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Nineteen Days After Testing Positive For COVID-19, Gov. Mike Parson Continues Maskless In-Person Campaigning and Lying to the Public
After testing positive for the virus and dealing with an outbreak in his office and his household, it doesn’t appear Mike Parson has learned his lesson – he returned to the campaign trail this weekend, attending an event in Buchanan County maskless.
It’s been nineteen days since Parson tested positive for COVID-19, and he’s still acting irresponsibly, spreading misinformation about the disease, and refusing to disclose details of the outbreak within his office.
Parson has lied about masks, saying all high-risk counties in Missouri have mandates. Politifact reports that this claim is false, saying “Many counties designated by the White House Coronavirus Task Force as ‘red zones,’ the most severe rating possible, have no mask mandate.”
Parson has repeatedly ignored public health officials’ recommendations to mandate masks in Missouri – despite warnings from the White House Coronavirus Task Force that the state is in a vulnerable position heading into the winter. Parson’s ignorance on masks has proved costly – more than 148,000 Missourians, including over 1,800 state employees, have tested positive for the virus.
Parson also failed to listen to public health experts when it came to handling the outbreak in his own office. He refused to report which of his staffers tested positive for the virus and who they may have exposed at public events. Even the Trump administration has told the public which staff members have tested positive following the President’s diagnosis.
“It’s no wonder Mike Parson bungled Missouri’s COVID-19 response – he can’t even properly handle the outbreak in his own administration,” said DGA Deputy Communications Director Christina Amestoy. “Missourians have a right to know who has tested positive for the virus in Parson’s office and who those staffers may have exposed. And they have the right to have a governor who leads by example. When it comes to public health, Missouri needs a leader who follows the science and acts with urgency.”