Texas Governor To Reopen Businesses On Friday

Texas Governor Abbott is joining other Republican governors and giving Donald Trump what he wants -- an economy open for business.

Abbott is removing the stay-at-home order as of Friday, and he is allowing many businesses to reopen on that day. Restaurants, retail stores, movie theaters, and malls may reopen on that day. They must restrict themselves to operating at only 25% capacity. Museums and libraries may also open at 25% capacity.

Abbott also said his new order supersedes any local order closing down businesses, making people stay at home, or mandating the wearing of masks.

If things go well, Abbott said businesses can begin operating at 50% capacity about May 18th. He also intends to open barber shops, Beaty salons, gyms, and bars about mid-May.

The charts above use data from The COVID Tracking Project. Note that both the number of cases and deaths from the virus continue to rise in Texas, and neither shows any sign of "flattening".

If Texans flock back into the businesses, this could be a huge mistake for the governor. It could cause the cases and deaths from the Coronavirus to accelerate and go much higher.

But I doubt most citizens are ready to expose themselves to the virus yet. And I wonder how many businesses will actually reopen with only 25% capacity mandated. Could they make a profit with only 25% of their old customers (if they can get that many to come back right now)?

It will be interesting to see what will happen in the next two to three weeks.