Miss. Gov. Invited Lawmakers to Holiday Parties After Limiting Gatherings

Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves reportedly sent state and district officials invitations to at least three holiday parties hosted at the governor's mansion in December, despite restricting gatherings across the state.

Reeves issued an executive order for 54 of Mississippi's 82 counties. The order required face masks be worn in public places, indoor gatherings limited to no more than 10 attendees and outdoor gatherings limited to no more than 50 when six feet of social distancing was not possible.

The order applied to Hinds County, where the governor's mansion is located.

It was unclear how many officials were invited to Reeves' holiday parties and how many of those invited plan to attend, according to a Monday report by Mississippi Today. However, it's estimated to succeed the governor's order of 10 people since there are 122 members of the state House and 52 state senators.

Democratic state Representative Christopher Bell said he received an invitation to Reeves' party but doesn't plan to attend. In a statement to The Washington Post, Bell noted the party goes against the advice of health officials as COVID-19 continued to surge in the state.

Republican House Speaker Philip Gun also said he received an invitation, but he was conflicted about whether to attend, according to Mississippi Today.

"We didn't follow what Dr. Thomas Dobbs and Dr. Fauci had recommended for us to do, which was socially distance, no gathering of 50 or more individuals," said Bell. "I have the same concerns today with respect to this Christmas party."

On December 2, Thomas Dobbs, Mississippi's leading public health expert, advised everyone to avoid gatherings in a tweet.

"The Mississippi State Department of Health strongly recommends that EVERYONE avoid all social gatherings until further notice," said Dobbs.

Over 1,700 new cases and 56 deaths were reported in Mississippi on December 8, according to data from The New York Times. The state has seen an average of 1,931 new cases each day over the past week, a 55 percent increase compared with the two weeks prior.

Bailey Martin, a spokeswoman for Reeves, told Newsweek in an emailed statement the holiday events would follow the governor's executive order.

"The governor and first lady have canceled or delayed many mansion events this year including the 1st Friday Christmas Candlelighters event and their daughter's 16th birthday party, and have only continued with those events that can be conducted safely," said Martin.

"These events—that tend to be smaller and never allow more than 10 participants indoors at a time to see the museum/decorations—are conducted similar to the limited public tours that are offered to the general public," Martin continued.

Reeves was one of many government officials skirting COVID-19 restrictions on gatherings to host holiday parties. The State Department and the White House also planned multiple parties to be hosted throughout the month.

President Donald Trump defended the parties and said attendees were taking precautions.

"I see a lot of people at the parties wearing masks, and I would say that I look out at the audience at those parties, and we have a lot of people wearing masks, and I think that's a good thing," the president told reporters during a coronavirus vaccine summit on Tuesday.

Update: This story has been updated to include a statement from Martin.