An Atlanta newspaper is reporting that White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows hosted a large wedding for his daughter that appeared to violate a Georgia order and city of Atlanta guidelines aimed at stopping the spread of COVID-19
White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows hosted a large wedding for his daughter that appeared to violate a Georgia order and city of Atlanta guidelines to stop the spread of COVID-19, a newspaper reported Thursday.
Photos of the event show many of the guests crowding together, dancing and hugging during the May 31 nuptials at the Biltmore Ballrooms Atlanta, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
About 70 guests, including U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, wore tuxedos and ball gowns but no masks at the indoor wedding, and photographs show groups of people clustered closely together in the same room throughout the evening, the newspaper said.
Neither Meadows’ staff nor the person who is listed as operations manager for the Biltmore Ballrooms responded to emailed requests for comment from The Associated Press on Thursday.
On the same night as the wedding and less than 2 miles (3 kilometers) away, riot police were firing tear gas and Georgia National Guard troops were sealing off parts of downtown Atlanta during protests in response to the deaths of George Floyd in Minnesota and Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia. More than 60 people were arrested, Atlanta police Sgt. John Chafee said.
The protests over racial injustice broke out in other cities across the U.S. as well, including in Washington, D.C., where at one point Secret Service agents rushed Trump to an underground White House bunker previously used during terrorist attacks. The West Wing was mostly empty, and many staffers were told to stay home to avoid the protests. The AP reported at the time that Meadows was out of town celebrating his daughter’s wedding.
The Biltmore Hotel was one of Atlanta’s most lavish gathering places for many years after it opened in 1924. According to its website, the building still features “original handcrafted plaster relief ceilings, restored crystal chandeliers, Palladian windows and Tennessee marble floors.”