DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds refused to say Thursday whether she was asked to join with other Midwest governors in coordinating the reopening of their state economies.
The governors of seven Midwestern states announced they had agreed to work together to restart their economies amid the coronavirus pandemic, following similar pacts in the Northeast and West Coast.
The Midwest agreement includes Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Kentucky. Five of the governors are Democrats and two are Republicans.
When asked if she was invited, Reynolds’ spokesman Pat Garrett responded that she “will continue to participate in conversations with nearby governors as we prepare to open the state back up in the coming weeks.”
Garrett didn’t respond when asked again if Reynolds was asked to join with the other governors.
When asked about the absence of Iowa in the group, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said he wished more states had joined.
“Iowa chose not to be part of this,” Pritzker said. “I know they don’t have a stay-at-home rule yet in place. They’ve made a lot of different decisions than we have.”
Reynolds has argued that the steps she has taken were as effective as other states, like Illinois, that have stay-at-home orders.
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