Even Andrew Cuomo admits: 'We simply cannot stay closed until the vaccine hits critical mass.'

Democratic politicians have been studiously pushing back the goalposts for reopening businesses in their jurisdictions ever since the American people were told last March that a two- or four-week shutdown was necessary to keep hospitals from being overwhelmed. Lately, the stated goalpost has been moved all the way back to "until a vaccine is widely available."

Now, one of the prime offenders, the disastrously ineffective governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, is even sounding the alarm that adhering to this goalpost will mean the total destruction of the American economy.

In a Monday tweet, Cuomo declared, "We simply cannot stay closed until the vaccine hits critical mass. The cost is too high. We will have nothing left to open."

The governor elaborated further in his State of the State address Monday, saying that the state would heavily rely on testing to get businesses open again, but not further elaborating on how that would be different from what the state is already doing and has been doing for months. The governor's office did not respond to a request from Fox News for further elaboration on this point.

Cuomo also went on to state that the lockdowns he imposed on businesses created a budget shortfall of a record $15 billion, and he pleaded for aid from the federal government. Under the administration of President Donald Trump, the federal government was hesitant to patch budget holes created by states that imposed lockdown measures stricter than federal guidance required; however, Cuomo is likely to find a more sympathetic ear in President-elect Joe Biden, who will take office next week.

New York has had, by almost any measure, the worst coronavirus outcomes in the country, leading the nation in total deaths and second in deaths per 100,000 residents, behind only New Jersey. Both states have imposed some of the strictest lockdown measures in the country. The lockdowns have devastated New York's economy and led to a mass exodus of New Yorkers. Hundreds of thousands have moved out of New York City alone since the pandemic began.

In spite of his administration's objectively poor handling of the virus, Cuomo has been showered with praise by media figures and pundits and was even given an Emmy award for his coronavirus briefings, in which he managed to appear competent on television in spite of his administration's many failures.