Denver mayor urges against Thanksgiving travel, then takes a flight to visit family

Denver Mayor Michael Hancock urged his followers on social media to avoid traveling for Thanksgiving and then boarded a plane to spend the holiday with his family.

Hancock spokesman Mike Strott confirmed to The Denver Post that Hancock flew on Wednesday from Denver to Houston to spend Thanksgiving with his wife and daughter in Mississippi.

Hancock told his Twitter followers on Wednesday to “pass the potatoes, not COVID.” He also recommended holding virtual gatherings and avoiding travel if possible.

Strott told 9News that Hancock wasn’t hosting a large dinner this year and was only spending the holiday with his daughter and wife.

“As he has shared, the Mayor is not hosting his traditional large family dinner this year, but instead traveling alone to join his wife and daughter where the three of them will celebrate Thanksgiving at her residence instead of having them travel back to Denver,” the statement reads. “Upon return, he will follow all necessary health and safety guidance and quarantine.”

Hancock’s actions quickly drew criticism online.

“That is incredibly disappointing,” Dr. Sandy Johnson, head of the University of Denver’s school of global health affairs, told The Denver Post. “So many folks in the city of Denver have been doing the right thing. Unless there is some family emergency compelling the travel this just seems hypocritical at a time when we need leaders to lead by example.”

Republican Rep. Ken Buck of Colorado tweeted out in response to the news: “Hey Siri, what is the definition of hypocrisy?”

Colorado has more than 206,000 confirmed coronavirus cases and at least 2,400 deaths due to COVID-19 as of Nov. 25, according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

Multiple leaders have come under fire for flouting COVID-19 guidelines.

Earlier this month, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser traveled to Delaware to celebrate the victory of President-elect Joe Biden in the election, The Washington Post reported. Bower has attempted to discourage traveling due to COVID-19 risk in the past.

Bowser said the trip “absolutely” counted as “essential travel.”

“I do a lot of things to advance the interests of the District of Columbia. Some of them are formal and some of them are informal, but all of them are necessary,” she said, according to the publication.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom was criticized for attending a birthday dinner for a friend and said it was a “bad mistake” but he would “own it” and move forward, ABC News reported.

Newsom attended the dinner on Nov. 6 for the birthday of Jason Kinney, an adviser to Newsom, according to The San Francisco Chronicle. At least 12 people were present at the dinner at French Laundry in Yountville.