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- The mayor of Austin, Texas, took a trip to Cabo San Lucas in Mexico on a private jet just before urging constituents to stay home as COVID-19 cases rose in the city, according to the Austin Statesman and KVUE.
- Steve Adler also hosted a wedding for his daughter the day before the November flight, according to Tony Plohetski, the local reporter who broke the story. Twenty people attended the event.
- Adler delivered a video address to constituents telling them to “stay home” and avoid unnecessary travel, though he did not disclose that he was doing so from Cabo.
- “It’s not perfect,” Adler said during an interview this week, according to KVUE. “Obviously there are infections that could happen. But what we did was stay compliant with the rules.”
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The mayor of Austin, Texas, urged his constituents to “stay home” on a video call from a timeshare in Cabo San Lucas last month where he traveled on a private jet with eight family members and guests, according to the Austin Statesman and KVUE.
“Stay home if you can … this is not the time to relax,” said Steve Adler in the video, which was shared Facebook on November 9.
Adler kept the jaunt under wraps until local journalist Tony Plohetski broke the story Wednesday afternoon. The Democrat then confirmed the trip to Mexico and said he also hosted a wedding for his daughter the day before flying out for his vacation. Plohetski reported that 20 people attended the celebration.
According to Adler, neither his trip nor the wedding violated any of his own orders or Texas’ COVID-19 restrictions.
“It’s not perfect,” Adler said during an interview this week, according to the local ABC affiliate, KVUE. “Obviously there are infections that could happen. But what we did was stay compliant with the rules.”
In his video address, the mayor gave no indication he was out of town.
He also noted some constituents "seem to be a little reticent" when reached by the city's contact tracers.
As for the wedding, Adler said in a statement that he consulted with health officials "and worked hard to model the kind of behavior I've asked of the community."
"We ask everyone to be as safe as possible in what they do," he continued in the statement. "My family and I are no exception and we'll continue to do as I ask of our community. During Thanksgiving and as anticipated for Christmas and the New Year, we should all be especially mindful."
As of Wednesday, more than 13.8 million Americans have tested positive for coronavirus and over 272,400 have died, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Texas, the second worst-hit state in the US, has surpassed 1.25 million cases and 22,100 deaths.