总统唐纳德·特朗普s对...的抵抗戴着面具是众所周知的，他从来没有在新闻摄像机前这样做过。
但随着他的共和党同僚和福克斯电视节目主持人要求他在疫情恶化时“以身作则”的压力越来越大，特朗普在周三宣称“我完全赞成戴口罩”，并“不会有任何问题”在公共场合戴口罩。
2020年5月5日，美国总统唐纳德·特朗普在参观菲尼克斯生产个人防护设备的霍尼韦尔国际工厂时指出。
“人们看到我戴着一个。如果我在一群人当中，我们不在，你知道，10英尺之外，但通常我不在那个位置，每个人都要接受考验。因为我是总统，他们在见到我之前会接受测试。但如果我和别人关系紧张——我绝对会的，”特朗普说说在接受福克斯商业网采访时。
特朗普似乎指的是一张未经证实的照片，照片中他在5月份参观底特律福特工厂时，戴着一个面具出现在新闻摄像机的视野之外，尽管他当天说，他故意在走向新闻摄像机前摘下面具，并告诉记者他“不想给媒体看到它的乐趣”
“这是一个黑色的面具，我认为它看起来不错。“看起来像独行侠，”他在周三福克斯的采访中开玩笑说。
随着压力越来越大，越来越多的州长和州政府官员强制要求戴口罩，白宫辩称特朗普不戴口罩是“他的选择”，疾病控制中心表示，这是一个“任何个人的个人选择”的问题，是推荐的，但不是必需的。
与此同时，白宫表示，总统认为美国人应该遵循地方当局的指导。
这是副总统迈克·彭斯周二再次使用的同一种语言，同时他也出人意料地宣称，“嗯，总统在公共场合戴了面具，我也戴了。你也听到了关于戴面具的强烈鼓励。”
2020年5月21日，美国总统唐纳德·特朗普(Donald Trump)在密歇根州伊普西兰蒂的福特罗森维尔零部件厂参观时，手持一个带有总统印章的防护面罩。
早在5月，当特朗普在提问时要求一名记者摘下面具——这名记者说他只会说得更大声——特朗普指责他想要“在政治上正确”
一年中有四次采访在《华尔街日报》上，总统反复讨论他如何认为面具是一把“双刃剑”，并嘲笑前副总统乔·拜登戴着面具。
在福克斯的采访中，总统重申他认为冠状病毒最终会“消失”，尽管公共卫生官员已经明确表示它不会简单地消失。
“我认为我们会很好地对付冠状病毒。我认为在某个时候，我希望这种情况会消失，”特朗普说。
彭斯继续坚持国家“安全”地重新开放，尽管总统大部分时间都不公开，也很少提及冠状病毒他和特朗普现在不得不面对一个政治前景岌岌可危的局面，这场致命的大流行正进入一个前所未有的令人担忧的新阶段。
当这位蒙面的副总统周三抵达亚利桑那州时，热点州报告病例和死亡人数又出现了创纪录的每日增长。一天前，政府传染病方面的最高专家警告立法者，如果不采取更多措施来减缓疾病的蔓延，该国每天可能会出现10万例冠状病毒病例。
2020年7月1日，星期三，在凤凰城，副总统迈克·彭斯(右)抵达讨论冠状病毒病例激增时，被亚利桑那州州长道格·杜西(左)用肘撞了一下。
本周，彭斯原本打算前往亚利桑那州进行竞选之旅，但在因COVID-19担忧而被取消后，他的办公室宣布了以不同身份进行访问的新计划，并会见了共和党州长道格·杜西(Doug Ducey)，后者在周一暂停了该州的重新开放努力，因为那里的新案件激增。
亚利桑那州的病例从5月15日该州的在家说订单到期时的13000例增加到周三的79000例。在彭斯着陆前几小时，亚利桑那州卫生部报告了又一天的记录，有4878例新冠状病毒病例和88例死亡。
自大流行爆发以来，特朗普总统已经两次访问了这个战场州:5月，他在一家面具厂发表演讲，但拒绝公开佩戴面具，引用媒体的说法;就在上周，他在一个室内大型教堂举行的约有3000人参加的“特朗普学生”集会上发表演讲。
与特朗普政府的大多数人一样，冠状病毒特别工作组组长彭斯几个月来一直对政府的应对措施持乐观态度，他将在本周访问热点州。安东尼·福西博士说，他周日访问了德克萨斯州，在那里他加强了戴口罩的言辞，并计划明天访问佛罗里达州——这是一个令人担忧的州。
2020年6月30日，副总统彭斯在马里兰州罗克维尔的美国公共卫生服务委任团总部演讲时，摘下了他的面具。
