Arizona Republic | MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2020 | 13A

THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC ❚ Founded in 1890 ❚ A Gannett newspaper REPUBLIC EDITORIAL BOARD ❚ Greg Burton, Joanna Allhands, Phil Boas, Elvia Díaz, Abe Kwok and Robert Robb OPINIONS Arizona schools can follow leads

when to reopen. But I doubt most dis- people in Denmark to less than 1 in Aus- Joanna Allhands tricts and charters will forge their own tralia. Columnist public health parameters to inform that According to data from Covid Act Arizona Republic decision. Will Arizona choose Now, Oregon’s daily new case rate as of USA TODAY NETWORK Most are going to use what DHS sug- similar metrics to July 29 was 7.3 per 100,000. gests. Arizona’s was 33.9. And depending on what those metri- reopen schools or Tennessee, meanwhile, has created My son’s first day of kindergarten is cs are, they could result in vastly differ- forge its own path? If three zones – green, yellow and red – for Aug. 5. ent planning scenarios for schools, school operations, allowing schools to We have a school computer to use, which must pivot staffing, sanitation Arizona follows the open with five or fewer new daily cases but no log in. and a slew of other resources relatively per 100,000 people. We haven’t met his teacher yet and quickly once they are cleared to reopen. direction that Its Department of Health also has only late on July 31 received a rough dai- It’s one thing if that pivot may come schools in other created a decision tree to help guide ly schedule for his lessons. within a few weeks of the new school schools on whether to close classrooms I don’t blame the school for the lim- year starting. It’s another if it isn’t likely states are taking, it’s or the entire building when cases are ited and late-arriving details. The goal- to happen for the first quarter or even probably going to be confirmed on campus. posts keep moving, and educators are the first semester. In Milwaukee, schools can reopen doing their best to keep pace. State schools superintendent Kathy a while before when the city reaches Phase 5 of its re- But I know a lot of parents are frus- Hoffman has called for Arizona to con- opening plan, which requires a slew of trated and stressed out, not knowing sider using “a downward trajectory in in-person instruction case, testing, hospital capacity and con- what to expect (much less what to tell new confirmed cases of COVID-19, a de- resumes. tact tracing metrics to not only be met their employers). crease in positivity rates for COVID-19 but maintained – something that has That’s why I hope the Arizona De- testing” and “the widespread availabil- yet to happen. partment of Health Services doesn’t ity of testing with timely results.” to 9% using a seven-day average. The I’m sure some will point out that take until its Aug. 7 deadline to suggest But it’s unclear which public health state is expected to release the formula most of these are blue cities and states, metrics for when schools can reopen to metrics the state health department will to calculate this next week. and that a red (or perhaps purple) state in-person learning. ultimately recommend, or what the In Oregon, its statewide testing posi- like Arizona will not choose similar It was the right move to create these thresholds for reopening will be. tivity rate must be 5% or less over the thresholds that would ensure in-person metrics. Deciding when to reopen If Arizona follows the direction that preceding seven days for three straight education remains off the table for a schools – and when to close them if schools in other states are taking, it’s weeks. Counties must have similar pos- long time. cases emerge – should have a firm foun- probably going to be a while before in- itivity rates, as well as 10 or fewer new Indeed, it’ll be interesting to see dation in public health data. person instruction resumes. cases per 100,000 population, with a which way we go. But, man, we’re down to the wire Schools can reopen in New York, for few exceptions. I just hope we decide soon. Schools – here. And schools are mostly paralyzed example, when their specific region has Oregon noted in its research that and parents – need to know. in their decision-making until the state a daily infection rate of 5% or below, on when Denmark, Germany and Australia Reach Allhands at makes its recommendations. average, over 14 days. Schools must reopened schools, they had new daily [email protected] Yes, schools have the final say on close when the infection rate increases case rates ranging from 2.6 per 100,000 . On Twitter: @joannaallhands.

