Mark Meadows convinced Trump not to institute a mask warrant

• President Trump’s chief of staff, Mark Meadows, has reportedly convinced Trump not to introduce a nationwide mask warrant, The New York Times reported Thursday.
• According to The Times, Meadows said such a mandate would alienate Trump’s staunchest supporters: “The grassroots will revolt,” he said.
• Meadows’ comments convinced Trump to drop a mask mandate despite poll data showing a majority of Republicans favored such a mandate.
• Visit the Business Insider homepage for more stories.

Mark Meadows, President Donald Trump’s chief of staff, was ultimately the one who convinced the president to forgo a national mask mandate to help fight the coronavirus pandemic, The New York Times reported Thursday.

According to the report, President Trump’s top pollster, Tony Fabrizio, came to the Oval Office in the middle of the summer for a meeting with Trump and his advisers. Fabrizio reported a startling news: A majority of voters – including likely Trump supporters – supported mandatory mask wear in public.

Fabrizio’s poll found that in July nearly 70% of voters in states targeted by Trump’s campaign were in favor of a mask term, including more than half of Republicans. The poll data supports an argument made by senior advisers Jared Kushner and Hope Hicks: Trump could portray wearing a mask as the key for Americans to regain their freedom to attend group gatherings and indoor events.

But Meadows disagreed. At the same meeting, he argued that the policy of such a move would damage the president’s reputation among his most ardent supporters.

“The base will revolt,” Meadows said, according to the Times.

Several other Trump advisers shared this view, including Senior White House adviser Stephen Miller. Meadows added that he was not sure such a move was legal either.

For Trump, Meadows ‘words ended up trumping Kushner and Hicks’ wishes, and Fabrizio’s poll data.

“I’m not doing a mask warrant,” he reportedly said.

After that, Trump has rarely been seen in public wearing a mask, except after contracting COVID-19 himself in early October.

Trump lashed out at Jared Kushner for overseeing what he saw as too many tests

In addition to Meadows’ involvement in discouraging a mask warrant, the New York Times report also detailed how Trump criticized Kushner for what he considered too much testing for COVID-19.

Kushner helped oversee testing efforts nationwide throughout the year.

According to The Times, at another Oval Office of Key Contributors meeting on August 19, Trump became angry at the increase in COVID-19 testing in the United States, which he blamed for numbers higher cases.

“You’re killing me! That’s it! We’ve all got these damn cases,” Trump reportedly shouted at Kushner.

“I want to do what Mexico is doing,” Trump continued. “They don’t test you until you get to the emergency room and throw up.”

Trump also criticized Kushner over the tests in preparation for the debate, according to the report.

“I’m going to lose,” Trump said, according to The Times. “And it’s going to be your fault, because of the tests.”

Azmi Haroun contributed reporting.