Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious-disease expert, is again cautioning against large-scale gatherings of people without masks.
President Donald Trump is planning to convene another large crowd outside the White House on Saturday.
Trump’s Rose Garden event announcing Judge Amy Coney Barrett as his Supreme Court nominee on September 26 has been labelled a “super-spreader” for the coronavirus.
Fauci said of the Rose Garden event in an interview with The Associated Press on Friday: “I was not surprised to see a super-spreader event given the circumstances. Crowded, congregate setting, not wearing masks. It is not surprising to see an outbreak.” Fauci says the CDC guideline for getting people back into society generally “is 10 days from the onset of your symptoms.”
That onset for Trump was October 1, according to his doctors. The president’s White House doctor, Navy Cmdr. Sean Conley, said Trump could return to holding events on Saturday. Organizers says attendees are required to bring masks or masks will be provided for the outdoor White House event.