(CNN) Newly elected Democratic members of the House are no longer attending a group dinner planned for Statuary Hall in the Capitol Friday night after Democratic leadership faced questions about the gathering amid a national coronavirus surge. There is no group dinner," Drew Hammill, a spokesman for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, tweeted Friday evening. Pelosi had defended the dinner earlier in the day, telling reporters the venue was "very spaced" and that there were safety protocols in place. "It's very spaced, we have all the permission and the ventilation from the doctor," she said. In an earlier Friday evening tweet , Hammill said: "Our office strictly follows the guidance of the Office of Attending Physician, including for this dinner.

Source: CNN November 14, 2020 01:07 UTC