Politics

Joe Biden Announces He Will Not Hold Campaign Rallies, Citing Coronavirus Fears

(SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

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Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden will not hold campaign rallies due to concerns over the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Biden announced the decision Tuesday, at his first press conference in 89 days, citing advice from his doctors. (RELATED: Joe Biden Says ‘Over 120 Million’ People Have Died From The Coronavirus)

“This is the most unusual campaign, I think, in modern history,” Biden said. “I’m gonna follow the doc’s orders, not just for me, but for the country.”

“That means that I am not going to be holding rallies,” Biden continued.

This move puts Biden in contrast with his general election opponent, President Donald Trump. The president has resumed some campaign activities, including a recent rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma. However, the Trump campaign announced Tuesday that they were cancelling an upcoming rally with Republican Alabama Senate candidate Tommy Tuberville, citing coronavirus concerns. (RELATED: ‘Shocks And Pisses Me Off’: Obama Reportedly Slams Trump Calling Coronavirus ‘China Virus’)

Biden has strongly criticized the Trump administration’s response to the pandemic, and has ripped the president for not wearing a mask during public events. The former vice president said earlier in June that he would issue an executive order requiring all Americans to wear masks in public, if he were president.

“The one thing we do know is these masks make a gigantic difference. I would insist that everybody out in public be wearing that mask. Anyone to reopen would have to make sure that they walked into a business that had masks,” Biden said at the time.