Michigan’s attorney general said Wednesday that President Donald Trump has a “legal responsibility” — under state law — to wear a mask as a coronavirus precaution when he visits a Ford Motor Co. factory Thursday.
In an open letter to Trump, who so far has refused to wear a mask, Attorney General Dana Nessel wrote, “I ask that while you are on tour you respect the great efforts of the men and women at Ford – and across this state – by wearing a facial covering.”
Ford, whose Rawsonville Components Plant in Ypsilanti is set to host Trump on Thursday, has a policy of requring masks there. The company said it has informed the White House about that policy.
But Ford also said Tuesday, “The White House has its own safety and testing policies in place and will make its own determination” about whether Trump and his party will wear masks during the visit.
Ford twice this week has briefly shuttered plants elsewhere after several workers tested positive for the coronavirus.
Asked Tuesday by reporters if he would wear a mask at the Ford facility, Trump at first said, “I don’t know.”
“It depends. In certain areas I would,” the president said. “So, we’ll see. Where it’s appropriate, I will”
But Nessel, in her letter to Trump, wrote that the mask requirement “is not just the policy of Ford, by virtue of the Governor’s Executive Orders.”
“It is currently the law of this State.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Nessel’s letter, which referenced the fact that a personal valet at the White House who served Trump recently tested positive for Covid-19. The president has repeatedly tested negative for the virus.
The letter said, “Michigan has been hit especially hard by the virus, with more than 50,000 confirmed cases and 5,000 deaths.”
“Anyone who has potentially been recently exposed, including the President of the United States, has not only a legal responsibility, but also a social and moral responsibility, to take reasonable precautions to prevent further spread of the virus,” Nessel wrote.
Article source: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/20/coronavirus-trump-required-to-wear-mask-for-ford-visit-michigan-ag-says.html