In a first, Trump dons masks in visit to a military medical facility

  • The visit to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center marked Trump's first public appearance with a face covering since the virus began sweeping across the United States earlier this year
12 Jul, 2020

(BETHESDA, Md) President Donald Trump, who has avoided wearing a mask in public even as the coronavirus pandemic spread, donned one on Saturday at a military medical facility outside Washington where he was to meet with wounded soldiers and front-line health-care workers.

The visit to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center marked Trump's first public appearance with a face covering since the virus began sweeping across the United States earlier this year.

Trump had previously refused to wear a mask in public or ask other Americans to do so, saying it was a personal choice, although he had said he would if he was in a crowd and could not maintain distance from others.

"I think when you are in a hospital, especially in that particular setting when you are talking to a lot of soldiers, people that in some cases just got off the operating table, I think it’s a great thing to wear a mask," Trump told reporters at the White House just before his visit to Walter Reed.

Read Comments