Donald and Melania Trump Have Tested Positive for COVID-19
Written by SOURCE on October 2, 2020
U.S. President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump have tested positive for COVID-19.
Trump, who is 74 years old, made the announcement via Twitter early on Friday.
Tonight, @FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 2, 2020
A memo on Trump’s positive diagnosis for the coronavirus was released but did not indicate if he or Melania are experiencing any symptoms. “The president and first lady are both well at this time, and they plan to remain at home within the White House during their convalescence,” physician Sean P. Conley wrote in the memo. “Rest assured I expect the president to continue carrying out his duties without disruption while recovering, and I will keep you updated on any future developments.”
The statement from the WH doctor does not address whether the president or First Lady has symptoms. People noticed the president’s voice was raspy today but some chalked it up to a busy week. https://t.co/WEYsCoDXfb
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) October 2, 2020
The news, which arrives just over a month until the election, also comes on the heels of White House aide Hope Hicks testing positive for COVID-19. Shortly after news broke of Hicks testing positive for the coronavirus, Trump said that he would get tested and quarantine. Hicks traveled on Air Force One with Trump to Tuesday’s presidential debate in Cleveland and also accompanied him on Wednesday to a rally in Minnesota. The flight to the debate also included Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and senior advisor, and Trump’s adult children, Deadline reports.
Hope Hicks, who has been working so hard without even taking a small break, has just tested positive for Covid 19. Terrible! The First Lady and I are waiting for our test results. In the meantime, we will begin our quarantine process!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 2, 2020
Trump, who is often seen not wearing a mask, has consistently downplayed the severity of the virus, previously saying that the disease will “disappear” and that “it’s fading away.” Many of Trump’s rallies have hosted large numbers of maskless people not following social distancing guidelines.
So far, the U.S. has recorded at least 7.3 million cases of COVID-19 and over 200,000 deaths. The U.S. leads the world in both COVID-19 cases and deaths.
