The White House waited until several aides close to Trump had tested positive for the novel coronavirus to require masks or face coverings for its employees — in guidance that does not apply to the president. Of his decision to go barefaced, Trump said Monday, “In the case of me, I’m not close to anybody.”The ideological overtones of requiring masks have been growing stronger for weeks. In Texas, the Democratic county judge in Harris County recently amended an order requiring masks after Gov. Officials in Stillwater, Okla., reversed course on an order requiring face coverings in stores and restaurants within hours of it taking effect because “store employees have been threatened with physical violence and showered with verbal abuse,” according to a news release from this month. “No mask required!” a user wrote this week of a restaurant in Phoenix, in a Facebook group devoted to reopening Arizona.

Source: Washington Post May 12, 2020 17:06 UTC