Never Trumpers become Never Republicans

Their hoped-for GOP electoral apoca- McConnell obviously bites his pose whatever he or she is doing. lypse doesn’t make sense on its own tongue about the president all the time, What the Never Republicans are hop- terms, and their advocacy for one bears but his main project has been working ing for is the least resistance to the most Rich Lowry all the hallmarks of this perfervid time with the White House to confirm judges progressive president of our lifetimes to Columnist in our politics – it, too, is rageful and ex- to the bench who are thoroughly com- give him the greatest possible running treme, but satisfyingly emotive. mitted to faithfully interpreting our laws room on abortion, conscience rights, Let’s stipulate that Republicans have and Constitution and will be doing their health care, judges, climate, immigra- “Burn it down” is rarely a wise or pru- often excused or looked past the inex- jobs when Trump is a distant memory. tion, policing, gun rights, campaign fi- dent sentiment. cusable during Trump’s presidency, and Even if you think McConnell should nance, taxes and spending. A cadre of Republican opponents of almost every Republican senator has a have played it differently, what would This is a high cost to pay, not just for President Donald Trump is nonetheless dimmer view of Trump than he or she defeating him and every other Senate the GOP, but for the country – at least, calling for a purifying fire to sweep will let on publicly. GOP officeholders Republican accomplish? that’s what you think if you are a con- through the GOP in the fall, taking down have been especially loath to speak of Back in the tea party era, purists in- servative who believes progressives are as many Republican officeholders as the character defects that blight his pre- sisted on nominating in 2010 the fla- deeply wrong on all these questions. possible. sidency. grantly unelectable Christine O’Donnell It’s not even guaranteed that the pos- Only this willy-nilly bloodletting will All of this deserves to be called out, to stick it to the Republican establish- ited purifying loss will purify. It’s entire- teach the party the hard lesson it needs but should the party of Lincoln be lev- ment. Sure enough, she lost to Demo- ly conceivable that a post-Trump party to learn for accommodating Trump over eled? crat Chris Coons, who is well on his way will be more Trumpist, i.e., more popu- the past four years. As a Soviet commis- The Never Republicans refuse to ac- to a stress-free 30-year career in the list, than before. Regardless, even after sar once put it: “We must execute not count for the practical calculations of Senate. a landslide, the Republican Party will be only the guilty. Execution of the inno- practical politicians hoping, in difficult If Susan Collins loses her Senate seat made up of the same voters and office- cent will impress the masses even circumstances, to achieve practical re- in Maine this year in a burn-it-all-down holders who steadfastly supported more.” sults. conflagration, it will play out the same Trump. These Never Trumpers, as my col- Was Mitch McConnell supposed to way. Put aside that she is hardly a Trum- If the Never Republicans want a par- league Ramesh Ponnuru puts it, are be- say after Trump’s election, “I can’t work pist. If she goes down to defeat, Repub- ty untainted by these people, there is coming Never Republicans. Their ranks with him,” and, to borrow a phrase, burn licans are never winning her seat back. one available, and if they get their wish, run from columnist George Will, to down any chance of achieving anything And it doesn’t matter who the next Re- it will be at the zenith of its power next Charlie Sykes of the anti-Trump web- constructive during a rare instance of publican president is – an anti-Trump year. site The Bulwark, to the operatives of unified Republican control of Washing- moderate or Don Jr. – the Democratic Rich Lowry is on Twitter @RichLow- The Lincoln Project. ton? senator from Maine will be there to op- ry.

