Aides and senior officials around President Trump are increasingly wearing masks, though Trump has said he doesn’t think he’ll wear one.
Expectations are such that anyone on the White House grounds seen not wearing a mask was “eyed with apprehension,” according to a White House press pool report on Thursday.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggested even healthy people wear a cloth face mask when not at home, though Trump has stressed the guidance is voluntary.
By contrast, the president’s rival in the presidential race, former Vice President Joe Biden, has said he will wear a face mask if he goes out in public. “I think it’s important to follow the science, listen to the experts, do what they tell you,” Biden said on ABC’s This Week following Trump’s announcement. The former vice president added that he had not visited “commercial places” recently.
The issue has become more urgent as health experts have learned that at least 1 in 4 of those infected may not show symptoms yet can still transmit the virus.
In an interview with Fox News, Attorney General William Barr said he is taking more meetings remotely and that he and his security detail wear face masks traveling to and from work when he comes in.
Trump’s top national security advisers rarely meet in person anymore, and on occasions when they do, they make sure to wear masks, including around Trump, according to Politico. All White House Situation Room employees also have access to face masks.
On Thursday, first lady Melania Trump wore a mask in a public service announcement and urged others to do the same. The first lady has repeatedly urged the public to wear face masks and practice social distancing amid the outbreak.
A global shortage of masks has led to companies importing masks from suppliers overseas and to retooling domestic manufacturing plants to respond to essential workers’ urgent needs for protective equipment.
“If you are sitting on a warehouse with … surgical masks, you will be hearing a knock on your door,” Barr said last month.
The United States had counted more than 451,000 coronavirus cases and 15,900 deaths by Thursday afternoon, according to Johns Hopkins University.
