Vice President Mike Pence suspended campaign events in Florida and Arizona next week as states experience a surge in new cases of coronavirus.
Pence will still travel to those states, which have set records for new confirmed infections in recent days, the White House confirmed, saying it will meet with the governors and their health teams.
Pence said Friday during a briefing by the White House coronavirus task force that he would visit Florida, Texas and Arizona to receive a “field report” on the growing cases of COVID-19 in all regions. Republican governors in all three states have come under fire for pressing for an aggressive reopening after virus-related blockades as cases in the states increase.
Pence will travel to Texas on Sunday to attend a “Celebrate Freedom Rally” at First Baptist Church Dallas before meeting with Governor Greg Abbott. But the political events planned later in the week have been postponed.
On Tuesday, Pence was supposed to address a Trump-Pence “Faith in America” campaign event in Tucson before meeting with Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey in Yuma. The campaign event has been postponed.
In Florida, Pence was due to embark on a bus tour on Thursday, including an appearance in Lake Wales at an event organized by pro-Trump group America First Policies, billed as the “Great American Comeback Tour.” The group announced that “as a precaution at this time, we are postponing the stop for the Great American Comeback tour in Florida. We hope to reschedule soon. ”
The Sarasota County Republican Party confirmed in a note to supporters that the Pence campaign event along the state’s Gulf Coast was also postponed. He was still ready to meet with Governor Ron DeSantis.
