Trump Isn’t Welcome In Places Where He’s Planning Trips During A Pandemic

Multiple elected officials have said the President is sending a poor message by visiting places with stay-at-home orders or refusing to wear a mask.

President Donald Trump speaks as he tours Ford's Rawsonville Components Plant that has been converted to making personal protection and medical equipment, Thursday, May 21, 2020, in Ypsilanti, Mich. | AP Images
President Donald Trump speaks as he tours Ford's Rawsonville Components Plant that has been converted to making personal protection and medical equipment, Thursday, May 21, 2020, in Ypsilanti, Mich. | AP Images

In President Trump’s planned trips around the U.S. made in part to display that the economy is “reopening,” he has clashed with multiple officials who either want him to wear a mask or don’t want him to come at all.

For Memorial Day, as many Americans will remain inside without the usual affairs of beach and barbeque, the President has planned a trip to Baltimore’s Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine.

But the city’s Democratic mayor, Bernard “Jack” Young, has directly implored the President to cancel his plans via Twitter: “Please stay home!”

Young tweeted on Thursday that Trump’s trip sends the “wrong message to our residents, many of whom have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 virus.” The city is still under a stay-at-home order, while the state’s order expired last week. As of Friday, more than 1.5 million COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in the U.S., including more than 95,000 people who have died.

Young added that the city is “dealing with the loss of roughly $20 million in revenue per month” as a result of the crisis, and that the president’s visit would only cost taxpayers more money.

Maryland’s Gov. Larry Hogan (R) will be celebrating his birthday and unable to visit Fort McHenry, WJZ-TV reported.

“We are honored that the President and the First Lady have chosen to spend Memorial Day at Fort McHenry,” Hogan said in a statement described by the local news outlet. “Although Marylanders are encouraged not to gather in large numbers this year – now more than ever – it’s important to reflect on the American heroes who sacrificed their lives for our freedom.”

The Trumps are visiting Baltimore with Defense Secretary Mark Esper, Interior Secretary David Bernhardt, Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and military personnel, the Associated Press reported.

On Thursday, Trump’s visit to a Ford plant that is manufacturing ventilators in Michigan resulted in a characteristic sparring with the state’s attorney general Dana Nessel. Trump appeared in photos without wearing a mask after Nessel wrote a letter ahead of his visit asking that he wear a face covering during his visit, in compliance with the state’s executive order and the facility’s policy.

After Nessel called Trump a “petulant child who refused to follow the rules” during an interview with CNN on Thursday night, the president lashed out on Twitter, calling the AG a “wacky do nothing.” Nessel has also suggested that Ford could face repercussions for allowing Trump to go without a face covering.

In early May, Trump visited an N95 mask factory in Arizona during his first trip away from the East Coast in nearly two months, and he didn’t wear a mask.

Every U.S. state has eased its coronavirus-related restrictions — though the rules in each state vary widely — despite public health experts’ repeated warnings that reopening too soon could risk more infections.

An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll published this week found 83% of Americans “are at least somewhat concerned” that easing restrictions where they live will lead to additional infections.