Trump’s result comes after he spent months playing down the severity of the outbreak that has killed more than 200,000 people in the United States and a few hours after asserting that “the end of the pandemic is in sight.”
WASHINGTON D.C. United States (Times Media Mexico) — Donald Trump revealed that he and the first lady, tested positive for the covid-19, putting the nation’s leadership into uncertainty, escalating the health crisis posed by the pandemic which so far has already killed more than 200 thousand people in the country and distressed the economy.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, Trump played down the gravity of the virus and on Thursday, October 1, 2020 he told an audience: “the end of the pandemic is in sight.” Donald Trump and his wife will quarantine in the White House for an unspecified period of time, forcing him to momentarily withdraw from the presidential campaign 32 days before the election on Nov. 3.
The disclosure came in a Twitter message just before 1 a.m. after a suspenseful evening following reports that Trump’s close adviser Hope Hicks had tested positive. About 30 minutes later, Mrs. Trump wrote they were “feeling good.” The White House have not said if they were experiencing symptoms. The president’s physician said he could carry out his duties “without disruption” from the Executive Mansion.
Trump’s positive test poses a challenge on the future of his campaign against former Vice President Joe R. Biden Jr., the Democratic nominee, with barely a month until Election Day. Even if Trump at 74 years old, remains asymptomatic, he could lose much of his remaining time on the campaign trail. If he becomes seriously ill, it could raise questions about whether he should remain on the ballot at all.
The White House did not say how long Mr. Trump would have to remain isolated, but it canceled his plans to fly to Florida for a campaign rally on Friday, stripping his public schedule for the day of everything except a midday telephone call “on Covid-19 support to vulnerable seniors.” Appearances at rallies in Wisconsin on Saturday and in Arizona on Monday also appear sure to be scrapped, and the next debate, scheduled for Oct. 15 in Miami, was left up in the air.
During late-night conversations, aides to Mr. Trump were discussing whether he should give an address to the nation on Friday from the White House or find some other way for him to reassure the public. There is no immediate word on how far the infection may have spread among senior White House officials, who generally do not wear masks in deference to the president’s disdain for them.