Mass quarantine has led to the decision that Secret Service agents involved in the presidential trip must be tested for corona virus over the next few weeks, according to an email sent to agency personnel. The e-mail sent on Wednesday was confirmed by law enforcement officials. Agents must now be tested 24 to 48 hours before the president’s trip, the email said. The new test mandate will be valid until July 4.
Law enforcement officials say the number of quarantine agents is on the “low” side of the dozens. A Secret Service official said quarantine would not have an impact on agency operations. The news was first reported by
The Washington Post.Asked about the decision to test all agents in the course of the presidency for the corona virus, Secret Service officials said protecting agent personnel was crucial during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We want to ensure that we have a healthy workforce and that we protect our people,” the official said. “This is good common sense.”
US Secret Service sources who worked first for Saturday’s demonstration and now quarantine told CNN that agents from Dallas and Houston also participated in the event, and they had been warned before traveling from field offices that they needed to be quarantined when they arrived home.
The steps came after two Secret Service agents who attended the rally were tested positive for coronavirus, someone familiar with the matter had previously told CNN.
“The US Secret Service remains ready and the staff to fulfill all the diverse tasks required. The implication that the agency is in some cases unprepared or unable to carry out our mission will be inaccurate,” US Secret Service spokeswoman Catherine Milhoan told CNN in a statement Wednesday night.
“To protect the privacy of our employees’ health information and for operational security, the Secret Service does not release how many employees have tested positive for COVID-19, or how many employees, or currently, are quarantined,” he continued.
Still, news of Secret Service staff being quarantined would increase surveillance of the Tulsa rally, which had been intensely monitored after Trump’s campaign announced that some of the predecessor team staff working at the event were tested positive for the virus.
Participants at the rally were not required to wear masks or practice social distance, although government public health officials stressed the importance of both steps in preventing the spread of coronavirus.
Some administrative officials at the rally did not wear masks, although campaign manager Brad Parscale was seen wearing a mask.
Those attending the rally must agree not to sue the campaign if they contract the corona virus, acknowledging “the inherent risk of COVID-19 exposure exists in public places where people are present.”
“By attending the General Meeting, you and any guest voluntarily assume all risks associated with COVID-19 exposure and agree not to hold Donald J. Trump for President, Inc .; BOK Center; ASM Global; or affiliates, director officers, employees, agents, contractors or volunteers responsible for any illness or injury, “read the disclaimer agreed by the participant.
In the end, only less than 6,200 people attended the rally, according to the Tulsa Fire Department. Plans for the overflow speech were canceled because fewer than 25 people had gathered in the area where it was supposed to occur. Trump once estimated 20,000 people in the arena with an additional 40,000 outside.
CNN Kate Bennett, Ryan Nobles, Donald Judd and Kate Sullivan contributed to this report.
