Cruz refuses to wear mask when questioned by reporter at a news conference

Cruz refuses to wear mask when questioned by reporter at a news conference

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Sen. Ted CruzRafael (Ted) Edward Cruz Morning report from The Hill – Biden performs tasks in Harris at the border; press conference today Senate Democrats pay tribute to victims of mass shootings The Hill’s 12:30 Report – Presented by Facebook – Development of the COVID MORE vaccine (R-Texas) on Wednesday refused to wear a mask during a Capitol press conference after a reporter repeatedly asked him to put one as a courtesy to others in the room.

“Would you mind putting on a mask for us?” a reporter asked Cruz when he approached a bank of microphones.

“Uh, yes, when I’m talking in front of the TV cameras, I’m not going to wear a mask,” replied Cruz. “And we were all immunized, so …”

Cruz turned and gestured to several of his Republican colleagues in the Senate, including Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Who was behind him wearing a mask.

“It would make us feel better,” pressed reporter Cruz.

Cruz told the reporter, “You can walk away if you want. The main point of a vaccine … the CDC’s guidance is what we are following.”

Guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention currently recommends that even those who have been vaccinated continue to wear masks because the vaccines are not 100 percent effective and it is not known whether the virus can still be transmitted by those who received the vaccine.

It was not the first time during the pandemic that reporters asked Cruz to wear a mask when talking to them and he refused.

In October, Cruz was asked by a CNN reporter whether he would put on a mask during a riot outside a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing room.

Cruz refused, saying he was almost two meters away from the others, so facial coverage was unnecessary.

Federal health officials said all Americans should continue to use facial coverage while in public, in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

Some Republicans on Capitol Hill have downplayed the effectiveness of the masks, questioning the science behind them and, in some cases, receiving reprimands from their Democratic counterparts for not wearing them on the floor.

Cruz was photographed on a plane in July without a mask, a photo his office said was taken during a brief period when he drank.

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