New Jersey governor delays indoor dining 'indefinitely' due to coronavirus surges 'in other states'

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy is halting the planned re-opening of indoor restaurant dining in his state, claiming that recent coronavirus case spikes in states other than New Jersey had led him to make the unilateral decision and leave it in place "indefinitely." 

"INDOOR DINING WILL NO LONGER RESUME ON THURSDAY," Murphy tweeted Monday from his official twitter account. 

"We had planned to loosen restrictions this week," he continued. "However, after [COVID-19] spikes in other states driven by, in part, the return of indoor dining, we have decided to postpone indoor dining indefinitely."

Murphy did not provide any citations or relevant evidence to indicate how much indoor dining was driving the outbreaks. 

Nor did the Democratic governor indicate that indoor businesses were helping significantly drive up case numbers in New Jersey, though he said that "some establishments" in the state were flouting the rules he had imposed over the last few months. 

He cited reports of "overcrowding," a "complete disregard for social distancing," and "very few, IF ANY, face coverings" in indoor establishments in recent weeks. 

"The scenes we see in our newspapers and on social media CANNOT CONTINUE," he said.