Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) revealed he is not so sure he will be heading off to Florida for the Republican National Convention taking place next month amid the coronavirus pandemic.
McConnell was asked by a reporter on Thursday if he will be attending the convention despite the uptick in the number of coronavirus cases in states including Florida.
“Well I think the convention, it’s a challenging situation and a number of my colleagues announced that they’re not going to attend, and we’ll have to wait and see how things look in late August to determine whether or not you can safely convene that many people,” McConnell said.
Watch his comments below:
Senator Mitch McConnell, the Senate majority leader, talked today in Kentucky about his stance on whether he will attend the Republican convention in Jacksonville, Florida. @Enquirer pic.twitter.com/m9Onp0pvzQ
— Chris Mayhew (@reportermayhew) July 9, 2020
Florida has become the new epicenter of the outbreak.
As of Thursday evening, there are nearly 233,000 coronavirus cases in Florida alone and just over 4,000 deaths.
During a White House press briefing on Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany did confirm Republicans will be moving ahead with the Florida convention, as IJR previously reported.
According to McEnany, it will be up to the Republican National Committee (RNC) to iron out the details.
President Donald Trump indicated the convention could be downsized due to the surge in cases, as IJR previously reported.
He said plans for the convention may depend “on the timing.”
Not everyone is on board with the convention.
A group of Jacksonville, Florida, attorneys filed a lawsuit on Wednesday to prevent the convention from taking place.
“To avoid community spread of COVID-19 and to protect the health and welfare of Plaintiffs and the community, it is necessary and essential that all super spreader events where large numbers of people congregate in close proximity indoors not occur,” the lawsuit reads.
The United States continues to see an uptick in the number of coronavirus cases.
There are more than 3.1 million coronavirus cases in the nation and over 133,000 deaths.
