Abrams: Maskless Photo I Dismissed Criticism of as ‘Dishonest’ Was ‘a Mistake’ 

On Tuesday’s broadcast of CNN’s “OutFront,” Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams — whose campaign previously dismissed criticism of her taking a maskless photo in a classroom as “baseless…dishonest,” and “silly” — admitted she made a mistake by taking the picture and apologized.

Host Erin Burnett asked, “So, obviously, we’ve all seen the picture. We’ve all seen the coverage of the picture. Did you make a mistake by taking a photo maskless in the classroom when it appears that everyone else, including all the children, were wearing them?”

Abrams responded, “Yes. I will say this, I went to read to kids for an African American read-in day. I approached the podium with my mask on. I followed the protocols. I told the kids I’m taking my mask off because I’m reading to kids who are listening remotely as well, and we were socially distanced, the kids were socially distanced from me. I told them that’s what I was doing. And in the excitement after I finished because it was so much fun working with those kids, I took a picture. And that was a mistake. Protocols matter, and protecting our kids is the most important thing and anything that can be perceived as undermining that is a mistake and I apologize.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett