Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale said Sunday that several hundred thousand people have requested tickets for President Trump’s looming Oklahoma rally, while some public health officials are fretting over the rally and Mr. Trump’s return to the campaign trail amid the coronavirus outbreak.
“Just passed 800,000 tickets,” Mr. Parscale tweeted on Sunday morning. “Biggest data haul and rally signup of all time by 10x. Saturday is going to be amazing!”
Mr. Parscale previously tweeted that the campaign was looking to add a second event in Oklahoma to accommodate the throngs of people eager to see the president.
Mr. Trump’s coming rally in Oklahoma on Saturday has rankled some public health officials that worry about the spread of coronavirus. Dr. Scott Gottlieb, former Food and Drug Administration commissioner until 2019, told CBS on Sunday that he does not think holding the rally is a good idea.
“If I was giving advice to the administration on this, I would say that they should withhold large political rallies right now,” Dr. Gottlieb told CBS. “They also need to lead by example, and so encouraging people to social distance, encouraging people to wear masks, that’s what we should be engaging in right now.”
Mr. Trump’s team has not heeded Dr. Gottlieb’s advice but it has encouraged those attending the Oklahoma event to take proper precautions. When pressed on whether Trump supporters ought to wear masks at Saturday’s event, National Economic Council director Larry Kudlow told CNN “probably so.”
The campaign is also requiring people who wish to attend the rally to waive the Trump campaign’s liability if the rally-goers get coronavirus.
• Ryan Lovelace can be reached at rlovelace@washingtontimes.com.
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