NYC Pub Defies Cuomo, Declares Itself 'Autonomous Zone': 'We're NOT Backing Down'
Business owners refuse to obey Democrat governor's COVID-19 order
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A New York City pub has defied Democrat Gov. Andrew Cuomo and his COVID-19 order for the state by declaring itself an "autonomous zone."
The owners of Mac’s Public House in Grant City, Staten Island, are refusing to obey restrictions set out by Gov. Cuomo and NYC's Democratic mayor, Bill de Blasio.
Following threats for city and state officials, the pub is warning: "We're not backing down!"
"!ATTENTION! We hereby declare this establishment an !!!AUTONOMOUS ZONE!!!” signs outside Mac’s proclaim.
“We refuse to abide by any rules and regulations put forth by the Mayor of NYC and Governor of NY State.”
The signs appear to be a reference to the short-lived radical-left "protest zones" in Seattle, Washington, which popped up over the Summer but fizzled when law enforcement disbanded them.
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“At this point, we’re OK with it, because we’re not paying it,” Danny Presti, Mac's co-owner, said of the fines they are receiving for remaining open, according to the New York Post.
"[The Sheriff’s Department] is issuing us $1,000 fines, so they keep coming back," Presti added.
"We’re still here. We’re not letting them in.”
In addition to the thousands of dollars in fines, the pub also faced a shut-down order from the state Health Department and a revocation of its liquor license from the State Liquor Authority.
"We’re not backing down,” McAlarney says in a YouTube video that was posted Friday.
"You think you scared me by ... saying I don’t have a license now to serve liquor now?
"Well, guess what? That liquor license is on the wall.
"If that liquor license is gonna come off the wall, it’s gonna be done by Cuomo.
"You wanna come down here and pull that license off the wall?"
“De Bozo,” McAlarney continued, in an apparent reference to Mayor de Blasio.
“You want to come down here and pull the license off the wall?”
“Feel free to end up comin’ down, and we’ll end up having a conversation before you even think about stepping foot on my property.
"I will not back down,” McAlarney warned.
WATCH:
Keith Atherholt, a patron who left a $100 tip for a glass of water, told the New York Post, “I totally support what he is doing.
"I don’t support the tyrannical nonsense they have in place.
"I gave them $100 for this water. They didn’t charge me. I gave it to support them.”
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Gov. Cuomo was recently smacked down by the Supreme Court for his onerous restrictions on houses of worship.
As Neon Nettle, reported last week, in a decision that went late into the holiday weekend, the SCOTUS ruled in favor of New York Roman Catholic and Orthodox Jewish groups that sued over the limited religious service attendance rules.
The justices split 5-4 with new Justice Amy Coney Barrett tipping the balance in the majority.
It was conservative Justice Barrett’s first publicly discernible vote on the Supreme Court.
