Gov. uses press conference to criticize president for actions, statements
By DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
President Donald Trump getting COVID-19 dominated Gov. Phil Murphy’s press conference Monday, Oct. 5.
Murphy said it was poor leadership by example because the president has on multiple occasions downplayed the use of face coverings to avoid being infected by the coronavirus and it was reckless having a fundraiser in New Jersey after knowing he had been exposed to someone with the virus.
Trump had a fundraiser at his Bedminster golf course in New Jersey Thursday, Oct. 1, the day before testing positive Friday – but after a top aide was found to be infected with the coronavirus.
The positive test had Trump hospitalized Friday through Monday while New Jersey has been contact tracing the 206 people who were at the fundraiser and the 19 staff members at the golf club to determine if they were exposed by the president or his close associates.
Murphy criticized the president and his staff for planning the fundraiser because one of Trump’s top aides, Hope Hicks, had tested positive beforehand.
Along with the president, First Lady Melania Trump, former New Jersey Gov. Christ Christie, three Republican U.S. senators and a half-dozen others in the president’s close circle have since tested positive for the coronavirus.
“This is not a matter of politics, it is a matter of humanity,” Murphy said.
“This is also a matter of leadership by example. And it is clear the president and his staff acted recklessly in coming to New Jersey in the first place knowing they had been exposed to someone with a confirmed positive test.
“This is not the first time we’ve seen that absence of leadership,” he added, saying it is just one example over the last seven months of engendering a political debate over masks when there should be none.
“This is based on science, data and the facts. It has nothing to do with politics,” Murphy said on the need to wear masks to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
The governor said the state also is investigating to see if the fundraiser complied with New Jersey’s current rules on gatherings – whether, for example, the number of people attending exceeded the limits on indoor gatherings or if there was a buffet. The investigation would be handled by the Attorney General’s Office, he said.
“The actions leading up to and during this event have put lives at risk,” Murphy said.
New Jersey residents are the top focus on the contact tracing, but the state is working to notify everyone and had reached 184 of the 206 attendees and expected to be in touch with all 19 staff at Bedminster.
Attendees have been notified they may have been exposed to the coronavirus and should self-monitor for potential symptoms, Murphy said. “We are asking that all attendees self-quarantine for 14 days, especially those who were in close contact with the president or a member of his staff.”
He urged attendees to get tested no earlier than five to seven days after the event – meaning Tuesday to Thursday of this week at the earlier because it can take a week or longer for the virus to incubate and for a person to test positive.
State Epidemiologist Dr. Christine Tan later explained the reason for the delay in testing.
She said if people get tested too quickly after a possible exposure, the test might reveal the infection. The incubation period for the virus is one to 14 days, she explained, and that judging from what has taken place in the U.S. and around the world, the median time for when people start testing positive for exposure is five to seven days.
The governor also urged those who could have been exposed to self-quarantine.
“We’ve been crystal clear on this,” Murphy said. “If you’ve been exposed to someone who is COVID positive, and it’s a meaningful exposure, you have to quarantine. You have to take yourself off the field.”
Asked about U.S. Senate candidate RIk Mehta’s comment that he would not quarantine after taking part in the Trump fundraiser at Bedminster and that the governor is fear-mongering, Murphy responded, “I think that statement should disqualify him from seeking public office.”
Mehta is challenging incumbent Democratic Sen. Cory Booker in the Nov. 3 election.