“现在，接下来的几周对我们解决那些我们在佛罗里达、得克萨斯、亚利桑那和其他州看到的问题的能力至关重要，”福西周二对立法者说，并补充道，“他们不是唯一有困难的人。”
随着联邦和州领导如何听取Fauci的建议并解决这一流行病，一些曾经对面具不感兴趣的政治家，面对两党的压力，已经开始推广它们。
2020年7月1日，星期三，在凤凰城，副总统迈克·彭斯(右)和亚利桑那州州长道格·杜西(左)一起前往开会讨论冠状病毒病例激增的问题。
就在两周前，在来自各州市长和其他地方官员的公众压力下，杜塞允许各市县自行设计口罩。尽管菲尼克斯市和其他城市很快颁布了这项要求，但杜西并没有在全州范围内发布命令，此前他曾表示，一些人不能戴口罩，“无论出于何种原因，呼吸短促或患有哮喘。”
最近几天，彭斯和杜西都戴上了面具，并敦促其他美国人戴上面具。
在发布行政命令，再次在酒吧、体育馆、剧院、水上公园和其他场所“暂停运营”后，杜西周一说，“带上面具”。“这是你抵御这种病毒的最好办法。”
尽管特朗普总统最近发表了评论，但他并没有在行动中传达同样的信息，他因未能及时应对而面临批评。
2020年5月21日，美国总统唐纳德·特朗普(Donald Trump)在密歇根州伊普西兰蒂的福特罗森维尔零部件厂参观时，手持一个带有总统印章的防护面罩。
“有成千上万的美国人听总统的话，并会做他们认为他想让他们做的事，所以如果他能站出来给人们一个强烈而清晰的信息，让他们戴上面具，他会为国家做一件伟大的贡献——但也要以身作则，自己戴上面具，”约翰·科恩说，他曾是美国国土安全部的代理副部长，现在是美国广播公司的新闻撰稿人。
科恩还指出，彭斯访问的几个热点州可能过早放松了限制，部分原因是政府发出的信息不一。
“面具上的不一致信息，加上他强烈敦促各州放松社会距离限制，导致了国家政策的不一致，很可能导致了全国确诊病例的增加，”他说。
包括亚利桑那州在内的大多数州在重新开放时没有遵守白宫提出的分阶段实施的建议。5月份的病例数和阳性检测结果并没有呈下降趋势，现在美国近一半地区的病例数和阳性检测结果呈指数增长
2020年6月30日，在DC国会山举行的参议院健康、教育、劳工和养老金委员会听证会上，安东尼·福奇博士和罗伯特·雷德菲尔德博士进行了交谈。
像参议院多数党领袖米奇·麦康奈尔和众议院少数党领袖凯文·麦卡锡这样资深的国会共和党人支持重新开放美国，现在他们呼吁美国人戴上面具，说戴上面具不应该有什么不好的地方，并指出戴上面具可能有助于经济更快复苏。
甚至福克斯新闻的一位保守派主持人也表示，如果总统戴上面具，他将“树立一个好榜样”，并建议共和党全国委员会将“杂志”宣传为“面具又很棒”
2020年6月25日，美国总统唐纳德·特朗普乘坐海军陆战队一号抵达白宫后，走在南草坪上。
周五，特朗普总统将前往南达科他州的拉什莫尔山参加一项活动，周六，他将在华盛顿特区庆祝他的第二次年度“向美国致敬”活动。
南达科他州的共和党州长克里斯蒂·诺姆在周一晚上的拉什莫尔山活动上告诉福克斯新闻，“我们不会在社交上疏远”，并补充说该州将为参加周五晚上活动的人提供面具，不要求人们戴面具。
科恩称，在国家面临公共卫生危机时，甚至不去尝试的行为“非常危险”
曾在克林顿、布什和奥巴马政府任职的科恩补充道:“在有疫苗和其他治疗方法之前，减缓传播、保护弱势人群、防止医疗保健或当地医疗保健系统不堪重负的唯一方法是洗手、与社会保持距离并戴上口罩。”。
“所有当选官员都有责任向公众清楚有力地传达这一点，”他说。
Trump claims he's 'all for masks,' even for himself, despite never wearing one in public
PresidentDonald Trump's resistance towearing a maskis well-known and he's never done so in front of news cameras.
