Trump Holding In-Person Event at White House Despite Staff COVID Infections

Two weeks after the Rose Garden nomination event for Amy Coney Barrett infected an untold number of people, including Donald Trump, his wife Melania Trump, GOP Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, current and former staffers (including Kellyanne Conway), and several attendees, he’s doing another in-person event at the White House on Saturday. Trump was only released from Walter Reed Medical Center on Monday after a weekend stay in their presidential suite of rooms. Claiming his coronavirus is “almost gone”, Trump first tried to plan a rally in the battleground state of Florida, but then changed the plans to host an event right in his own backyard.

Despite the growing coronavirus outbreak at the White House this week, the event will include Trump making “remarks to peaceful protesters for law and order” according to an invite sent to potential attendees. The gathering is scheduled to take place on the South Lawn of the White House in conjunction with a previously planned event organized by controversial conservative activist Candace Owens’ group Blexit, a campaign to urge Black Americans to leave the Democratic Party.

Trump will be making his remarks from the White House balcony to a crowd assembled below. Safety guidelines have been released for the event, with all attendees required to bring their own masks and submit to a COVID19 screening consisting of a temperature check and brief questionnaire before being admitted.

UPDATE: “All attendees must bring a mask with them and will be instructed to wear it on the WH Complex. All attendees must submit to a Covid-19 screening tomorrow morning. This will consist of a temperature check and a brief questionnaire.”

— Paula Reid (@PaulaReidCBS) October 9, 2020

Many are questioning the scheduling of an event when the White House is still reeling from the fallout of the Rose Garden event and Trump’s refusal to hold a distanced debate with Joe Biden. Even Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has been deliberately staying away from the White House since early August due to the lack of proper COVID19 protocols being implemented.