McConnell Picks a Side in GOP’s Battle Over Face Coverings: ‘We Must Have No Stigma’ Around Wearing Masks

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) endorsed face coverings on Monday, a position contrary to the apparent instincts of many House Republicans and President Donald Trump.

“We must have no stigma — none — about wearing masks when we leave our homes and come near other people,” McConnell said in a speech to the Senate. “Wearing simple face coverings is not about protecting ourselves. It is about protecting everyone we encounter.” He added Americans should be “happy” to take “small steps” that ensure the country can “remain on offense” against the coronavirus.

The speech makes McConnell the latest Republican to pick a side in the party’s internal battle over whether it should encourage Americans to wear face masks. Trump has questioned the practice, suggesting in an interview earlier this month that masks were failing to stop the spread of the virus. “They put their finger on the mask, and they take them off, and then they start touching their eyes and touching their nose and their mouth. And then they don’t know how they caught it?” Trump said.

House Republicans in particular have sparred with Democrats over the issue. Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (D-FL) — who notably wasn’t wearing her mask at the time — ripped Rep. Jim Jordan (O-OH) during a House Judiciary Committee hearing last week for failing to bring a mask to the hearing, calling it “incredibly disrespectful.” Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC), who sits as chairman of the House Select Committee on the Coronavirus Crisis, sent a letter to Republicans on Monday telling them he would no longer allow maskless members to speak unless they participated remotely.

Watch above via the Senate.