Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago hosts gala amid coronavirus pandemic



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President Trump skipped his New Year’s Eve party at Mar-a-Lago, but that didn’t stop hundreds of maskless guests from packing up the ballroom and paying up to $ 1,000 for the privilege to see… Vanilla Ice.

Photos from the event posted to Instagram and Twitter also showed guests dancing, kissing and eating together at the gala – which apparently violated local COVID-19 guidelines. The black tie event included top Republicans such as Rep. Florida Matt Gaetz, Donald Trump Jr., and Kimberly Guilfoyle, Eric and Lara Trump, and Rudy Giuliani.

Don Jr. seemed particularly fascinated by a performance by the 1990s rapper and accused of domestic violence Vanilla Ice.

“Ok, that’s amazing,” Don Jr. wrote in a Facebook post that included a video of the singer from his hit “Ice, Ice Baby” as the guests huddled together dancing. “Vanilla Ice plays [at] the feast of New Year’s Eve in Mar-a-Lago. As a kid of the 90s, you can’t imagine how awesome it is. Beyond that, I got the birthday cry so it’s pretty amazing.

The Palm Beach Post reported that more than 500 guests had secure reservations At Trump’s annual New Years Eve party, which began at 7 p.m., however, Mar-a-Lago declined to provide comments to The Daily Beast on the gala’s COVID-19 guidelines or the number of attendees.

The president and the first lady were both absent following their sudden return to the White House on Thursday afternoon. It’s unclear why Trump left Palm Beach ahead of his New Year’s Eve party, although guests were told the president would be in attendance, according to CNN.

Photos posted online show more than a dozen full tables – making social distancing impossible – while other snapshots featured guests dancing up close. Mike Lindell, CEO of MyPilllow, singer Taylor Dayne and fashion designer Oscar Lopez were among those seen. The Berlin group from the 1970s also performed at the event.

Judging from photos and videos, the revelers violated Palm Beach County’s COVID-19 guidelines, which require face protection “inside all businesses and establishments.” To date, 21,672 people have died and 1.3 million more have been infected with the virus in Florida.

The Florida and Palm Beach County Department of Health Administrator’s Office did not respond to The Daily Beast’s inquiries about non-fulfillment of local orders.

The sparkling New Years celebration at Trump’s Resort is a long-standing tradition. In previous years, the celebration has reportedly been graced by celebrities such as Rod Stewart, Sylvester Stallone and Woody Allen.

The last time the president missed his party was in 2018 when the government shut down, when Melania Trump organized without him.

Thursday’s celebration was quieter than in previous years, following Trump’s abrupt exit from the station. The city of Palm Beach had also imposed a 1 a.m. curfew to limit New Year’s festivities amid the pandemic.

“Goodbye 2020! It was… real, ”guest Kimberly Benza, who works for the Trump family, posted on Instagram alongside a photo kissing Lara Trump.



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