During an event celebrating the 12th anniversary of Obamacare on Tuesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi kissed Joe Biden on the cheek. The moment is well documented in photographs and on video.
The White House says this is not "close contact." pic.twitter.com/LExI64tct8
— Tom Bevan (@TomBevanRCP) April 7, 2022
Twenty-four hours later, Pelosi tested positive for Wuhan coronavirus.
"After testing negative this week, Speaker Pelosi received a positive test result for COVID-19 and is currently asymptomatic. The Speaker is fully vaccinated and boosted, and is thankful for the robust protection the vaccine has provided. The Speaker will quarantine consistent with CDC guidance, and encourages everyone to get vaccinated, boosted and test regularly,” Pelosi's office released in a statement Thursday.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki was asked about the situation and whether Pelosi was considered a close contact given she kissed President Biden's face.
"The way that it is defined is by the Center for Disease Control -- the CDC. And their definition of it is 15 minutes of contact within a set period of time within six feet. It did not meet that bar," Psaki said. "It does not mean that no one will get COVID around the world who does not have a close contact. It just means we are defining, for all of you, whether the President and their interaction met the definition of the CDC of a close contact."
But according to the CDC's guidelines, kissing should be avoided to protect others from contracting the disease.
what is this from the CDC? (#8) https://t.co/HtLgPOaMO0 pic.twitter.com/Pi8XPb9ddP
— Micah Rate (@Micah_Rate) April 8, 2022
Which leads us to:
These exchanges are great because they expose how absolutely absurd, non-logical and arbitrary the pandemic rules/guidelines are and have been for a long time https://t.co/yubIDYSNdd
— Katie Pavlich (@KatiePavlich) April 8, 2022