Originally posted on July 17, 2020

Oklahoma has been one of the laxest states in recommending masks and social distancing due to the coronavirus pandemic. In spite of increasing covid cases, especially in Tulsa County, Trump went ahead and held an indoor campaign event there on June 20. The chart below shows the case numbers, with the vertical yellow lines marking the months and the red line showing June 20.

Of course it is impossible to tie the covid cases directly to the rally. But certainly we can tie Oklahoma’s general laxness to the increase. Tulsa’s health department has mentioned the Trump rally as a contributing factor.

And now we learn that Oklahoma’s governor, Kevin Stitt, has tested positive, the first known governor to do so. He doesn’t tie his illness to the rally and the timing isn’t indicative. But he is a republican governor and supports Trump’s efforts to downplay the virus.

So far he isn’t seriously ill, but one of the problematic effects of this virus is that your condition can deteriorate very quickly, and we’re still not sure of any long-term effects.