Donald Trump gets on the road again: President heads to coronavirus-hit Florida on Friday to talk about drug smuggling NOT the public health crisis
- Donald Trump will visit the U.S. Southern Command in Doral, Florida on Friday to be briefed on drug trafficking from South America
- It is located less right next to President Trump’s Doral Miami resort
- Rather than addressing the surging coronavirus crisis in the state, the president will then attend a fundraiser there – it isn’t clear if he will stop at his golf club
- Miami-Dade country is the fifth-most affected area in the U.S. from coronavirus
- That area, and much of Florida, has reimplemented lockdown orders after several days of record breaking day-high infection numbers hit the state
- Trump’s visit comes the day before his second post-coronavirus rally in New Hampshire on Saturday, which will be held outdoors and include free masks
Donald Trump is heading to Florida on Friday where he will be briefed on drug smuggling from South America and participate in a fundraiser as the state was forced to reimplement partial lockdowns due to coronavirus surges.
The president notably is not spending his day in Florida addressing the massive spike in COVID-19 infections there over the last few weeks as state lawmakers had to halt reopening plans after several day-high new infection rates.
Trump will spend his time in southern Florida at the U.S. Southern Command in Doral the day before heading to New Hampshire for his second post-coronavirus rally.
The command center is located right next to Trump National Doral golf resort, which is northeast of Miami, but it is not clear if the president will make the less than two mile drive to visit his club for a round of golf.
Doral is in Miami-Dade county, which is one of the areas most affected by the resurgence of the virus, now with nearly 49,000 confirmed cases – making it the fifth highest-affected county in the country.
Donald Trump will visit the U.S. Southern Command in Doral, Florida Friday to discuss drug trafficking from South America before attending a fundraiser – instead of addressing the surging coronavirus crisis there
SOUTHCOM in located less than two miles from President Trump’s Doral Miami resort in Miami-Dade county – but it is not clear if the president will stop at his golf club
The area has returned to almost a complete lockdown, ending indoor dining services and closing gyms that had recently reopened.
SOUTHCOM, which is one of the 11 Department of Defense’s unified Combatant Commands, is responsible for providing operations and security cooperation in Central America, South America and the Caribbean.
The trip comes as Florida has experienced several day-high infection and death rates due to coronavirus after a reopening plan began that was much more ambitious than some other highly populated states.
On Monday the state reported 6,336 new confirmed cases and on Independence Day Saturday reported a new day-high total of 11,445 new daily coronavirus cases in the state.
Now the state is reinstating lockdowns to avoid exacerbating the spread further – including orders in many areas requiring masks at all indoor locations.
Trump finally conceded in an interview with Fox Business last week that he would wear a face covering if he were in a crowded situation, claiming he likes the way he looks in a mask, even though he has never been seen wearing one publicly.
Trump’s visit to Florida comes one day before he heads New Hampshire for his second post-coronavirus rally there, which will be held outside and his campaign will hand out face masks
His campaign also announced it would be giving out hand sanitizer and face masks to attendees at his outdoor rally at the Portsmouth International Airport in New Hampshire, a battleground state.
The rally will be held outside on the airport hangar and include extra health precautions after the president’s first come-back rally post-coronavirus in Tulsa, Oklahoma last month yielded a less than desirable
The president also plans to travel to Florida in August for his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention, which was moved to Jacksonville after Democratic lawmakers in Charlotte, North Carolina would not accommodate for Trump’s desired crowd size.
The northern Florida city is one of the areas coronavirus is surging, and officials issued a mandate last week that masks would be required at all indoor venues, including the RNC convention location at VyStar Veterans Arena.