Jun 23, 2020 02:34 Asia/Tehran [Updated: Jun 23, 2020 05:45 Asia/Tehran]
  • PHOTO: AP Photo/Evan Vucci
    PHOTO: AP Photo/Evan Vucci

Two staffers who attended President Donald Trump's rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday tested positive for coronavirus, Trump's campaign said Monday.

Iran Press/America: "After another round of testing for campaign staff in Tulsa, two additional members of the advance team tested positive for the coronavirus. These staff members attended the rally but were wearing masks during the entire event. Upon the positive tests, the campaign immediately activated established quarantine and contact tracing protocols," Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh said in a statement.

The two positive tests bring the total number of Trump advance team staffers in Tulsa who tested positive for coronavirus to eight.

Hours before Trump's Saturday rally, the campaign said that six staffers working on the rally tested positive for coronavirus.

Murtaugh said in a statement then that "per safety protocols, campaign staff are tested for COVID-19 before events. Six members of the advance team tested positive out of hundreds of tests performed, and quarantine procedures were immediately implemented."

"No COVID-positive staffers or anyone in immediate contact will be at today's rally or near attendees and elected officials," he said.

Attendees at Trump's rally were not required to wear a mask or practice social distancing, despite the Trump administration's top public health officials stressing the importance of both measures in preventing the spread of coronavirus. Several administration officials at the rally did not wear masks, though campaign manager Brad Parscale was seen in one.

After Trump finished speaking in Tulsa, a person familiar with the matter told CNN that two Secret Service agents had also tested positive for coronavirus.

Those attending the rally had to agree not to sue the campaign if they contract coronavirus, acknowledging the "inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19 exists in any public place where people are present."

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