John Kerry hits back after on maskless plane photo.
American Airlines is investigating whether US climate envoy John Kerry broke the rules and took off his mask on a recent flight from Boston to Washington DC.
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On Wednesday, Donald Trump Jr. tweeted an image that appeared to show Kerry sitting in the first class with a face mask hanging from his ear.
SPOTTED: Liberal hypocrite & Biden Admin official @JohnKerry flouting @JoeBiden‘s Federal mask mandate.
“SPOTTED: Liberal hypocrite & Biden Admin official @JohnKerry flouting @JoeBiden ‘s Federal mask mandate.” Trump Jr captioned the tweet.
The White House Climate Envoy is firing back against accusations of liberal hypocrisy, claiming that the mask drop was ‘momentary’.
“Feels like there’s some St. Patrick’s day ‘malarkey’ afoot on Twitter. Let’s be clear: If I dropped my mask to one ear on a flight, it was momentary,” Kerry, 77, said.
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“I wear my mask because it saves lives and stops the spread. It’s what the science tells us to do.”
Feels like there’s some St. Patrick’s day “malarkey” afoot on Twitter. Let’s be clear: If I dropped my mask to one ear on a flight, it was momentary. I wear my mask because it saves lives and stops the spread. It’s what the science tells us to do.
— Special Presidential Envoy John Kerry (@ClimateEnvoy) March 17, 2021
In a statement to The Independent, American Airlines said: “Masks are required on board our aircraft. Our team works diligently to make sure customers are wearing masks properly as they travel with us, and flight attendants pass through the cabin several times during flight to ensure compliance.
“The crew did not observe Secretary Kerry without a mask, and they were not alerted by other customers to a non-compliance issue. We continue to review the matter and we are reaching out to Secretary Kerry to underscore that all customers are expected to wear masks for the duration of their trip.”
President Joe Biden signed an executive order in January requiring face coverings on commercial flights and other forms of public transportation.
Last July, American Airlines said it reached out to Texas Senator Ted Cruz after he was photographed flying without wearing a mask. However, there was no federal mask mandate in place at that time.