But as pressure mounts from his fellow Republicans and Fox television hosts for him to "set an example" as the pandemic worsens, Trump on Wednesday claimed "I'm all for masks" and "would have no problem" wearing one in public.
President Donald Trump points during a tour of a Honeywell International plant that manufactures personal protective equipment in Phoenix, May 5, 2020.
"People have seen me wearing one. If I'm in a group of people where we're not, you know, 10 feet away and, but usually I'm not in that position and everyone is tested. Because I'm the president, they get tested before they see me. But if I were in a tight situation with people -- I would absolutely," Trumpsaidin an interview with Fox Business Network.
Trump appeared to refer to an unverified photo of him wearing one out of the view of news cameras during part of his tour of a Ford plant in Detroit back in May, even though he said that same day he intentionally removed his mask before walking before news cameras and telling reporters he "didn't want to give the press the pleasure of seeing it."
"It was a dark black mask and I thought it looked okay. Looked like the Lone Ranger," he joked in the Wednesday Fox interview.
As the pressure has grown and more governors and state officials are making masks mandatory, the White House has argued Trump not wearing one was "his choice" -- and a matter of "personal choice of any individual" that the Centers for Disease Control has said is recommended but not required.
At the same time, the White House said the president believed Americans should follow the guidance of local authorities.
It was the same language Vice President Mike Pence used again Tuesday while also claiming surprisingly, "Well, the president's worn a mask in public, as have I. And you've heard a strong encouragement, about mask wearing."
President Donald Trump holds a protective face mask with a presidential seal on it that he said he had been wearing earlier in his tour at the Ford Rawsonville Components Plant in Ypsilanti, Mich., May 21, 2020.
Back in May, when Trump asked a reporter to take his mask off when asking a question -- and the reporter said he would just speak louder -- Trump accused him of wanting "to be politically correct."
And four times in a Juneinterviewwith the Wall Street Journal, the president repeatedly discussed how he believed masks were a "double-edged sword" and mocked former Vice President Joe Biden for wearing one.
In the Fox interview, the president repeated that he thinks the coronavirus will "just disappear" eventually, even though public health officials have made clear it will not simply go away.
"I think we are going to be very good with the coronavirus. I think that at some point that's going to sort of just disappear, I hope," Trump said.
Pence, who continues to insist the country is "safely" reopening even as the president has mostly stayed out public and said little about thecoronaviruscrisis, is taking the lead as he and Trump are now forced to reckon with a political future at risk with an unprecedented alarming new phase in the deadly pandemic.
As the masked vice president touched down in Arizona Wednesday, the hotspot state reported another daily-record increase in cases and deaths -- one day after the government's top expert on infectious disease warned lawmakers the country may see 100,000 coronavirus cases a day without more action to slow the spread.
Vice President Mike Pence, right, is greeted with an elbow bump by Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, left, as he arrives to discuss the surge in coronavirus cases Wednesday, July 1, 2020, in Phoenix.
Pence was initially traveling to Arizona this week for a campaign trip but after it was cancelled out of COVID-19 concerns, his office announced new plans to visit in a different capacity and meet with Republican Gov. Doug Ducey, who halted the state's reopening efforts Monday as new cases there skyrocket.
Arizona has seen its cases go from 13,000 on May 15, when the state's say-at-home order expired, to 79,000 on Wednesday. Hours before Pence touched down, the Arizona Health Department reported another day of records at 4,878 new coronavirus cases and 88 deaths.
President Trump has visited the battleground state twice since the pandemic hit: In May, when he spoke at a mask factory but refused to wear one publicly citing the press, and just last week, when he spoke at a "Students for Trump" rally with roughly 3,000 attendees in an indoor mega-church.
