colleagues at Fox News.
McEnany again insisted that Trump “has been very clear that wearing masks has nothing to do with politics” and said, “it’s never been a political issue” for the president.
“So your message to people who will not wear a mask because they feel it’s infringing on their rights, they don’t want the government to tell them what to do, what do you say to those people?” Doocy pressed.
“Well, I’d say that the CDC has been clear that’s recommended, but not required,” McEnany replied. “There’s not a federal mandate, but if you can’t socially distance, follow the president’s lead and put on a mask. I think that’s the best way forward, and the president has been saying that for weeks.”
President Trump wore a mask in public for the first time just over a week ago, and posted a photo of himself in a mask on his Twitter feed for the first time yesterday. In the weeks and months before that, Trump joked that he “didn’t want to give the press the pleasure” of seeing him in a mask and retweeted memes mocking his rival Joe Biden for wearing one (including one such post from Fox News analyst Brit Hume).
Just this past weekend, Trump told Fox News host Chris Wallace that he would not be implementing a nationwide mask mandate because he wants “people to have a certain freedom.”
“I don’t believe in the statement that if everyone wore a mask, everything disappears,” he said, adding, “As you know, masks cause problems too. That being said, I’m a believer in masks. I think masks are good.”
