On this week’s broadcast of Alabama Public Television’s “Capitol Journal,” State Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh (R-Anniston) reiterated his call for a proper balance in the state’s coronavirus response.
He said while State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris and Gov. Kay Ivey had the best interests in mind, Marsh deemed their shutdown orders to be an overreaction.
“Capitol Journal” host Don Dailey asked about getting an agreement on CARES Act funding, a subject of contention between the House, Senate and the governor’s office, which Marsh argued was necessary to aid those out of work.
“The people of Alabama are going through a lot right now,” Marsh said. “We’ve got to do all we can do to help them. These dollars will help them. I’m very concerned of the future. As I’ve said — the policies that have been put in place by the administration have 450,000 people out of work right.”
“Public health [officer] and the governor — there again, they thought they were making these decisions that were best for the people,” he continued. “But there are a lot of people out of work, and we’ve got to get them back to work.”
When asked, Marsh acknowledged he did not agree with the executive branch’s shutdown measures.
“I didn’t, and I’ve been upfront with that,” Marsh added. “I believed from day one it was an organized way to slow down the economy,” he said. “We know who the vulnerable are, the old generation, those with preexisting conditions. We could have easily segmented out that part of the population and dealt with it without putting everybody out of work. I think it is showing up. No hospitals have been overburdened, in fact, in the entire country. The medical community came on strong and handled the situation. I think politicians overreacted, and we put the country in a very delicate situation.”
He also warned of the possibility of more difficult times, especially if federal money propping up the economy runs out.
“[T]here are going to be people, even with the conditions that are in place now — there will be those who cannot make it in business,” Marsh explained. “We have put a real strain on this economy, both throughout the country and in Alabama. We have our work cut out for us to get out of this thing.”
“I think it is going to be longer than people think,” he said. “I think the worst is not over. I’m not talking in terms of the virus. The worst is not over in terms of the economic situation. You’ve got to remember — right now, everybody is getting a paycheck, a government paycheck. When this thing could run its course and run out of government paychecks, it could get ugly.”
@Jeff_Poor is a graduate of Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, the editor of Breitbart TV, a columnist for Mobile’s Lagniappe Weekly and host of Huntsville’s “The Jeff Poor Show” from 2-5 p.m. on WVNN.
