“Fox & Friends” host Steve Doocy on Tuesday advocated for President Trump to wear a face mask in order to set an example for the American public amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“More states every day are mandating people, their citizens, to wear masks and I think that if the president wore one it would just set a good example. He would be a good role model,” Doocy while interviewing Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel.
“I don’t see any downside to the president wearing a mask in public,” Doocy added.
He also quipped that the president’s campaign slogan abbreviation “MAGA” should stand for “Masks Are Great Again.”
McDaniel responded by saying the president takes COVID-19 “incredibly seriously” before broaching the Trump travel ban on China in late January.
During a separate interview with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), Doocy said Trump has “made it clear he doesn’t want to wear a mask, but his federal government says everybody should wear a mask.”
“Don’t you think it would be a powerful symbol if the President of the United States would put on a mask and understand what so many people around the country are doing to try to slow down the spread of this thing?” Doocy asked.
“When you see the president speak, I think there’s social distancing. I’ve known the president to have worn a mask at times as he goes forward,” McCarthy replied. “Wearing the mask is the best opportunity for us to keep this economy open.”
Trump is an avid watcher of Fox News and has frequently called in to “Fox & Friends” to participate in interviews. It was unclear if he witnessed Doocy’s remarks.
The Fox News host’s perspective comes after Sean Hannity also urged the wearing of masks in an effort to protect more vulnerable citizens.
“I’ve been saying forever. Look, anecdotally, I was in the epicenter of this,” Hannity, a New York resident, explained late Monday on his prime-time Fox News show. “I went to my grocery store every week, guess what? They wore masks. Nobody at my grocery store, thank God, got coronavirus. I think they work. If I wear a mask, and if it opens up baseball, concerts, NFL football, I’d rather wear a mask to go to the game to protect grandma and grandpa, mom and dad, and watch the ball game.”
Face coverings are recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. While top administration officials have worn masks in public, Trump has resisted wearing a face covering. The White House argues that because Trump is tested for COVID-19 daily, he does not need to wear a mask in public.
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters Monday afternoon that Trump has “no problem” with mask wearing, but said it was a “personal choice” of individuals.
Republicans have increasingly advocated for mask wearing in order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
“We must have no stigma, none, about wearing masks when we leave our homes and come near other people,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said in remarks on the Senate floor Monday. “Wearing simple face coverings is not about protecting ourselves, it is about protecting everyone we encounter.”
Senate Health Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) said during opening remarks at a hearing Tuesday that he has urged Trump to wear a mask occasionally in order to put an end to the “political debate” surrounding the practice of mask wearing.
“Unfortunately this simple lifesaving practice has become part of a political debate that says: If you’re for Trump, you don’t wear a mask. If you’re against Trump, you do,” Alexander said.
“That is why I have suggested the president should occasionally wear a mask even though there are not many occasions when it is necessary for him to do so. The president has millions of admirers. They would follow his lead,” the senator continued.
Coronavirus cases have spiked in Florida, Texas and Arizona, prompting Republican leaders in those states to roll back advanced phases of the reopening process.
–This report was updated at 11:54 a.m.