Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Thursday that he was wrong not to wear a mask at the White House after he and President Donald Trump both came down with the coronavirus.
Christie, in a statement, said he has recovered from COVID-19 after a week-long stay in a hospital’s intensive care unit. He called on all political leaders to advocate for face-coverings, as the practice has become increasingly politicized even as the pandemic has killed more than 217,000 Americans.
“I believed that when I entered the White House grounds, that I had entered a safe zone, due to the testing that and I and many others underwent every day,» Christie said. «I was wrong.”
Christie, who was at the White House for the announcement of Judge Amy Coney Barrett as the president’s nominee to the Supreme Court and to a participate in several rounds of Trump’s debate prep, seemingly chided the president’s attitude toward the disease.
“No one should be happy to get the virus and no one should be cavalier about being infected or infecting others,» Christie said.
Trump has since called his illness as “a blessing from god,» arguing it exposed him to promising therapeutics. He has also been an inconsistent advocate for mask wearing, holding large rallies of thousands of people where many of supporters do not follow public health guidance to cover their face to prevent the spread of the virus.
“Every public official, regardless of party or position, should advocate for every American to wear a mask in public, appropriately socially distance and to wash your hands frequently every day,” Christie said.
Trump administration extends pandemic scheme to give school children free meals
The Trump administration has extended a pandemic program giving free school lunches to children until next summer.
Before the coronavirus swept the US, families could only qualify for lunches if they met certain income thresholds.
Now the federal program that allows schools or summer programs to provide two free meals to students under 18 will run until 30 June 2021.
It had been due to run out at the end of the year before the extension was approved.
Waivers handed out by the Department of Agriculture allow schools to serve meals even when they are closed for remote learning, with parents able to collect the food without their child present.
“These waiver extensions are great news for America’s students and the school nutrition professionals working so hard to support them throughout this pandemic,» said School Nutrition Association President Reggie Ross.
“Families struggling to make ends meet can be assured that their students will have access to healthy school meals, whether they are learning at home or in school.”
