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Vice President Kamala Harris declined to wear a mask during a visit to a D.C. elementary school Monday because city guidance states that masking is optional for both students and staff, Harris’ office told Fox News Digital.
Harris visited Neville Thomas Elementary School on Monday, and images from the visit showed her and school administrators bare-faced alongside young students wearing masks.
Media critics and political opponents quickly criticized Harris, arguing it was hypocritical to forgo a mask when the Biden-Harris administration is pushing for some mask mandates.
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While Harris was pictured several times with students who all wore a mask, there are also photos of the vice president with unmasked children.
Other critics claimed the students at the school were forced to mask, which is not the case. D.C. public schools shifted to an optional mask policy on March 16.
“In the Democrats’ anti-science dystopia, the only person who doesn’t need to wear a mask is Kamala Harris,” wrote Republican National Committee rapid response director Tommy Pigott.
The incident echoed a similar case in which failed Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams went mask-less during a visit to a school where students were required to mask.
Abrams later apologized for the incident during an appearance on CNN, though she stood by the importance of mask mandates.
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“I took a picture and that was a mistake. Protocols matter. Protecting our kids is the most important thing, and anything that can be perceived as undermining that is a mistake, and I apologize,” Abrams told CNN host Erin Burnett.
