Tag: Trump indoor Tulsa rally

White House dismissal of COVID-19 concerns draws criticism

The Hill logoThe White House has flouted public health advice on the coronavirus, drawing harsh criticisms from experts who fear the administration is sending the wrong message.

Even as cases surge in Oklahoma, President Trump is moving forward with an indoor rally in Tulsa on Saturday, despite guidelines against holding such large gatherings from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

Trump and Vice President Pence have mostly brushed off the rising numbers of cases in states across the country, largely attributing them to increased testing.

GOP senator defends Trump’s Tulsa rally as health official warns it’s a ‘huge risk factor’ amid coronavirus spike

Washington Post logoBesieged by criticism for scheduling a campaign rally in Tulsa on Juneteenth, an observance of the end of U.S. slavery in a city notable for a historic outburst of racist violence, President Trump on Friday relented and bumped the event back by one day.

But Tulsa’s top health official is urging the campaign to again postpone — not over politics but over public health. As novel coronavirus cases have set new daily records in Oklahoma in recent days, Tulsa Health Department Director Bruce Dart warned over the weekend that a rally expected to draw more than 19,000 Trump supporters could ignite a bigger crisis.

“Covid is here in Tulsa, it is transmitting very efficiently,” Dart told the Tulsa Worldon Saturday. “I wish we could postpone this to a time when the virus isn’t as large a concern as it is today.” Continue reading.