Donald Trump and First Lady Melania have contracted the corona virus. The US president has tested positive. Trump announced on Friday night.
At first it was unclear whether other people around him had become infected. “Like far too many other Americans this year, the President of the United States and I are in quarantine at home after testing positive for Covid-19. We are fine and I have canceled all upcoming commitments, ”wrote Melania Trump on Twitter Friday morning. “Please take care of yourselves and we will all get through this together.”
US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania had a corona test after a close adviser tested positive for the virus. Trump confirmed in an interview with Fox News on Thursday evening (local time) that Hope Hicks was infected. “She tested positive,” said Trump. “We spend a lot of time with her.”
The quick test that the White House requires from all external visitors usually takes 15 minutes. Looking at Trump’s Twitter frequency, it therefore seemed strange that hours after Hope Hick’s infection became known, none of it had leaked out.
In a memo handed out to reporters that night, the president’s doctor, Navy Commander Sean Conley, wrote that he received confirmation of positive tests Thursday night. “The president and first lady are both fine at this point, and they plan to stay at home in the White House during their recovery,” Conley wrote.
“The White House medical team and I will continue to be vigilant, and I appreciate the support of some of the largest medical professionals and institutions in our country,” wrote Conley, without delving into the assistance that has been made available to the White House.
“Please rest assured that I expect the president will continue to perform his duties undisturbed during his recovery and I will keep you informed of any further developments,” he wrote.
There is already talk in the American media that this could be a potential threat to national security: Vice President Mike Pence must absolutely stay away from Trump. Another suspicion is that the challenger in the November 3rd presidential election, Democrat Joe Biden, may have been in danger in the TV duel last Tuesday.
With the news of Trump’s positive corona test, a number of questions now arise:
- How strong is the corona virus affecting Trump?
- Can the US President still rule (Trump is 74 years old)?
- Who else has he infected (like Vice President Mike Pence)?
- What does this mean for the election campaign (Trump won’t be able to leave the house)?
Trump’s positive corona test should also have sensitive effects on his election campaign – the election is in just 33 days. Even if the 74-year-old remains asymptomatic, he will have to withdraw from the election campaign and remain isolated in the White House for an unknown time. Should he get more seriously ill, it could raise questions about whether he should even be on the ballot paper.
And even if he doesn’t get seriously ill, given the months of lessening the severity of the pandemic, the positive test could prove devastating to his targeted re-election. Because the virus continues to rage, 1,000 Americans are killed every day. A total of almost 208,000 people in the United States have been proven to have died from the corona virus.
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However, Trump himself has repeatedly claimed that the virus will “go away”. He assured it was under control. In addition, he repeatedly mocked scientists – they would misjudge the severity of the situation. Even in the TV duel, Trump had made fun of his challenger Joe Biden, who always wore a huge mask.
Again and again, for example, Trump urged journalists to take off their mouthguards if they asked him a question. The president belongs to the risk group simply because of his age – he is 74 years old. Biden is three years older.
There have been corona infections in the Trump area before. However, Hicks is the closest person to the president known to be infected. According to matching media reports, Hicks traveled to Cleveland with Trump on Tuesday in the Air Force One presidential plane for the TV debate, where Trump met Biden. On Wednesday, she traveled to Minnesota for an election campaign appearance.
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Trump suggested that Hicks could have been infected by members of the military or police officers. “They come to you and they want to hug you and they want to kiss you because we did a really good job for them, you get close and things happen,” Trump said. “I was surprised to hear about Hope, but she is a very warm person towards you and she knows that there is a risk, but she is young.” You couldn’t just say: “Stay away, stay away”, said Trump.
The White House initially made no changes to the president’s schedule for Friday. Before an election campaign appearance in Florida in the evening (local time), a phone call is planned at noon with seniors who are particularly at risk in the Corona crisis
In photos from Wednesday, Hicks was seen at the Joint Base Andrews military airfield outside the presidential helicopter Marine One in close proximity to Trump’s adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner. Neither of them wore mouth and nose protection.
A White House spokesman, Judd Deere, said on Thursday evening when asked: “The President takes the health and safety of himself and everyone who works for him and the American people very seriously.” The current CDC guidelines and proven measures to reduce the risk of infection are being followed, the statement said.
Trump usually does not wear a mask in public. The White House justified this with the fact that the president and his entourage were regularly tested for the corona virus. Trump’s spokeswoman, Kayleigh McEnany, described wearing masks in June as a “personal choice” and pointed out that she was regularly tested.
White House employees had known that Hicks had been infected since Wednesday evening, reported the New York Times. Bloomberg reported that she was not doing well in Minnesota and was quarantined in Air Force One during the return flight.
At the beginning of May it became known that the press secretary of US Vice President Mike Pence, Katie Miller, had become infected. White House National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien tested positive in late July.
The corona pandemic is still not under control in the USA. More than 7.2 million infections have been detected since the pandemic began. More than 207,000 people died. (with dpa)
