Despite frequent warnings by his own government, President Trump is still gearing up to hit the golf course in coming weeks – potentially endangering the health of Secret Service agents, as well as White House and Trump hotel staff, amid the ongoing COVID-19 crisis that continues to take thousands of American lives. 

According to reporting by the Washington Post, in late March the Secret Service signed a $45,000 contract to rent fleet golf carts in Northern Virginia near one of the president’s frequently visited golf courses in Sterling. Although the contract does not list the president by name in the rental, it is a near carbon copy of the previous orders used by the Secret Service for Trump’s golf visits in Florida and New Jersey.

When reached for comment on the matter by the Washington Post, the White House declined. 

And although the federal government, state authorities, and health experts have frequently cautioned against large gatherings and have maintained the necessity of keeping distance from others, the president’s golf visit is likely to flaunt these guidelines. 

According to reporting by the Huffington Post, Trump’s visit would likely cause members of the Secret Service and dozens of White House employees who operate the presidential motorcade to work within 6 feet of each other – something Trump’s own Center for Disease Control and Preventions has cautioned against. 

News of Trump’s expected golf trip in Virginia comes just weeks after the president’s Mar-A-Lago resort was holding 900-person fundraisers and large birthday parties as the virus was very apparently beginning to take foothold throughout the U.S. 

The president himself was briefed on the upcoming threat of coronavirus by his own intelligence officials as far back as January. 

As of April 7, the U.S. has nearly 400,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus – more than any other country in the world – and nearly 13,000 deaths due to complications from the virus.