Trump appeared outside the White House yesterday where he declared victory and said mission accomplished "we have prevailed" over the novel coronavirus but, for the first time, wearing a mask is now required at the White House.
The new rules do not apply to Trump or Mike Pence, of course; both of whom have refused to wear masks because they believe it will may them look weak. But everyone else is now required to wear one.
From NBC News:
The White House on Monday began requiring that all staffers entering the West Wing wear a facial covering, and asked aides to avoid going there "unless you absolutely need to conduct in-person business in the West Wing," according to a memo sent to staffers.
The memo says staffers do not need to wear a mask at their desk if they can socially distance. [...]
White House staffers returned in Monday morning to a thoroughly cleaned West Wing and new protocols around testing and masks after the president’s personal valet and Pence’s spokesperson both tested positive for the virus in recent days.
Maybe only a few of them realize it, but what White House staffers are being implicitly told is that Trump's vanity is important than their own safety.
They may be required to wear masks now, but Trump isn't because he is the only one who matters, right? Everyone else is expendable in service of the Mad King.
Once again we are reminded that Trump and those closest to him understand the danger they're in, but that same danger is not conveyed to average Americans who are being told they're "warriors" who should sacrifice their bodies for the stock market and Trump's polls numbers. Trump himself is reportedly unnerved by the virus coming so physically close to him, but he does not share that concern for literally anyone else.
I do not believe the GOP's right wing fever will ever break, but I hope Trumpism ultimately represents a break in America's extreme narcissism. That all depends on electing Joe Biden in November.
Given our current pace of daily coronavirus deaths, we may reach 100,000 sometime in the next two weeks.