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Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-L.A.) arrives for the weekly Senate Republican policy luncheon in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill June 9, 2020 in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Day After Chiding Democrats for Calling for Mail-In Voting Amid Pandemic, GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy Tests Positive for Coronavirus
The lawmaker said he will self-quarantine and follow advice of medical experts.
Aug 20, 2020
Sen. Bill Cassidy plans to self-quarantine for 14 days after the Louisiana Republican tested positive for Covid-19.
"I am strictly following the direction of our medical experts and strongly encourage others to do the same," the senator said in a statement Thursday.
News of Cassidy's positive test sparked ire from critics as, just a day before, Cassidy posted a video to Twitter arguing for in-person voting amid the pandemic.
"If you can go to the grocery store safely and practice social distancing, then you can safely go to the voting booth," the senator tweeted.
Amid mounting controversy over Postmaster General Louis DeJoy's moves to decommission postal sorting machines and blue USPS mail boxes around the country, lawmakers remain embroiled in a partisan fight about the future of the Postal Service and about mail-in voting for the Novemember election amid the Covid-19 crisis.
Cassidy, 62, is experiencing "mild symptoms that began this morning," from Covid-19, the illness caused by the virus, his spokesperson Cole Avery told the New York Times Thursday.
A physician from Baton Rouge, Cassidy regularly wears a mask in public. He the second United States senator to test positive for the virus. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) tested positive in March, and several members of the U.S. House have also reported having Covid-19.
The Louisiana Department of Health reported 140,821 cases of the virus and 4,496 deaths as of Thursday.
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Sen. Bill Cassidy plans to self-quarantine for 14 days after the Louisiana Republican tested positive for Covid-19.
"I am strictly following the direction of our medical experts and strongly encourage others to do the same," the senator said in a statement Thursday.
News of Cassidy's positive test sparked ire from critics as, just a day before, Cassidy posted a video to Twitter arguing for in-person voting amid the pandemic.
"If you can go to the grocery store safely and practice social distancing, then you can safely go to the voting booth," the senator tweeted.
Amid mounting controversy over Postmaster General Louis DeJoy's moves to decommission postal sorting machines and blue USPS mail boxes around the country, lawmakers remain embroiled in a partisan fight about the future of the Postal Service and about mail-in voting for the Novemember election amid the Covid-19 crisis.
Cassidy, 62, is experiencing "mild symptoms that began this morning," from Covid-19, the illness caused by the virus, his spokesperson Cole Avery told the New York Times Thursday.
A physician from Baton Rouge, Cassidy regularly wears a mask in public. He the second United States senator to test positive for the virus. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) tested positive in March, and several members of the U.S. House have also reported having Covid-19.
The Louisiana Department of Health reported 140,821 cases of the virus and 4,496 deaths as of Thursday.
Sen. Bill Cassidy plans to self-quarantine for 14 days after the Louisiana Republican tested positive for Covid-19.
"I am strictly following the direction of our medical experts and strongly encourage others to do the same," the senator said in a statement Thursday.
News of Cassidy's positive test sparked ire from critics as, just a day before, Cassidy posted a video to Twitter arguing for in-person voting amid the pandemic.
"If you can go to the grocery store safely and practice social distancing, then you can safely go to the voting booth," the senator tweeted.
Amid mounting controversy over Postmaster General Louis DeJoy's moves to decommission postal sorting machines and blue USPS mail boxes around the country, lawmakers remain embroiled in a partisan fight about the future of the Postal Service and about mail-in voting for the Novemember election amid the Covid-19 crisis.
Cassidy, 62, is experiencing "mild symptoms that began this morning," from Covid-19, the illness caused by the virus, his spokesperson Cole Avery told the New York Times Thursday.
A physician from Baton Rouge, Cassidy regularly wears a mask in public. He the second United States senator to test positive for the virus. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) tested positive in March, and several members of the U.S. House have also reported having Covid-19.
The Louisiana Department of Health reported 140,821 cases of the virus and 4,496 deaths as of Thursday.
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