Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego criticize the federal response to the coronavirus as her state battles the highest infection rate in the country.
Gallego, a Democrat who was elected last year, said the state rushed its reopening.
"We opened way too early in Arizona," she told ABC News. "We were one of the last states to go to stay-at-home and one of the first to reemerge. And we reemerged at zero to sixty."
Gallego pointed to “crowded nightclubs handing out free champagne” as a root cause of the spike.
"I think when nightclubs were open, it sent the signal that we had, again, defeated COVID and, obviously, that is not the case," Gallego said.
Arizona cases explode:
Arizona has the highest rate of infection in the country. Over the past week, about 50 in every 100,000 residents tested positive for the coronavirus.
"Our 20- to 44-year-olds, which is my own demographic, really led the explosion, and we've seen such growth in that area. We're seeing a lot of people go to large family gatherings and infect their family members,” Gallego told ABC.
Testing delays causing more problems:
Gallego said there were extensive testing delays due to the increased infections. Some people had to wait eight hours to get tested, she said.
Gallego said she asked FEMA to help with the testing efforts.
"We were told they're moving away from that, which feels like they're declaring victory while we're still in crisis mode," she said.
Gallego also criticized Trump for holding a rally in the middle of a pandemic earlier this month.
"President Trump was in my community, chose not to wear a mask, and he's having large events while I am trying to push people that you need to stay at home and that events with more than 10 people are dangerous per the Centers for Disease Control," she said.
