Trump Homelessness Czar Toured Shelters Uninvited, Despite Covid Concerns
Some shelter staff and federal officials complained of unwanted site visits during a time of heightened health concerns.
Socially distanced sleeping cots set up at the temporary shelter set up inside the San Diego Convention Center in April 2020. The former White House lead on homelessness visited the convention center as part of a nationwide tour of U.S. shelters during the pandemic, in what some shelter staff say were unwanted visits given the Covid risk.
Photographer: Bing Guan/Bloomberg
Robert Marbut Jr. got to Nebraska just in time. The White House lead on homelessness under President Donald Trump arrived in Omaha on Feb. 3 for an unannounced site visit at Open Door Mission, a homeless shelter near the airport. Open Door launched its Covid-19 vaccine program that morning, making it among the first facilities in the country to provide vaccinations for unhoused people. Marbut received one of about 70 available doses after only half that many people showed up.
“He was coming from another city. He arrived here in the morning,” says Candace Gregory, president and CEO for Open Door Mission. “Right after lunch, he flew to another site.”