‘They have to open up’: President Trump urges Gov. Wolf to fully reopen restaurants in Pa.

LATROBE, Pa. — President Donald Trump is urging Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf to fully reopen restaurants throughout the state.

“They can open up slowly, but they have to start, they have to start. It’s very unfair to people, and it’s very unfair to the employees when they lose their jobs. It’s very, very unfair. They have to open up,” Trump said in an exclusive interview with Channel 11 after his campaign stop Thursday night in Latrobe.

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The president weighed in on the topic as Democratic state senators are set to host a virtual public hearing on the restaurant industry at 1 p.m. Friday.

Restaurants continue to struggle across Pennsylvania. Some of them have been forced to permanently close amid COVID-19 restrictions, including capacity limits and distance requirements.

“These governors don’t want to open up, and they have to. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is great. It’s got to be opened up. It’s got to be opened up now,” Trump said.

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Wolf has faced a lot of scrutiny from the restaurant industry for his restrictions, but he has stood by them, saying they have made a difference.

The governor recently responded to questions about whether he plans to loosen the restrictions anytime soon.

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“One of the things I’m going to be looking at is how are we doing in back-to-school,” Wolf said. “I think the next couple weeks will tell the tale and if we see real progress in terms of the two things that I’m looking at: the case count per 100,000 and the positivity rate.”

One Republican senator is pushing bills to loosen restrictions.

FULL INTERVIEW: President Trump talks election, protests and more with Channel 11's Aaron Martin FULL INTERVIEW: President Trump talks election, protests and more with Channel 11's Aaron Martin

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