On December 22 we reported that far-right activist and Queens Council candidate Vickie Paladino and members of the Whitestone Republican Club held a maskless Christmas party at Il Bacco, a NYC restaurant that sued Governor Andrew Cuomo over COVID dining restrictions.
Video of the party, which shows attendees dancing around the room in a conga line with a Trump flag held by former Republican Assembly candidate James Martinosky, went viral and has since been viewed 3.4 million times.
The Queens Eagle reports that James Trent, chair of the affiliated Queens Village Republican Club, is now hospitalized with COVID-19 and began getting sick two days after the party, though he wasn't on the conga line: “When asked whether he regretted attending the party, Trent said it was an ‘interesting question.' …'It was a wonderful time and a great party, but I'm not happy I got sick,' he said.”