WHERE U.S. LEADER WENT THIS WEEK T1 OC
THE White House knew that Donald Trump’s closest adviser had tested positive for Covid-19 before the president attended a private fundraiser.
He met donors at his golf club in New Jersey on Thursday despite Hope Hicks’s diagnosis being confirmed hours earlier.
It has now set off a frantic scramble to trace hundreds of people who came into contact with Mr Trump over the past week. The president did not quarantine himself despite being in close contact with Ms Hicks throughout that time, raising the possibility he could have infected others.
Some reports suggested he could even have become a ‘super spreader’ by carrying the virus around the country. Mr Trump’s diagnosis has put a renewed spotlight on his refusal to wear a mask or follow social distancing rules.
White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said the administration became aware Ms Hicks had tested positive for Covid-19 as they were taking off on Marine One, the presidential helicopter, on Thursday afternoon. The admission raises a huge question over the decision to continue on with
the trip to Bedminster, New Jersey, where Mr Trump attended a fundraising event for two hours. ‘I can tell you, in terms of Hope Hicks, we discovered [her positive result] right as the Marine One was taking off,’ said Mr Meadows.
‘We actually pulled some of the people that have been travelling and in close contact.’ On Tuesday, the first debate in the presidential campaign took place in Cleveland, Ohio, where most of the Trump family including his daughter Ivanka were seen in the audience without masks. All of Joe Biden’s camp wore face coverings.
At the age of 77, the Democratic candidate will be concerned about his exposure to the virus. The f ollowing morning Ms Hicks was seen boarding Air Force One with Mr Trump to Minnesota for a fundraiser at a private home in Minneapolis and an outdoor rally in Duluth attended by around 3,000 people.
The aide is also said to have shown symptoms on the flight home that evening. Her diagnosis was only confirmed by Mr Trump on Thursday after reports in the US media. In between these events the president met dozens of high-ranking officials, friends and members of his family. The White House staff of 90, including butlers and housekeepers, were said to be about their own health.
Mr Trump spent last weekend preparing for the debate. Former New Jersey governor Chris Christie, who was with the US leader during that time, said ‘no one was wearing masks in the room when we were prepping the president’.
Vice-President Mike Pence and Ivanka Trump tested negative. ‘nervous’