Trump mocks Biden event that practiced social distancing

President Trump mocked former Vice President Joe Biden for practicing social distancing during a campaign event in the Philadelphia suburbs on Friday.

The president posted a photo of the gathering, where chairs are notably distanced from each other in accordance with guidelines from public health officials. 

“Joe Biden’s rally. ZERO enthusiasm!” tweeted Trump, who is hosting a campaign rally in Tulsa, Okla., on Saturday.

Joe Biden’s rally. ZERO enthusiasm! pic.twitter.com/IB2BrrmTPH

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 19, 2020

Trump’s scheduled rally has stirred controversy from local officials, who worry that it could exacerbate the spike in coronavirus cases the city is currently experiencing.

The rally is expected to fill the 19,000-plus seat arena and the campaign announced it is preparing for an overflow in the number of attendees.

On Friday, the Oklahoma Supreme Court denied a legal request to require that social distancing be enforced at the rally.

The rally goes directly against the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which advises against large gatherings, particularly indoors. 

The Trump campaign said that attendees will be given temperature checks, masks and hand sanitizer before entering the arena. However, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said Wednesday that wearing masks at the event would be a “personal choice.”

Biden, who is the presumed Democratic nominee, has had fewer in-person campaign events in an effort to abide by public health advisories. The Trump campaign has framed this as a way for the former vice president to avoid time in the limelight.

“This is obviously a tactic to help him avoid errors and embarrassing, lost trains of thought, while also conveniently preventing the press corps from asking him any questions in person,” Tim Murtaugh, a Trump campaign spokesman, told The New York Times.