Dem. Senator Criticizes Rand Paul for Going to Capitol after Taking Chinese virus Test

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Senator Kyrsten Sinema questions David Marcus, head of Facebook’s Calibra during testimony before a Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington,July 16, 2019. Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D., Ariz.) on Sunday criticized Senator Rand Paul (R., Ky.) for continuing to interact with fellow senators and other staff while waiting for …

Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D., Ariz.) on Sunday criticized Senator Rand Paul (R., Ky.) for continuing to interact with fellow senators and other staff while waiting for the results of his test for Wuhan coronavirus.

“I’ve never commented about a fellow Senator’s choices/actions. Never once,” Sinema wrote on Twitter. “This, America, is absolutely irresponsible. You cannot be near other people while waiting for coronavirus test results. It endangers others & likely increases the spread of the virus.”

Paul responded to the criticism on Monday.

“For those who want to criticize me for lack of quarantine, realize that if the rules on testing had been followed to a tee, I would never have been tested and would still be walking around the halls of the Capitol,” the senator said in a statement. “The current guidelines would not have called for me to get tested nor quarantined. It was my extra precaution, out of concern for my damaged lung, that led me to get tested. The broader the testing and the less finger-pointing we have, the better.”

Paul’s office announced on Sunday that he had tested positive for the coronavirus, however it did not confirm when the senator had been tested. Paul “was tested out of an abundance of caution due to his extensive travel and events. He was not aware of any direct contact with any infected person,” read a statement on the senator’s Twitter account.

On Wednesday Paul spoke about the coronavirus on the Senate floor, and on Friday Paul attended a GOP Senate lunch. The announcement drove Utah senators Mike Lee and Mitt Romney, both of whom had interacted closely with Paul, to self-quarantine.

Senator Jerry Moran (R., Ka.) reportedly told colleagues that Paul visited the gym on Sunday morning, although Paul denies that he had learned of his diagnosis before going to the gym.

“We want to be clear, Senator Paul left the Senate IMMEDIATELY upon learning of his diagnosis. He had zero contact with anyone & went into quarantine,” Paul’s office posted on the senator’s Twitter account on Sunday. “Insinuations such as…that he went to the gym after learning of his results are just completely false & irresponsible!”