Secretary of State Mike Pompeo seems to be flouting his department’s own COVID-19 guidelines with at least a dozen in-person holiday events scheduled in the coming weeks, including a ''Diplomacy at Home for the Holidays'' party that 900 people have been invited to, reports The Washington Post.
The State Department last week sent out a notice to employees recommending that any ''non-mission critical events'' be changed to ''virtual events as opposed to in-person gatherings,'' but the social calendar at headquarters and Blair House, the presidential guest house controlled by the State Department, is still packed.
Ian Lipkin, director of the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University, told the Post the events have all the makings ''of a repeat of what we saw in the White House Rose Garden following the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett.
''I’m flabbergasted,'' Lipkin said. ''An indoor event of this kind is dangerous on so many levels.''
A State Department spokesman said, ''we plan to fully enforce social distancing measures at this reception, and face coverings are mandatory for admittance.''
The events come as COVID-19 cases spike in the United States. More than 14 million people have been infected with the virus, according to Johns Hopkins University, and the death toll Thursday surpassed 275,000.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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