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The White House has said Vice President Mike Pence plans to maintain an aggressive campaign program this week despite the fact that several members of his inner circle, including his chief of staff, tested positive for coronavirus.
A Pence spokesperson revealed late Saturday that Marc Short, Pence’s chief of staff, had tested positive for the virus. Pence and his wife, Karen, tested negative earlier in the day and the vice president will not alter his schedule, the spokesman said. The New York Times reported that several other members of his inner circle had also tested positive in recent days.
Short’s diagnosis comes weeks after Covid-19 spread through the White House, infecting President Donald Trump, the first lady and two dozen other aides, employees and allies.
By criteria of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the vice president is considered a “close contact” for his chief of staff, but will not quarantine him, said a spokesman, Devin O’Malley. .
O’Malley said Pence decided to maintain his travel program “in consultation with the White House medical unit” and “in accordance with the CDC guidelines for essential personnel.” Those guidelines require essential workers exposed to someone with the coronavirus to monitor closely for Covid-19 symptoms and wear a mask when around other people.
Saskia Popescu, an infectious disease expert at George Mason University, called Pence’s decision to travel “gross negligence,” regardless of the stated justification that Pence is an essential worker.
“It is just an insult to everyone who has been working in public health and public health response,” he said. “I also find it really hurtful and disrespectful to the people who are going to the rally” and the people on Pence’s own staff who will be accompanying him.
“You need to stay home for 14 days,” he added. “Campaign events are not essential.”
After a day of campaigning in Florida on Saturday, Pence was seen wearing a mask as he returned to Washington aboard Air Force Two shortly after news of Short’s diagnosis broke. He is scheduled to hold a rally Sunday afternoon in Kinston, North Carolina.
President Trump commented on Short early Sunday after his plane landed at Joint Base Andrews, outside of Washington. “I heard it just now,” he said. “And I think he’s in quarantine. Yes. I heard about it. It’s going to be OK. But he’s in quarantine. “
Pence, who has led the White House coronavirus task force since late February, has repeatedly found himself in an awkward position balancing political concerns with the administration’s handling of the pandemic, which has killed more than 220,000 Americans. The vice president has advocated for the use of masks and social distancing, but he often does not wear one himself and hosts large political events where many people do not cover their faces.
By virtue of his position as vice president, Pence is considered a fundamental worker. The White House did not address how Pence’s political activities amounted to essential work.
Short, Pence’s top aide and one of his closest confidants, did not travel with the vice president on Saturday.
Pence’s handling of her exposure to a confirmed positive case contrasts with the way that Democratic vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris responded when a close aide and a crew member from her field plane tested positive for the virus at early this month. He took several days off the campaign, citing his desire to act out of caution.