Phoenix must ban flavored tobacco items targeting kids tect the lung health of its residents. As protective masks with purchases in ex- smoking and harder for smokers to quit. we battle the novel coronavirus in Phoe- ploitative pandemic-themed promo- So, in the face of both a deadly virus Your Turn nix, we must also prioritize tackling to- tions. and a predatory industry, the Phoenix Michael Nowakowski bacco addiction. Helping people quit E-cigarettes have risen dramatically City Council should pass the citywide Guest columnist smoking and vaping, coupled with a in popularity among youth over the past ordinance I am sponsoring to end the policy to end the sale of flavored tobacco few years, fueled largely by flavored to- sale of flavored tobacco products, in- products, is a great start. bacco products. cluding flavored e-cigarettes, menthol With Arizona’s COVID-19 rates still a The coronavirus attacks the respira- More than 5.3 million middle and cigarettes, flavored cigars and flavored concern, we should consider everything tory system, which means that in the high school students across the nation smokeless tobacco. we can do to keep ourselves and our midst of this pandemic it’s best to avoid used vaping products in 2018, and more This policy protects the lungs of youth healthy. behaviors that harm the lungs. We know than 16% of Arizona high school stu- young people and people of color, who The bulk of COVID-19 cases, similar that smoking increases the risk for res- dents vape. Moreover, e-cigarettes are are most likely to be targets of the tobac- to our state’s population, is centered in piratory infections, weakens the im- the most commonly used tobacco prod- co industry’s deceptive marketing tac- Maricopa County, with our Latino com- mune system and causes many under- ucts among Latino youth. tics. munities hit particularly hard and fac- lying conditions, like lung and heart dis- In addition to flavored e-cigarettes, In addition to an end to the sale of fla- ing an infection rate more than twice ease, that expose individuals to deadly we must also end the sale of menthol vored tobacco products, culturally ap- that of non-Latinos. complications from COVID-19. cigarettes and other flavored tobacco propriate, bilingual efforts to help users Phoenix residents should follow pub- In a recent study, researchers found products. The tobacco industry has a quit are critical to preventing serious lic health guidance, but it is also critical smokers were more than twice as likely long history of targeting kids, African outcomes from COVID-19, and re- that policymakers address the many as nonsmokers to experience severe Americans and other communities of sources to help those who want to stop factors that drive health and other dis- symptoms from COVID-19. There is also color with marketing for menthol ciga- smoking and vaping should be promot- parities and make people of color more growing evidence that vaping e-ciga- rettes, at great cost in health and lives. ed even more as we fight COVID-19. vulnerable to this pandemic — from rettes weakens the lungs’ normal func- Today, 7 out of 10 African American Phoenix City Councilman Michael housing and work conditions to health tions. youth who smoke and 57% of Hispanic Nowakowski represents District 7 in care access to high rates of underlying But even in the midst of one of the youth who smoke use menthol ciga- southwest Phoenix. Email him at coun- health conditions. nation’s worst health crises, the tobacco rettes. Menthol masks the harshness of [email protected]; on Twitter, This is an important time for city industry has not backed down from sell- smoking and makes cigarettes more ad- @MRNowakowski. More information: leaders to take immediate action to pro- ing its lies. Vape shops have given away dictive, making it easier for kids to start flavorshookkidsphoenix.org.

(ISSN 0892-8711) · (USPS 030-920) · Vol. 131, No. 77 Greg Burton, Executive Editor 602-444-8797, [email protected] Merchandise or service advertised in The Republic is expected to be Phil Boas, Editorial Page Editor accurately described and readily available at the advertised prices. 602-444-8292, [email protected] Deceptive or misleading advertising is never knowingly accepted. Stacy Sullivan, Community Relations Director Complaints regarding advertising should be directed in writing to The 602-444-8749, [email protected] Arizona Republic, Advertising Department, or the Better Business Published daily by Phoenix Newspapers Inc. 200 E. Van Buren St., Phoenix, Josh Susong, Investigations and Enterprise Director Bureau, 4428 N. 12th St., Phoenix, AZ 85014. AZ 85004 or P.O. Box 1950, Phoenix, AZ 85001. Phone 602-444-8000. 602-444-8299, [email protected] Periodicals Postage Paid in Phoenix AZ 85026. Kathy Tulumello, News Director Letters to the editor, opinion columns and articles submitted to The Member: Alliance for Audited Media 602-444-8002, [email protected] Arizona Republic may be published or distributed in print, electronic or Postmaster: Send address changes to The Arizona Republic, P.O. Box 1950, other forms. For more information, call us at 602-444-8499. Phoenix, AZ 85001.