Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) violated his own mask code on Monday while attending the first day of hearings for Judge Amy Coney Barrett, wearing his mask with his nose exposed.
After the hearing, before leaving the chamber, Blumenthal had his mask hanging below his nose — a clear, unsafe violation, many Democrats would say.
In August, Blumenthal declared proper social distancing and mask-wearing absolutely “essential” until a “proven” vaccine for the Chinese coronavirus is available:
During the hearing, Senate Judiciary Committee members removed their masks to speak. The majority of Democrats on the committee, with the exception of Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Kamala Harris (D-CA), attended the hearing in-person, despite warning of the dangers of doing so less than two weeks ago.
In an October 3 letter, Democrats on the committee warned that it would be far too dangerous to hold an in-person hearing, given the recent positive cases of the Wuhan virus among their colleagues.
“To proceed at this juncture with a hearing to consider Judge Barrett’s nomination to the Supreme Court threatens the health and safety of all those who are called upon to do the work of this body,” the letter, signed by Judiciary Committee Democrats — including Blumenthal — said.
“Further, holding a remote hearing for a Supreme Court nomination is not an adequate substitute,” the letter continued.
“As Republican members of this Committee have recognized, questioning nominees by video is ineffective and ignores the gravity of our constitutional duty to provide advice and consent on lifetime appointments, particularly those to the nation’s highest court,” it added.
Blumenthal is far from the only high profile figure to violate his own mask code. Dr. Anthony Fauci famously attended the Washington Nationals’ season opener and, at one point, had his mask hanging around his chin:
Similarly, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D), one of the leading Democrats advocating for the mass use of masks, has been spotted in public without one on more than one occasion, as has Democrat presidential hopeful Joe Biden:
During a recent speech in Las Vegas, the former vice president actually lowered his mask to cough in his hand before returning the face covering to its proper position: