Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday she won’t allow Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin near her Capitol office due to the threat that he has contracted the coronavirus, which has spread through the White House in the past week.
“He’s not coming to my office,” Pelosi told reporters who asked about the next round of negotiations with Mnuchin over federal coronavirus aid. “I’ll see you on the phone.”
Pelosi said Mnuchin told her last week not to worry about the safety of in-person meetings because he is frequently tested due to his proximity to President Trump.
“Really?” Pelosi said, mocking Mnuchin’s assurances.
Trump tested positive for the coronavirus last week and spent the weekend at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center receiving treatment.
Pelosi called the White House “a hot spot” for the coronavirus.
In addition to Trump, more than a half-dozen members of the White House staff have tested positive for the coronavirus.
Pelosi and Mnuchin have been in talks on and off for months in an effort to strike a bipartisan deal on a new round of federal aid. They often talk by phone, but Mnuchin has made several trips to the Capitol to meet privately with Pelosi in her office within the Capitol.
