Wife of GOP congressman: I don't care about what Jen Psaki says
Erika Donalds tells 'Tucker Carlson Tonight' about an email she received from the White House regarding an upcoming reception.
Erika Donalds, wife of Rep. Byron Donalds, R-FL, blasted the White House's COVID-19 policies for unvaccinated attendees of a reception hosted by First Lady Jill Biden on "Tucker Carlson Tonight" Wednesday.
Donalds tweeted a screenshot from an email she received from the White House, which said, "Guests who are not fully vaccinated must wear a mask at all times, including abstaining from eating and drinking, and maintain at least 6 feet distance from others while on the White House grounds."
President Biden and first lady Jill Biden speak via teleconference on the White House campus in Washington, Dec. 24, 2021. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Donalds told host Tucker Carlson that she did not believe the White House guidance was based on science, and the restrictions for the unvaccinated were not "very inviting, to say the least."
"I definitely don't believe there is a medical justification for this, … which is why I posted it on Twitter and let everyone know how ridiculous this mandate was."
President Biden and first lady Jill Biden board Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., July 1, 2021. (AP)
Donalds responded on Twitter, saying, "First Lady Jill Biden was kind enough to invite me & the other Congressional spouses to a reception at the White House. I just have to take a COVID test, & as an unvaccinated person (with natural immunity) I won’t be allowed to eat, drink, or talk to anyone. Should be a blast!"
Carlson then asked, "So many of us are in that category. Many Americans have had COVID, recovered from it and have what appears to be a more durable immunity to future infection than people who've had the vaccine. That seems like the science. So are you going? … I mean, because this is insane. They're trying to humiliate you [and] make you into a kulak."
President Biden speaks to the media on the South Lawn of the White House, March 23, 2022. (Samuel Corum/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Donalds said that she would be attending as she saw the guidance after she already made her travel plans. She was used to the more relaxed environment vis-à-vis the COVID-19 pandemic.
"I definitely had to take a second thought of whether I want[ed] to attend and exert my freedom to live as a free person and exercise my rights to eat and drink at a reception like everyone else, despite not being vaccinated," she said.
"Well, they can say whatever they want. I'm a free person and I've been operating in the free State of Florida and [living] a normal life ... I do believe in natural immunity … I really don't care what Jen Psaki says about my lifestyle and the way that I live as a healthy, unvaccinated person," she added.
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