It was Trump's fault.

New York Times

The top health official in Tulsa, Oklahoma, suggested on Wednesday that a surge in cases in and around the city was probably connected to a contentious indoor campaign rally President Trump held there last month.

Tulsa County reported 206 new confirmed cases on Tuesday and 261 — a record high — on Monday.

“The past two days we’ve had almost 500 cases, and we know we had several large events a little over two weeks ago, which is about right,” Dr. Bruce Dart, director of the Tulsa Health Department, said at a news conference. “So I guess we just connect the dots.” Recent protests in the city were among the events.

Asked whether contact tracing had confirmed a link between the Trump rally and the increase in cases, Leanne Stephens, a spokeswoman for the health department, said the department “will not publicly identify any individual or facility at risk of exposure, or where transmission occurred.”

But Dr. Dart said the large gatherings of people in the city had “more than likely contributed to that.”

Dr. Dart was among those urging the Trump to cancel the rally at the 19,000-seat Bank of Oklahoma Center arena, citing the risk of infection. The rally did not come close to filling the arena to capacity; most in attendance did not wear masks.

As of Tuesday, Oklahoma’s seven-day average had risen to 495 new cases; a month before the average was 92. The state’s spike in cases has mirrored a resurgence elsewhere in the country’s South and West.