FIRST CLASS MASK HOLE
Kerry spotted uncovered on Logan-to-DC flight
John Kerry, the nation’s special climate envoy, has been caught with his mask down.
The former Massachusetts senator and Democratic presidential nominee was seen without a mask while reading a book on an American Airlines Boston-to-DC flight Wednesday in violation of a host of mask mandates.
“Masks are required on board our aircraft, and we are looking into this,” an American Airlines spokeswoman told the Herald.
Kerry’s Climate Communications team promised a response, then pointed to a tweet where the global warming czar said the unmasking was “malarkey.”
“Feels like there’s some St. Patrick’s day ‘malarkey’ afoot on Twitter,” Kerry tweeted from his @ClimateEnvoy feed Wednesday night. “Let’s be clear: If I dropped my mask to one ear on a flight, it was momentary. I wear my mask because it saves lives and stops the spread. It’s what the science tells us to do.”
The Tennessee Star, which first broke the story, reported Kerry was “not eating, nor drinking,” in his first-class seat just before takeoff from Logan International Airport.
Masks are required before, during and after flights, according to the airlines, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and even President Biden, Kerry’s boss.
“We need everyone to get vaccinated. We need everyone to keep washing their hands, stay socially distanced, and keep wearing the masks as recommended by the CDC,” Biden said in his address to the nation last week.
The CDC ordered on Jan. 29 that all passengers in U.S. transportation hubs must “wear masks when boarding, disembarking, and for the duration of travel” on airplanes, ships, ferries, trains, subways, buses, taxis and ride-shares.
Dr. David Hamer, director of the Travel Clinic at Boston Medical Center and professor of global health at Boston University, said anyone ditching a mask while traveling — even if they have been vaccinated — is asking for trouble.
“Being vaccinated is not a passport to do anything you want,” Hamer said. “We still need to be cautious until the transmission levels go to a very low level.”
He said vaccinated people, likely including Kerry since he’s in Biden’s inner circle, can still spread the virus and possibly catch it, too.
“We still have a lot of COVID out there,” Hamer added. “The most important safety measure is to wear a mask.”
Kerry’s apparent cavalier attitude was extreme enough to have a fellow passenger snap his photo. It also sparked a twitter storm with Donald Trump Jr. posting: “SPOTTED: Liberal hypocrite & Biden Admin official @JohnKerry flouting @JoeBiden’s Federal mask mandate.’