White House plans holiday parties as Americans urged to stay home

WASHINGTON — The White House plans to hold indoor holiday receptions in the coming weeks despite ongoing Covid-19 outbreaks and the advice of public health professionals urging Americans to sacrifice their normal holiday gatherings to curb the spread of the virus.

officials have warned against large gatherings on Thursday’s Thanksgiving holiday, instead urging Americans to stay home and forgo traveling to see relatives in a bid to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus and protect vulnerable individuals as cases topped 12 million over the weekend.

While the White House has said President Donald Trump and his wife Melania will remain in Washington this week, skipping their annual Thanksgiving at Trump’s private club in Florida, the first lady plans to hold a holiday reception a few days later on Nov.

Stephanie Grisham, a spokeswoman for the first lady, said the White House would provide the “safest environment possible” for the Christmas and Hanukkah celebrations with smaller guest lists than years past, masks “required and available,” social distancing encouraged and hand sanitizer provided.

“These apply to the White House, they apply to the American people, they apply to everyone,” Adams said