COVID in the White House
Guests at Trump's Minnesota fundraiser posed next to Trump without masks, sang karaoke
Singing is one of the worst things you can do during a pandemic featuring a virus that's spread through the air. Supporters of President Trump did it anyway on Wednesday.
Trump revealed early Friday morning that he'd tested positive for COVID-19 and was displaying mild symptoms of the virus. Aides reportedly said Trump started displaying those symptoms Thursday earlier at a fundraiser in New Jersey, where he didn't wear a mask and mingled with a crowd. And he did the same in Minnesota on Wednesday, where backers partook in some significantly risky activities, Minnesota radio station WCCO reports.
Blois Olson, a political consultant, said private Instagram photos of the event showed staff and guests "lingered after the president was there." "They sang karaoke, they had their arms around each other," he told WCCO Morning News. Maskless guests included South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) and Minnesota's House GOP leader Kurt Daudt, who posted a picture posing with a similarly maskless Trump.
After Trump announced his test results, Daudt said Friday he would be tested as well and stay in quarantine until he had a negative result. Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka (R) also told WCCO he would self-isolate and be tested, as did several other Republicans who were at the event.
One study has suggested that singing is no more likely to spread the virus than talking, though doing either becomes more risky the louder you are. We don't need a study to know there's no such thing as quiet karaoke.