Help keep Salon independent

Trump ditched his mask during pandemic because it smeared his bronzer, according to former aide

In her new memoir, "Enough," Cassidy Hutchinson says Trump's vanity outweighed safety measures

Senior Culture Editor

Published

Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to guests during a "Commit To Caucus" rally at the Jackson County Fairgrounds on September 20, 2023 in Maquoketa, Iowa. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to guests during a "Commit To Caucus" rally at the Jackson County Fairgrounds on September 20, 2023 in Maquoketa, Iowa. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

In her upcoming memoir, “Enough,” former Trump aide Cassidy Hutchinson details what it was like to work in close proximity to the former president during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Recounting a visit to the Honeywell mask-making factory in Phoenix, Arizona, in May 2020 — after which Trump was criticized for, ironically, not wearing one — Hutchinson claims that his excuse that he “did not wear it after consulting the company chief executive,” was not entirely accurate.

According to The Guardian‘s coverage, Hutchinson writes that Trump “decided on a white mask,” then asked staffers for their thoughts on the matter.

“I slowly shook my head,” she writes. “The president pulled the mask off and asked why I thought he should not wear it.

“I pointed at the straps of the N95 I was holding. When he looked at the straps of his mask, he saw they were covered in bronzer.”

“Why did no one else tell me that,” he snapped. “I’m not wearing this thing.”

“The press would criticize him for not wearing a mask,” Hutchinson furthers, “not knowing that the depth of his vanity had caused him to reject masks – and then millions of his fans followed suit.”

 

By Kelly McClure

Kelly McClure is Salon's Senior Culture Editor, where she helps further coverage of TV, film, music, books and culture trends from a unique and thoughtful angle. Her work has also appeared in Vulture, Vanity Fair, Vice and many other outlets that don't start with the letter V. She is the author of one sad book called "Something Is Always Happening Somewhere." Follow her on Bluesky: @WolfieVibes

MORE FROM Kelly McClure

Related Topics ------------------------------------------

Related Articles