Fifty Texas state representatives abandoned the state to avoid voting on a piece of legislation that would restrict voting rights. Photos appeared online of the democrats in a bus and airplane with no masks or social distancing, despite the spread of the highly infections Delta variant.
This became a super spreader event after six of these fully vaccinated Democrats tested positive for COVID-19 once they arrived in Washington DC. Two Washington staffers associated with the group also tested positive for COVID-19. Texas Governor Abbott said he will arrest these representatives once they get back into the state.
Vice President Kamala Harris met with members of the delegation a few days before the positive cases were announced, but her office said that she is fully vaccinated and didn’t have close enough contact with the legislators to require going into isolation. It is unlikely that the legislators will be permitted to meet with President Joe Biden. A fully vaccinated senior spokesperson in the Speaker’s Press Office tested positive for COVID after contact with members of the Texas state legislature last week. The press secretary had no contact with Pelosi since much of her staff was working remotely the day the Texas Democrats visited. A vaccinated White House staffer tested positive for the virus after interacting with the Pelosi aide, according to a White House official. The infected person has not been in close contact with Biden.
Breakthrough cases like these are usually mild and can show no symptoms. State Representative Donna Howard confirmed Tuesday that she tested positive for COVID-19. She said in a statement that she is fully vaccinated and “basically asymptomatic,” but that she is isolating to limit the spread of the virus. Unvaccinated individuals however can face hospitalization and death.