U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), in red, tries to hand out masks to Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Gilbert), seated, Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), left, in the secret location where more than 100 lawmakers and staff were gathered on Jan. 6 as rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol building. /Screenshot via YouTube/Punchbowl News
By Ariana Figueroa | Arizona Mirror
President-elect Joe Biden on Monday chastised GOP lawmakers for refusing to wear masks while they were held in a safe location as a violent mob of pro-Trump supporters stormed the Capitol last week.
As lawmakers waited for law enforcement to secure the Capitol on Wednesday, Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.) went around a packed room passing out masks to people without them, to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
“When they were hiding from the mob, she was going around trying to hand out masks to everybody,” Biden said to a group of reporters. “And her Republican colleagues wouldn’t wear a mask. I think it’s irresponsible.”
In a video obtained by Punchbowl News, Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), Scott Perry (R-Pa.) and Michael Cloud (R-Texas), were all not wearing masks, and they turned down the disposable masks that Rochester was offering.
“It’s not a political issue. It’s an issue of public safety.”
Presiden- Elect Joe Biden
There were nearly 100 people in the room, according to multiple media reports.