The organizers behind President Trump
Donald John Trump South Korea criticizes Bolton’s book as ‘distorting reality’ of nuclear talks Democrats face tough questions with Bolton protesters trying to tear down Andrew Jackson statue near White House MOREThe speech scheduled for Tuesday says they expect the majority of 3,000 young Arizonans to wear face masks in accordance with local ordinances.
Trump is slated to travel to Arizona to visit Border Patrol agents and verify the construction of the border wall before speaking to a crowd of predominantly young youth in Phoenix.
A Students for Trump spokesperson told The Arizona Republic that attendees will comply with a city ordinance passed on Friday that requires masks in crowded spaces.
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego (D) earlier this week urged attendees to wear masks, which will also be distributed at event check-in.
“Everyone who attends tomorrow’s event (Tuesday), particularly any elected official, should set an example for residents wearing a mask. This includes the president,” Gallego said in a written statement. “Public health is a group effort, not a partisan issue. It requires the participation of every resident and level of government.”
The event comes immediately after Trump’s controversial campaign rally on Saturday in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where most attendees chose not to wear face masks defying the guidance of public health officials.
The Republic of Arizona said Tuesday’s event will take place at Dream City Church, a megachurch that has come under fire for claiming it installed a ventilation system that “kills 99.9 percent of COVID in 10 minutes.”
In a Facebook video since deleted, megachurch pastor Luke Barnett said, “When you walk into our auditorium, 99.9% of COVID disappears, dies, if it was there in the first place.”
“You can know when you come here, you will be safe, protected. Thank God for great technology and thank God for being proactive, ”said Barnett.
The church touted the first ventilation system for Clean Air EXP, a company that said its claims are based on a “biosecurity laboratory analysis performed on an active coronavirus 229E test substitute.”
However, the news outlet noted that the company was not associated with the investigation and that neither the church nor the company responded to requests for comment.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has warned that common human coronaviruses like 229E generally cause symptoms like the common cold and should not be confused with COVID-19, the disease caused by the new novel coronavirus.
The Environmental Protection Agency has also said that adequate ventilation alone is not sufficient to protect people from COVID-19.
In a statement released Monday night, the church said the ventilation units were “a revolutionary surface and air purification solution that combines the most sophisticated sensors in the room with the latest air purification technology to clean the air interior and surfaces of viruses, allergens and pathogens. ” , odors, smoke, mold, ozone, and harmful chemicals. ”
The church has also reportedly faced criticism for organizing a political event with the president.
Secular Communities for Arizona sent a letter earlier this month arguing that the event is illegal because it would violate federal policies against partisan political activity by tax-exempt churches.
The IRS states that tax-exempt organizations “are absolutely prohibited from participating or directly or indirectly participating in any political campaign.”
They may organize nonpartisan events such as voter registration campaigns or public forums, but they may not organize events that appear to show bias or favor towards a candidate.
“It is quite clear from the facts that your church will violate the law, IRS rules and the Constitution if you continue this rally on June 23,” wrote Secular Communities for Arizona.
Dream City Church responded earlier this month, saying it initially agreed to rent the facility to Turning Point Action for a student event.
The church said that after they agreed to rent the venue, Turning Point Action later informed Dream City that the president planned to speak at the event.
“The rental of the Dream City facility does not constitute endorsement of the opinions of its tenants,” the church said in a statement. “Renting each facility is a means of generating funds so that Dream City can continue to carry out its outreach vision: reaching the wounded and needy of Jesus Christ in the community. Join Dream City to pray that the church continues to carry out that mission effectively. ”
Turning Point Action is a 501 (c) (4) entity created by conservative activist and Trump supporter Charlie Kirk last year with the goal of campaigning against Democrats in the 2020 election cycle.
Turning Point Action, the sister organization to Kirk’s conservative advocacy group Turning Point USA, acquired Students for Trump last summer.
Arizona reported another record day of COVID-19 hospitalizations and a sharp increase in new cases on Monday, the day before Trump’s visit.
the The Arizona Department of Health Services reported 2,196 new cases on Monday. The state has seen a total number of 54,586 cases and 1,342 deaths.
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