Gov. Andrew Cuomo Urges No Thanksgiving Celebrations: ‘Stay Away’ from Loved Ones

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) is discouraging people from spending Thanksgiving with friends and family members outside of their immediate household, warning that a “safe zone” in your home is actually “dangerous” this year.

“It’s your family. It’s your home. It’s your table. These are all environments where you feel safe, and that is the beauty of Thanksgiving,” Cuomo said in an audio recording shared in a tweet Thursday afternoon.

“I’m at home with my family. I’m in my safe zone. Your safe zone is not your safe zone. Your safe zone is dangerous this year. Please. Love is sometimes doing what’s hard. This year, if you love someone, it is smarter and better to stay away,” he added:

Love is sometimes doing what’s hard.

The safest way to celebrate Thanksgiving this year is with your immediate household only. pic.twitter.com/nBEviXnZ8P

— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) November 19, 2020

Cuomo’s plea follows last week’s announcement of further coronavirus restrictions, which include a ten-person limit to gatherings in private residences. The Democrat governor acknowledged that there may be issues in enforcement, placing the duty on local governments and begging them to enforce the restrictions.

“The rules are only as good as the enforcement. Local governments are in charge of enforcement. There are only two fundamental truths in this situation: It’s individual discipline, and it’s government enforcement. Period. End of sentence,” Cuomo said, adding, “I need the local governments to enforce this.”

Some law enforcement officers, including Fulton County Sheriff Richard Giardino, have signaled that they will not enforce Cuomo’s order, drawing ire from the governor.

“I don’t believe that person is a law enforcement officer,” Cuomo said during a Wednesday press conference.

“I don’t want a law enforcement officer who says, ‘I’m only enforcing the law that I like or think should be enforced,'” he added.

Giardino appealed the Fourth Amendment, explaining that he “does not have the authority … to go crashing into your house because of an executive order.”

“In the spirit of cooperation and conciliation, I offer the governor to come to Fulton County and do a ride along on Thanksgiving Day for an hour with us and we can stop at some houses where there’s multiple cars and he can show us how we are supposed to approach people and counting your numbers,” the sheriff stated.