After having COVID-19, Parson shows no signs of reconsidering position on mask order

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson, in his first public appearance since testing positive for the coronavirus, gave no sign his experience had made him reconsider his refusal to issue a statewide mask order.

Parson, who wore a mask during an event Tuesday at Missouri Western State University but took it off twice to speak, said that while he would do everything within his power to protect the state’s residents, encouraging them to take responsibility “to do the right thing” was more important.

Parson also pleaded ignorance when asked about remarks by President Donald Trump, who also contracted the virus and has urged Americans not to be afraid of it. But he made clear that the consequences of the virus, including Missourians who succumb to it, “are real things that happen.”

“I don’t know what the president’s opinion are but I’m telling you what mine is as the governor of Missouri and I’m concerned about it everyday and what it does to the people of this state and I’m going to fight for that everyday and try to make sure I keep people as safe as I can,” Parson told reporters.

The 65-year-old governor resumed traveling the state Tuesday after testing positive Sept. 23, sending him into a two-week isolation. He attended a ribbon cutting ceremony at the university, to herald an expansion of its healthcare program.

The St. Joseph appearance was the first of six in-person events the governor is scheduled to attend this week. His first week back will culminate Friday in a ceremonial bill signing in St. Louis and a thank-you event for healthcare and emergency workers in Jefferson City.

Parson, the second governor in the nation to test positive for the coronavirus, completed 10 days of isolation on Saturday. He has maintained since his diagnosis that he feels fine, while first lady Teresa Parson, who also tested positive, suffered mild symptoms.

He made no comments about his COVID-19 experience in prepared remarks. Speaking to reporters afterward, Parson said he learned from having the virus that he is like every other Missourian.

“You know that risk is out there, you know you’re the governor of the state of Missouri, the first lady, and your risk is higher, simply because the jobs we have,” Parson said. “I wish it was simple as going home and locking the door and saying I’m not going to go to work. But the reality of it is as governor, you can’t do that.”

Parson said he realized “everyday people are going to get this virus and we’re going to have to sure try to do everything we can to make it safer, do more testing in the state and we’re doing that everyday.”

More than 134,500 people have tested positive in Missouri since the pandemic began and 2,200 people have died.

Parson’s reemergence, four weeks before Election Day, comes at a critical time in his campaign for a full term after taking office in 2018. His positive virus test upended the governor’s race, keeping him off the campaign trail and forcing postponement of likely the only debate with his Democratic opponent, State Auditor Nicole Galloway.

The debate is back on and re-scheduled for Friday. It won’t be open to the public and those in attendance will be socially distanced, Mark Maassen, director of the Missouri Press Association, a host of the debate, said in an email. The precautions were put in place prior to Parson’s COVID-19 diagnosis, he said.

The showdown is now taking place two weeks closer to the election than originally planned, raising the stakes for both candidates as voters begin to cast their ballots.

Parson’s COVID-19 diagnosis has only drawn more attention to his handling of the pandemic, which has drawn criticism from Democrats and some healthcare professionals. Parson has refused to issue a statewide mask order, putting Missouri in the minority of states without one. Instead, the former county sheriff has left decisions on restrictions to local authorities.

The governor’s experience with the coronavirus doesn’t appear to have softened his administration’s opposition to a mandate.

“We just think if you’re too draconian everywhere, people really – it’s almost like it creates more problems than it solves,” Randall Williams, director of the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services said shortly after Parson tested positive.

Galloway, while wishing Parson a full recovery, has led the condemnation of her opponent’s pandemic response and promised a mask mandate if elected. “Gov. Parson has not acted with the needed urgency to get this crisis under control,” Galloway told KCUR on Monday.

Parson’s stance has cheered some supporters, however. Rep. Mike Stephens, a Bolivar Republican, said he admires Parson’s refusal to enact a statewide mask order despite “tremendous pressure” to do so. “I think that he has been very respectful of local conditions,” he said.

For his part, Parson has defended his response and is running on his leadership during the crisis. His campaign’s first TV ad featured a healthcare executive with GOP ties praising Parson’s COVID-19 response. Another ad highlights Parson’s past military and law enforcement service.

The Star’s Matthew Kelly contributed reporting

This story was originally published October 6, 2020 at 5:22 PM.