The White House is still holding its garden tours despite the recent coronavirus outbreak.

Matt Wade / Flickr

Although President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, senior counselor Hope Hicks, policy advisor Stephen Miller, and more than a dozen other people in the presidential orbit tested positive for coronavirus in recent days, the White House is welcoming the public — and Congress members — to tour the grounds next weekend.

According to a memo sent to members of Congress (and obtained by DCist) on Friday, the White House is extending the invitation to tour the Rose Garden — the site of a suspected super spreader event on Sept. 26 that set off a torrent of positive cases amongst senior officials, GOP leaders, and non-public facing White House staff like housekeepers and reporters.

The annual tours are also open to the public, and while the White House’s press release states that masks are required and social distancing is “encouraged,” the capacity limit is not listed. Guests will be brought through the South Lawn, First Ladies Garden, White House Kitchen Garden, and the Rose Garden.

Of the 24 people in Trump-proximity who tested positive for the coronavirus, 12 were present on Sept. 26 at the Rose Garden for a nomination ceremony of Amy Coney Barrett. Earlier this week, White House officials said they would not be contract tracing the event, and instead notifying individuals who had close contact with the president two days before he was diagnosed on Oct. 1. Following a request from D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser to discuss the outbreak, Trump officials entertained a dialogue concerning the White House spread with Bowser and D.C. Health director LaQuandra Nesbitt. However, it’s unclear what steps will come from that conversation.

Whether any Washingtonians or Congress members (two of whom have tested positive in the wake of Trump’s diagnosis: Sen. Mike Lee of Utah and Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina) decide to stroll through the gardens on Pennsylvania Avenue next weekend remains to be seen.

Several Democratic congressional members sent a letter on Tuesday condemning the “casual disregard for the health of our community” at the White House. For months, D.C. residents have raised their own concerns about House and Senate members flouting mask-wearing precautions on Capitol Hill.

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