'They love those masks!' Trump ridicules Kamala and Nancy for wearing masks during Biden's speech despite EVERYONE in the Chamber being vaccinated
Donald Trump slammed Kamala Harris and Nancy Pelosi on Thursday for wearing masks while sitting behind President Joe Biden for his first address to a joint session of Congress despite everyone in the House chamber being vaccinated.
'It looked like they were choking last night while he was speaking,' Trump said during a wide-range call-in interview with Fox Business' Maria Bartiromo the morning after Biden's speech. 'I watched and I said, 'They ought to get some air.' It looked like they were literally – Nancy's mask was the biggest mask I think I've ever seen.'
'They love those masks,' he continued. 'Everybody in that room had the vaccine, everybody in that room was in good shape.'
Biden's remarks looked very different from past presidential addresses to Congress due to restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic. Instead of the usual packed chamber with 1,600 people, only 200 lawmakers were allowed to attend and no guests were permitted.
House rules also still require all in the chamber to wear a mask.
Despite all members and the president and vice president having received their vaccinations, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) still says all individuals should wear masks in indoor settings.
Donald Trump, during a call-in interview with Fox Business Thursday morning, slammed Kamala Harris and Nancy Pelosi for wearing masks at Biden's address Wednesday evening
'It looked like they were choking last night while he was speaking,' Trump told Fox Business' Maria Bartiromo. 'I watched and I said, 'They ought to get some air.' It looked like they were literally – Nancy's mask was the biggest mask I think I've ever seen'
Harris and Pelosi made history Wednesday when for the first time the VP and Speaker sitting behind the president for a joint-session address were women. They were both wearing masks in compliance with House rules and CDC guidelines for indoor events
Only 200 lawmakers were allowed to attend Biden's first address to a joint-session of Congress to allow for social distancing – in contrast to previous years where the full chamber was filled with 1,600 attendees
Vice President Harris and Speaker Pelosi made history Thursday when the seats behind the president were filled with two women for the first time for a joint-session address.
President Biden announced last week updated guidelines on wearing masks outdoors or those who are vaccinated or intermingling between those with the shot and without.
The only two events unvaccinated people can go maskless for are doing active outdoor activities with members of your own family, like taking a walk or going on a bike ride or attending a small outdoor event with family and friends.
Vaccinated people are also now allowed to not wear a mask when dining at an outdoor restaurant.
Otherwise, all indoor and outdoor activities still require vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals to wear face coverings.
President Biden, Vice President Harris and Speaker Pelosi have all been vaccinated –and an estimate last month said 75 per cent of lawmakers received the jab
These rules are leading to confusion over why its beneficial to get inoculated if a vaccinated individual is subject to most of the same restrictions in daily life as they were before receiving the shot.
'When you looked on television last night, they could have had fewer people in the room than, you know, a packed room like I had when I did it, I understand that,' Trump said of the address. 'But to have a room that was so sparse and to have everybody wearing masks and everybody has the, you know, they all got the shots, but they all have masks. It doesn't show very much confidence.'
'They want to show confidence in the vaccines and then you see something like you saw last night – a room loaded up with masks,' he added. 'I'm telling you, the people looked like they were choking on their masks. I've never seen anything like it.'
Some communities, especially minorities and right-leaning groups, have a lot of hesitancy toward getting the vaccine.
When Biden walked outside the White House to deliver his announcement that vaccinated people don't need to wear masks outside, he was wearing a mask.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released updated guidelines on wearing masks outside based on vaccinated and unvaccinated people – including that people don't need to wear face coverings when outside with family and friends
The new guidelines, however, maintain all vaccinated and unvaccinated people need to wear face masks while indoors
'For Joe Biden to walk outside to announce you don't have to wear masks outside… and he's wearing a mask. He's outside doing it and he walks up in a mask,' Trump lamented during his Thursday interview on Fox Business.
The former president then demanded the U.S. reopen its schools and cities while lauding cities and states with lesser restrictions.
Trump also brought back up attacks on his former White House COVID-19 advisory board head Dr. Anthony Fauci - the nation's top immunologist who is also working now with the Biden administration's response.
'Little Anthony Fauci, who I like, is always a nice guy, he says, you know, 'Don't wear masks, it's terrible,' then, 'Wear masks,' then 'Go for a triple, if you can find five of them, smack them all over your face,;' Trump said in imitating Fauci and blasting him for flip-flopping on advice.
'So many mistakes,' he said.
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