By Paul J. Weber
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday, according to his office, who said the Republican is in good health and experiencing no symptoms.
Abbott, who was vaccinated in 2020, was isolating in the governor's mansion in Austin and receiving monoclonal antibody treatment, spokesman Mark Miner said in a statement.
The governor's positive test came as cases of the virus soar with the highly contagious delta variant and hospitals around the state are stretched thin. More than 11,500 patients were hospitalized with the virus as of Monday, the highest levels since January.
The positive test comes a day after Abbott tweeted a picture of himself not wearing a mask while speaking indoors near Dallas to a group of GOP supporters, most of whom were unmasked.
Jack DeSimone, president of the Republican Club at Heritage Ranch, said he did not like “to have conversations like this” and declined to comment further on Abbott's appearance with the group.
Miner said the governor’s address to the group was his only public event this week. He said Abbott tested negative Monday and that no one else on staff has tested positive.
Abbott has staunchly opposed mask mandates for public schools and this week saw defiant districts in some of the state's largest cities — which are run by Democrats — require face coverings anyway. Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton, a fellow Republican, are fighting the school districts in court.
Abbott's wife, Cecilia Abbott, tested negative. The governor had been getting tested daily and Miner said “everyone that the Governor has been in close contact with today has been notified.”
__
AP writer Acacia Coronado also contributed to this report.
Updated on August 17, 2021, at 5:59 p.m. ET with the latest details.
Oil companies offered a combined $264 million for drilling rights in federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico on Wednesday in a sale mandated by last year’s climate bill compromise.
Adidas is withdrawing its challenge to a Black Lives Matter trademark application featuring three parallel stripes, two days after it contested the image with the U.S. Trademark Office.
The state of Arkansas sued TikTok and Facebook parent Meta on Tuesday, claiming the social media companies were misleading consumers about the safety of children on their platforms and protections of users' private data.
Russia’s top security agency arrested an American reporter for the Wall Street Journal on espionage charges, the first time a U.S. correspondent was put behind bars on spying accusations since the Cold War. The newspaper denied the allegations against Evan Gershkovich.
North Carolina residents can now buy a handgun without getting a permit from a local sheriff. The Republican-controlled state House on Wednesday overrode the Democratic governor’s veto.
Longtime Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz is facing sharp questioning before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee where he is defending the company’s actions during an ongoing unionizing campaign.
Credit Suisse violated a plea agreement with U.S. authorities by failing to report secret offshore accounts that wealthy Americans used to avoid paying taxes, U.S. lawmakers said Wednesday.
According to a Reuters report, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon is being deposed over the bank's relationship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Capitol hill is trying to get to the bottom of the bank collapses that shocked the financial system last month, and today lawmakers grilled banking regulators about why they weren't able to stop the crisis. Cheddar News correspondent Lisa Bennatan broke down the proceedings.
Juul will finally have its day in court for its role in the teen vaping epidemic. The Minnesota attorney general is preparing for opening arguments in the state's lawsuit against the vape maker. Here to break down the complicated backstory for this legal case is Senior Reporter Chloe Aiello.
