Published 14:06 IST, May 28th 2020
Even Republicans divided as US President Trump refuses to wear mask, mocks those who do
Many Republicans have expressed their opposing stance against Trump's suggestion that wearing masks is a sign of 'personal weakness' or 'political correctness'.
As US President Donald Trump refuses to wear a face mask in public, differences have arisen between Republicans. Many Republicans have expressed their opposing stance against Trump's suggestion that wearing masks is a sign of 'personal weakness' or 'political correctness'.
Among those who have asserted so are Governors who want to prevent a second wave of the pandemic that has severely gripped the United States. According to the Washington Post, the divided lot also includes many lawmakers who are gearing up to face re-election later this year. Even so, some of the Republican strategists have seen the move as Trump's tactics ahead of the presidential elections to woo voters who see Trump as a champion for leading them back towards a normal life.
"Wearing a face covering is not about politics - it's about helping other people. This is one time when we truly are all in this together. What we do directly impacts others," Ohio Governor Mike DeWine tweeted on Tuesday, while echoing comments by North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum last week.
Meanwhile on Tuesday night, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell uploaded an Instagram post of himself wearing a mask. While Fred Upton has urged people by adding '#wearyourmask' to his Twitter handle. In addition, Senator John Cornyn running for re-election this year, shared a photograph of himself in a mask on Monday, asking others to follow.
"We all have to do our part. Maintain social distancing but if you can't, do this. Easy peasy. Go for it," Cornyn wrote on Instagram.
Trump mocks Biden for wearing a mask
Meanwhile, Democratic rival Joe Biden slammed Trump for mocking him for wearing a mask at a Memorial Day ceremony. This followed after the US President re-tweeted a photograph of Biden captioned as, "This might help explain why Trump doesn't like to wear a mask in public", by writing 'He looks much better'.
In an interview with CNN, Biden responded and said that Trump has failed to lead the country by example.
"He's a fool, an absolute fool, to talk that way." "He's supposed to lead by example," Biden said.
The former vice president also highlighted that nearly 100,000 Americans have been killed by the virus and suggested that as many as half of those deaths were avoidable but for Trump's "lack of attention and ego."
"It's just absolutely this macho stuff,” Biden said of Trump bristling at wearing a mask in public, a practice the former vice president called being “falsely masculine.” said Biden
“It's cost people's lives.” Biden added that the president is politicising the issue and “it's stoking deaths. That's not going to increase the likelihood that people are going to be better off." he added
Public opinion over wearing masks
Similarly, First lady Melania Trump too was spotted donning a mask on the Marine One but not in public. Mrs. Trump walked to Marine One with her husband President Donald Trump on Monday without the mask on. As per the data by Kaiser Family Foundation, 89 per cent of Democrats and 72 percent of independents report wearing a mask every time or most of the time when they leave home, compared with 58 per cent of Republicans. Meanwhile, three recent public polls have found that between 64 and 72 per cent of people feel that President Trump should wear a mask, while between 38 and 48 per cent of Republicans say that he should do so.
(With Agency Inputs)
Updated 14:06 IST, May 28th 2020