The masks come off at Biden’s second State of the Union address

Few people wore masks in the House chambers during President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address Tuesday night.

Most members of Congress, Supreme Court justices and Cabinet members left their face coverings at home for the president’s second annual address, in accordance with the masks-optional guidance issued by the Capitol’s attending physician earlier this week. A handful of Democratic members of Congress showed up sporting face coverings anyway.

Among the masked-up members of Congress were Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), as well as Reps. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), Jim Cooper (D-Tenn.), Danny Davis (D-Ill.) and Jim Langevin (D-R.I.).

Markey, in a tweet, said he decided to wear a mask “because we all need to remember that the immunocompromised and those over 60 remain at higher risk of severe illness and hospitalization from COVID-19.”

“For those who are vulnerable, continue to be vigilant and mask up,” Markey said.

The Office of the Attending Physician has adopted the CDC’s new model for monitoring community spread of Covid-19, which puts spread in the Washington, D.C., area in the “green,” or low, status for transmission.

While all attendees were required to show proof of a negative test before the Tuesday event, the almost entirely maskless crowd represented a stark visual departure from the president’s first State of the Union address last year, where attendance was restricted to 200 fully masked people.