Former “American Idol” Katharine McPhee attacked Democratic Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams for posing maskless with a group of young school children, while they were required to keep their faces covered per a mask mandate.
“What the actual hell… politicians at their finest. Mask up the children and you yourself sit without a mask. The hypocrisy continues,” McPhee wrote on her Instagram Story on Sunday. “I’m sure she will say… ‘but I had my mask in my hand!’”
Yet another picture of an unmasked Democrat surrounded by masked children. This is at a Decatur, Georgia elementary school, where they have a district-wide mask mandate. #gapol #UnmaskOurKids https://t.co/36NRJkNmhV pic.twitter.com/GU7DgL2nIA
— Kelley K 😀 * covid-georgia.com (@KelleyKga) February 5, 2022
McPhee’s last line was a shot at California governor Gavin Newsom, who took heat for defying his own mask mandate at the 49ers-Rams NFC Championship game in Los Angeles last week.
Newsom was panned for taking a bare faced photo with famed former LA Laker Magic Johnson, who was also maskless. He defended himself with the claim that he was “very judicious” with his mask usage.
“And you’ll see in the photo that I did take, where Magic was kind enough, generous enough to ask me for a photograph, and in my left hand’s the mask and I took a photo,” Newsom said at a press conference.
“I was trying to be gracious. I made a mis–. I was trying to be gracious,” he stuttered. “I took the mask off for a brief second. I encourage people to continue to wear them.” For the record, there does not appear to be a mask in Newsom’s left hand in one of the photos.
. @GavinNewsom said he had a mask in his hand when he briefly took a picture with Magic Johnson.
Here is his left hand and his right hand. Do you see a mask? pic.twitter.com/vc57amn3Fs
— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) February 1, 2022
McPhee isn’t the only one slamming Abrams for the photo op, current Republican Georgia Governor Brian Kemp said, “Stacey Abrams wants state government mask mandates for Georgians and their children. But it looks like they wouldn’t apply when she’s attending a photo op,” in a tweet.
Even the liberal hosts of “The View” piled on the criticism. “I’m surprised at her,” said Joy Behar.
“It was really hypocritical, actually,” added Sunny Hostin. “She should have worn a mask.” Hostin also said that Abrams’ campaign’s claim that she had worn a mask, but removed it so remote viewers could watch her speak was “a lame excuse.”
“How could she not be much more careful in a room full of such small children?” Ana Navarro questioned, calling the move “a stupid thing to do.”
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