Pence, head of the coronavirus task force, who, like most in the Trump administration, has provided a rosy outlook of the government's response for months, is touring hotspot states throughout the week. He visited Texas on Sunday, where he ramped up his rhetoric around wearing a mask, and has plans to visit Florida tomorrow -- states with cause for concern, according to Dr. Anthony Fauci.
Vice President Pence removes his mask as he arrives at the podium to speak to the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service at their headquarters in Rockville, Md., June 30, 2020.
"Right now, the next couple of weeks are going to be critical in our ability to address those surgings that we are seeing in Florida, in Texas, in Arizona and other states," Fauci told lawmakers Tuesday, adding, "They are not the only ones that are having a difficulty."
As federal and state leadership navigate how to heed Fauci's advice and tackle the pandemic, some politicians once lukewarm on masks, facing bipartisan pressure, have started promoting them.
Vice President Mike Pence, right, walks with Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, left, as the two head to a meeting to discuss the surge in coronavirus cases Wednesday, July 1, 2020, in Phoenix.
Ducey only two weeks ago allowed cities and counties to design their own mask mandates, following a public pressure campaign from mayors and other local officials across the state. While the city of Phoenix and others were quick to enact the requirement, Ducey has not made a statewide mandate, previously saying that some people can't wear masks "for whatever reason, shortness of breath or they are asthmatic."
In recent days, both Pence and Ducey have donned masks themselves and urged other Americans to wear them.
"Arm yourself with a mask," Ducey said Monday after issuing an executive order to, again, "pause operations" in bars, gyms, theaters, water parks and other venues. "It's your best defense against this virus."
Despite his latest comments President Trump has not portrayed the same message in his actions, and he's facing criticism for failing to meet the moment.
President Donald Trump holds a protective face mask with a presidential seal on it that he said he had been wearing earlier in his tour at the Ford Rawsonville Components Plant in Ypsilanti, Mich., May 21, 2020.
"There are millions of Americans who listen to the president and will do what they think he wants them to do, so he would do a great service to the nation if he would come out with strong and clear message for people to wear a mask -- but also set an example by wearing one himself," said John Cohen, a former acting Undersecretary at Department of Homeland Security, now an ABC News Contributor.
Cohen also noted several of the hot spots states Pence is visiting may have prematurely eased restrictions partly due to the mixed messages coming out of the administration.
"The inconsistent message on masks, coupled with him strongly urging states to relax social distancing restrictions has resulted in an inconsistent national policy and very well may have contributed to the increase in confirmed cases we are experiencing across the country," he said.
Most states, including Arizona, when reopening did not adhere to the White House recommendations of a phased approach. Case counts and positive test results weren't on a downward trend in May, and now those are rising exponentially in nearly half of the U.S.
Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Robert Redfield talk prior to the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington DC on June 30, 2020.
Congressional Republicans as senior as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who supported reopening the country are now calling on Americans to wear masks, saying there shouldn't be a stigma around wearing a mask and noting it may help the economy recover sooner.
Even a conservative host on Fox News said the president would "set a good example" if he wore a mask and suggested the Republican National Committee could market "MAGA" as "Masks Are Great Again."
President Donald Trump walks on he South Lawn after arriving on Marine One at the White House, June 25, 2020.
On Friday, President Trump visits South Dakota for an event at Mount Rushmore, and on Saturday he celebrates in Washington, D.C., with his second annual "Salute to America" event.
Republican Gov. Kristi Noem of South Dakota told Fox News Monday night "we won't be social distancing" at the Mount Rushmore event, adding the state would provide masks to those attending the Friday evening event, it would not require people to wear them.
Cohen called the act of not even trying while the nation is dealing with a public health crisis "simply dangerous."
"Until there's a vaccine and to others therapeutic, the only way to slow the spread and protect vulnerable populations and prevent the healthcare, or local healthcare systems from becoming overwhelmed is by washing your hands, socially distancing and wearing a mask," Cohen, who has served in the Clinton, Bush and Obama administrations, added.
"It's the responsibility for all elected officials to clearly and forcefully convey that to the public," he said.
