The vice president ended up making the trip the next day.
Secret Service agents in Arizona tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday or showed signs of illness as they prepared for a trip involving Vice President Mike Pence, prompting the government to postpone the trip originally planned for Tuesday and Wednesday. , a government official familiar with the matter tells ABC News.
The delay was necessary for the Secret Service to bring a new team of healthy agents to Phoenix to complete the trip, according to the official.
“The health and safety of our workforce, their families, and that of our protégés remains the agency’s highest priority.” Secret Service Communications Director Catherine Milhoan said in a statement.
The Washington Post first reported Thursday night that “eight to ten agents and other sister agency officers” had become ill in preparation for the trip to Arizona.
On the trip, the vice president acknowledged “the dramatic increase in coronavirus cases in Arizona” and at the same time praised Governor Doug Ducey’s handling of the virus.
“Until about three weeks ago, Arizona had literally set the pace to slow the spread, to flatten the curve, and we are grateful to you, to your team,” Pence told the governor. Later, he said, “The increase in cases in Arizona is the reason I am here.”
This is the second time in nearly two weeks that officers test positive for COVID-19 as they prepare for a presidential or vice presidential trip.
At least two officers tested positive for COVID-19 before an indoor campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, late last month.
Dozens of agents and other Secret Service personnel began quarantining for 14 days after that trip due to possible exposure to those infected agents. At the time, the USSS said it would not affect operations.
“The US Secret Service continues to be prepared and staffed to carry out all the duties that are required,” Milhoan said in a statement on June 24. “Any implication that the agency is unprepared or unable to execute our mission would be inaccurate.” ”
“To protect the privacy of our employees’ health information and for operational security, the Secret Service does not publish how many of its employees have tested positive for COVID-19, nor how many of its employees were, or are currently, in quarantine” . The statement continued.
The Secret Service employs approximately 3,200 special agents, 1,300 uniformed division officers, and 2,000 support personnel.
Pence visited Florida on Thursday, the last stop on a schedule that took him to several regions particularly affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
ABC News’ Ben Gittleson contributed to this report.
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