U.S. Government COVID outbreak linked to Gridiron dinner

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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has tested positive for Covid-19, a spokesman for the California Democrat said Thursday.

"After testing negative this week, Speaker Pelosi received a positive test result for COVID-19 and is currently asymptomatic," Pelosi's deputy chief of staff Drew Hammill tweeted. "The Speaker is fully vaccinated and boosted, and is thankful for the robust protection the vaccine has provided."
Pelosi, the top House Democrat, is 82 years old. As speaker of the House, Pelosi is second in the line of presidential succession behind the vice president.

Hammill announced Pelosi's positive test result just before Pelosi was scheduled to have her weekly news conference with reporters, which was canceled. He also said a planned congressional delegation to Asia, to be led by Pelosi over the two-week congressional break, "will be postponed to a later date."

Pelosi was at the White House on Wednesday, seen next to President Joe Biden, as he signed into law a sweeping bill that overhauls the US Postal Service's finances and allows the agency to modernize its service. The House physician told CNN that attendees Wednesday had to have had a negative test within 24 hours of the postal event.

The White House said Biden was not considered a close contact of Pelosi. The White House also said the President tested negative Wednesday night as part of regularly scheduled testing and that Biden will continue to be tested regularly.
Reps. Katherine Clark of Massachusetts, who also serves as assistant House Democratic leader, Joaquin Castro of Texas, Gregory Meeks of New York, Adam Schiff of California, Derek Kilmer of Washington, Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida, and Scott Peters of California all announced their positive test results this week.

Covid is also affecting officials in Washington beyond the legislative branch. Two members of Biden's Cabinet tested positive for Covid-19 on Wednesday. Attorney General Merrick Garland and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo announced their positive diagnoses after having attended the elite Gridiron Club dinner in Washington on Saturday. Other attendees, including Vice President Kamala Harris' communication director, Jamal Simmons, and the President's sister, Valerie Biden Owens, have also announced positive tests.

The string of positive cases has turned attention in Washington to the Gridiron dinner, an event that brings together some of the city's most prominent journalists, including from CNN, and the government officials they cover. Attendees had their vaccination status checked, but negative Covid-19 tests were not required to enter.