Sen. Tom Carper’s wearing a protective face mask while delivering a floor speech this week may have made history.
The Delaware Democrat’s decision to wear a protective face covering while talking on the Senate floor Monday is perhaps the first time a senator has chosen to speak through a mask on the floor.
Daniel Holt, U.S. Senate Historical Office assistant historian, said it is difficult to determine “firsts” in these sort of situations. There is precedent for lawmakers in the House speaking through masks, however.
“During our current pandemic, I believe House members wore masks when they were last in the chamber, though not sure if any of them kept it on while giving speeches,” Mr. Holt said in an email. “I think yesterday was the first day of our current pandemic in which senators wore a mask on the floor, though I believe some staff had masks on during some of the pro forma sessions that have taken place over the past few weeks.”
On Monday, Mr. Carper spoke about the nomination of Robert J. Feitel to serve as inspector general for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, who was later confirmed by an 87-0 vote.
“Well, as we say in Delaware, it’s good to be first!” Mr. Carper told The Washington Times in a statement Tuesday. “Leadership requires many things. One of those things is the ability to lead by example. It’s not ’do as I say, but do as I do.’
“As our nation continues to grapple with this unprecedented pandemic, I believe that members of Congress have a great responsibility to set an example for the communities we represent,” he said. “We are all in this together and I will continue to listen to the experts and the science and take necessary precautions to keep myself, my family, my state, and my colleagues safe.”
The history of House members covering their faces while giving speeches dates at least to the 1890s. Mr. Holt pointed to a news article from July 20, 1894, as the first instance he discovered when a member of Congress wore a face covering while speaking on the floor of Congress.
Rep. William Lyne Wilson, West Virginia Democrat, used a handkerchief to cover his face when talking on the floor because of a “neuralgic inflammation” that left him “almost sightless,” according to The New York Times.
While wearing the face covering, Mr. Wilson spoke about tariff reform, which The Times’ report labeled “his best spoken effort” on the issue. Mr. Wilson’s speech was frequently interrupted by applause and when two members rose to speak after him, the Times reported, “No one heard them and no one cared what they were about.”
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