sports activities. It is churches. They opened actually in phase one. But now they can go to nurseries. We have weddings and funerals, as long as they follow social distancing and spacing requirements.
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And I actually was at my son’s flag football game on Friday night. And after the game, all the kids did the elbow bump as they went past each other at the end of the game.
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STITT: And so parents are ready. And we’re doing all the protocols.
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Oklahomans have done a fantastic job.
CAVUTO: Boy, even at the Pop level, it is -- it’s inbred, football, in your state, isn’t it?
(LAUGHTER)
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CAVUTO: So, let me ask you a little bit about how people are honoring these distancing provisions and everything else.
And we have seen in so many cases, Governor, when people get the chance to go out, particularly on beaches and all, they crowd them. It’s natural, not surprising. But how do you police that?
STITT: Well, Oklahomans have done a really good job from the very beginning.
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And I told Oklahomans, coronavirus is in the U.S. It’s in every state. It’s in Oklahoma. And so we have to continue to take precautions. The businesses, obviously, when we -- I have done 24 different executive orders. They have let their employees work from home.
But we’re seeing restaurants clean and sanitize and move -- move -- move their tables apart. And so I’m not worried about policing it. And we’re built on courage and freedoms. And once you have the right data -- and, in Oklahoma, we have 1,060 -- 1,060 active cases across our state with four million people.
So, once you have the right data, then we have the freedom to make the decisions to protect ourselves, our family, our businesses. And that’s what we’re about in Oklahoma.
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CAVUTO: You know, energy prices have been stabling a lot of late. That’s important, obviously, to your state.
Are you encouraged by that?
STITT: Yes, we really are.
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I mean, obviously, the negative prices there, had a little anomaly, but really thankful to President Trump, what he did with Russia and the Saudis. And that’s why it’s so important that we measurably start reopening our economy, because there’s been about 20 million barrels come out of demand across the world right now.
And so we’re obviously looking for that to come back. But I was excited to see President Trump step in to help...
CAVUTO: All right.
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STITT: ... with the illegal dumping from some of those other countries.
CAVUTO: Governor Stitt, thank you for taking the time. Good luck with all of this. And good health to your family as well and your constituents.
Governor Kevin Stitt.
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