Ted Cruz won’t wear mask to speak to reporters at Capitol

Republican Sen. Ted Cruz (Texas) on Thursday said he would not wear a mask while talking to reporters outside the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing room, claiming he did not have to do so because he was standing six feet apart from the journalists. 

Cruz stepped in front of a reporter pool in the Senate hallway along with Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who can be seen in a video putting on his face mask while Cruz takes his off. 

After a CNN reporter asked Cruz if he could put his mask back on, the Texas senator responded, “No.” 

Cruz added that he was “standing six feet apart, which is what the CDC guideline is.” 

For events and gatherings indoors, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) currently recommends that people both socially distance and wear masks in order to minimize the risk of infection, according to its website. 

Sen @tedcruz says “no” he won’t put his mask on when asked politely to by pooler @kristin__wilson, citing how he’s talking to the TV & CDC guidelines are to stand 6ft apart

CDC guidelines are to social distance & wear a mask particularly indoors as it’s more risky than outdoors pic.twitter.com/0VxazegyQI

— Ali Zaslav (@alizaslav) October 15, 2020

On Monday, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows refused to “talk through a mask” to reporters during Amy Coney Barrett’s Supreme Court confirmation hearing.

“I’m more than 10 feet away … that way I can take this off,” Meadows said before removing his mask.

After a reporter asked him to put it back on, Meadows replaced the mask and walked away, saying, “I’m not going to talk through a mask.”

The chief of staff wore a mask in the hearing room with White House counsel Pat Cipollone, according to NBC News.

Meadows is among the White House employees who continued to work out of his office and directly interact with President Trump since the president was diagnosed with COVID-19 earlier this month. Meadows said he tested negative for the virus on Monday.

Sens. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) made appearances at Barrett’s hearings this week after both tested positive for COVID-19 on Oct. 2, hours after news broke that the president and first lady Melania Trump had contracted the infection.