Diagnosis of Covid is huge blow for Trump
But he keeps on working and ‘ symptoms are mild’
DONALD TRUMP is experiencing “mild symptoms” of Covid- 19 after revealing he and First Lady Melania Trump have tested positive for coronavirus.
The US president, who has spent much of the year downplaying the threat of a virus that has killed more than 205,000 Americans, said he and Mrs Trump were quarantining.
The White House physician said the president was expected to continue carrying out his duties “without disruption” while recovering. An official said Mr Trump was experiencing mild symptoms but was working from the White House residence.
His diagnosis is sure to have a destabilising effect in Washington and around the world, raising questions about how far the virus has spread through the highest levels of US government.
Hours before Mr Trump announced he had contracted the virus, the White House said a senior aide who had travelled with him during the week had tested positive.
Mr Trump tweeted: “Tonight, @ FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID- 19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!”
Vice president Mike Pence tested negative for the virus yesterday and “remains in good health”, his spokesman said.
Many White House and senior administration officials are undergoing tests but the full scale of the outbreak around the president may not be known for some time as it can take days for an infection to be detectable by a test.
Mr Trump was last seen by reporters returning to the White
House on Thursday evening and did not appear ill. He is 74, putting him at higher risk of serious complications from the virus that has infected more than seven million people nationwide.
The president’s physician said in a memo that Mr Trump and the First Lady, who is 50, “are both well at this time” and “plan to remain at home within the White House during their convalescence”.
The diagnosis is a devastating blow for a president who has
been trying desperately to convince America that the worst of the pandemic is behind them.
In the best of cases, if he develops no symptoms, it is likely to force him off the campaign trail weeks before the election and puts in doubt his participation in the second presidential debate, scheduled for October 15.
Yesterday Mr Trump had been scheduled to receive an intelligence briefing, attend a fundraiser and hold another campaign rally in Florida.