Just yesterday, Donald Trump said that places of worship must reopen; that the opportunity to worship is essential (https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/23/politics/trump-churches-base-memorial-day-weekend/index.html and ).
He falsely claims that he has the authority to override governors who refuse to allow places of worship to reopen.
His third Press Secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, refused to explain what legal authority Trump has to tell governors what to do.
Associate solitary reporter Johanna Jones was at McEnany’s press briefing.
From her seat in the back of the briefing room, and observing strict physical distancing, and wearing a face mask, Jones jumped up without being recognized and demanded to know why Trump
issued an order way back on April 2, to the effect that gun shops are essential (see https://www.apocryphalpress.com/2020/04/02/for-lapierre-and-trump-keeping-gun-stores-open-during-the-covid-19-pandemic-is-essential-but-not-for-sensible-people/).
“Kayleigh,” Jones shouted, “Seems Trump considers gun shops to be ever so much more essential than houses of worship. What accounts for the change?”
“Just between you and me, Johanna, Mr. Trump relies very, very heavily on his evangelical base — that’s the only reason. As far as he is concerned, the mainline Protestant churches can just stay home.”
Jones was cheered on most volubly by our Chief Religion Correspondent, associate solitary reporter Jim Bob Hobarto.
McEnany smiled as Secret Service agents escorted Jones and Hobarto out of the White House to the District of Columbia Jail.
There, the ACLU is representing Jones, and associate solitary reporter Lewis Thompson III is representing Hobarto, as he is the Moderator of the Unitarian Universalist Association.