by Angela Collins
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf vetoed a bill on Monday September 21, that if passed would’ve allowed schools to have the power to decide how many fans could be present at high school sports games. Governor Wolf had 10 days to either veto or pass the bill and Monday marked the 10th day. He made his feelings very clear at a media gathering, in which he stated that the virus is not a made up thing and politicians need to stop acting like they can wave a magic wand and suspend reality. Lawmakers are ready to override the bill. The House will reconvene on September 29th and can make the choice to override the veto. State Representative Mike Reese commented on Governor Wolfs decision to veto the bill. He believes that the Governor has a complete distrust in local officials and is implying he doesn’t trust them in making decisions. Reese also believes that Governor Wolf is telling the state that the virus is out to get us. Reese along with other sources believe he is inconsistent with the message that he is trying to portray. Once the bill is passed through the house it can make its way through the Senate and possibly, schools in Pennsylvania may be able to decide the amount of people at school gatherings, just not today.
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I understand why the Governor Wolf is afraid about allowing schools and local governments to decide on how many people could come to high school games, but I also feel like he is abusing his power a little bit by speaking for the whole state in this specific matter. He should have more trust in the local governments because they probably know their people best. I feel like this should be decided in a similar manner as to how the state opened back up, when they looked at each individual county. They should have counties decide how many fans should be able to come to the high school games rather than just having Governor Wolf speak on everyone’s behalf in this situation.
I agree with what Elizabeth is saying that Governor Wolf is somewhat abusing his power. I think that once with the right safety precautions are put in place, high schools should be able to continue with sports. I also think that Governor Wolf should have more trust in the local governments because they know the safest precautions that can be put in place to both keep everyone safe, while also allowing for high school students to be active with their friends and playing sports. I believe that Governor Wolf needs to work with the local government and not, not have trust in what they plan on doing. The ultimate focus should definitely be on limiting the amount of people at school gatherings.
I agree with Mikayla saying that Governor Wolf should put more trust in the local government and that he is abusing his power a little bit. I think that the right precautions should have been put into place, before sports ever began, and everyone should be following the same precautions. Some counties are using different precautions, which creates confusion about what is right and wrong. There should definitely be a limited amount of fans at all high school sports to decrease the spread of this virus. The more that people get together, the more this virus will spread. If you look at events right now that are allowing fans, most of the fans are not even wearing masks or being socially distant, which is half of the problem. We could get past this problem if everyone wore masks at every event, outdoors or indoors, because they are around other people. And I think that the local government needs to be educating everyone on this matter and following masking guidelines themselves.
I think it makes sense to not allow schools to decide how many people to allow in for sports games as they will most likely be driven by their desire for ticket sales. Covid is certainly making for interesting conflicts between local and state, and state and federal governments. This is a really unprecedented time, and while this would seem like an overstep of power in normal times, it can also be argued that rules like this are necessary to ensure the safety of the public. Things aren’t normal right now, so it wouldn’t make sense to apply our standards of normal governance to present day circumstances. The only way we can get back to the point where rules like this one are no longer necessary is to enforce them until it’s safe again.
I believe that schools should not be allowed to decide how many people they can have at sporting events. I understand many people don’t want to miss out on important events of their usual lives, but it is a safety precaution everyone has to take right now. There are still a lot of unknowns about this virus, so I think it is better for everyone to follow orders and be on the safe side. In order to get back to our daily lives, everyone has to make some sacrifices.
I think Governor Wolf should open it up to the schools to make a decisions. The virus has effected everywhere differently. The virus is going to spread much faster in cities that have more people. Why should low case rural areas be held to the same standard as cities that are crawling with covid?
I disagree with governor Wolf, I feel so many of the other states have passed an are allowing students to play. Wolf has been slow with everything and is causing a lot of family owned businesses to go bankrupt.
I disagree with Governor Wolf’s policy with only allowing a certain amount of people at games. I think he is using more power than he has over the state and I think the school district should be able to decide how many spectators are aloud at events. I understand the importance of the safety of the student athletes but if there is no cases at certain schools they should be aloud to have fans. I feel as though he is making this political because of the upcoming elections so he wants to assure is power within the state.