Trump Should Delay Tulsa Rally Over Virus, Local Official Says

(Bloomberg) -- The top public health official in Tulsa, Oklahoma, said he recommended delaying President Donald Trump’s rally there on Saturday amid a spike in local coronavirus cases.

But the event is moving forward, which has prompted Tulsa Health Department Executive Director Bruce Dart to recommend precautions for those attending.

“I recommended it be postponed until it’s safer -- until the data tells us that it’s not as large a concern to have people indoors and in enclosed spaces with the threat of Covid-19 transmission,” Dart said at a news conference in Tulsa on Wednesday.

Trump is holding his first rally since the pandemic began at an indoor arena in Tulsa that’s expected to be filled to its capacity of 20,000 people. Local officials expect an overflow crowd of perhaps 80,000 more people, including 35,000 in a nearby convention center and thousands in the streets.

The campaign has said it will conduct temperature checks, and offer masks and hand sanitizer to those attending as a precaution against spreading the virus.

The White House downplayed mounting health concerns over the rally, and said the media hasn’t raised similar alarm about the virus being spread at nationwide protests against police brutality and racism.

Massacre Site

“It’s the personal decision of Americans as to whether to go to the rally or whether not to go to the rally,” White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters at a briefing on Wednesday. “But I would note that this concern for the rallies has been largely absent when it came to the protesters.”

Trump said Wednesday night that there’s great demand to restart the rallies. “We’ll be in Tulsa -- you have a great mayor, and you have a great governor,” Trump said in an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity. “They’re so excited about it, you have no idea.”

Trump may also tour Greenwood, the site of the Tulsa race massacre in 1921, local officials said at the briefing, adding another layer of controversy to the visit. Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt, a Republican, asked that Trump refrain from visiting Greenwood to avoid disrupting celebrations of Juneteenth, which commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S.

Amid an outcry over race relations in the U.S. and police treatment of Black Americans, Trump had already delayed the rally by a day to avoid holding it on Juneteenth.

Dart declined to say to whom he recommended delaying the rally.

‘Increased Risk’

He said there were 96 new coronavirus cases, the county’s highest daily total yet, bringing the number of active cases to 595. The largest increase is among adults aged 18 to 35, Dart said.

Dart asked those who are feeling sick, who’ve been exposed people with the virus or who have compromised immune systems to skip the rally. He asked people who attend to wear a mask, which isn’t required, and practice social distancing, which may be a challenge in an arena filled to capacity.

“I know so many people are over Covid, but Covid is not over,” Dart said. “Anyone planning to attend a large-scale gathering will face an increased risk of becoming infected with Covid-19.”

State health officials recommended those who attend the rally get tested for coronavirus before and after the event.

The Trump campaign and the arena manager, ASM Global, did not respond to requests for comment.

Republican Mayor G.T. Bynum described hosting the event as an honor, and touted his city’s preparation for a possible outbreak, saying hospitals have ample capacity and are stocked with reserves of personal protective equipment.

In a statement Tuesday, the arena manager said the rally complies with government regulations.

“In the event that the governing authorities impose new restrictions, we will notify the event organizers immediately,” ASM said in a statement.

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