Southland responds to Trump’s illness
Local residents’ reactions range from concern to a sense that he brought it on himself.
A look at reactions from Californians to the news that President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump have tested positive for COVID- 19:
Placer County
Mike Murray was lying on the couch late Thursday, scrolling through his Facebook feed on his phone when he saw the news that Trump andthe f irst lady had tested positive for COVID- 19.
Almost immediately, Murray started seeing that people on social media were celebrating the president’s illness and mocking him, and that stock market futures were tumbling.
“I did not sleep well because of it,” said Murray, a member of the Republican Central Committee in conservative Placer County. “It’s sad. I wouldn’t wish that upon anybody, and seeing some of the comments, people laughing and mocking — there’s an old man that just got COVID and you’re putting up smiling emojis.
“I’m a Trump supporter, but if Joe Biden came down with it, I would feel awful for him,” he added.
In Placer County, a slice of Trump Country in blue California, reactions to the president’s illness fell along party lines, just as they have all across this deeply divided nation in a year defined by the pandemic, economic despair, racial inequity and natural disasters.
Conservatives said they wished the president a speedy recovery and said he’s done the best he can with the pandemic, trying to keep people hopeful and the economy from tanking. Liberals openly celebrated the diagnosis — or thought the president was faking it. — Hailey Branson
Potts
East Los Angeles
Suzie Salinas, 54, of Bell recalled that just days ago, during the presidential debate, Trump poked fun at Democratic candidate Joe Biden for wearing masks.
“That’s what he gets for making fun of people,” said Salinas, who was wearing a mask and carrying a fresh box of disinfecting wipes as she left a Target in East L. A.
She said she’s disappointed that while Latinos in East and Southeast L. A. have been hit hard despite doing their best to stay healthy, the country’s leader didn’t set an example.
“We’re following [ the rules], how come he can’t? He’s not special. He’s a human being like everybody else. We bleed the same color.
“You don’t see him going to buy Clorox wipes.”
Jonathan Diaz, a 23- yearold Army veteran, shared similar sentiments.
“I’m not saying I’m happy he got it,” Diaz said. “I’m sure now he sees this is not a joke.”
The East L. A. resident has taken the virus seriously since returning from a deployment in South Korea a couple of months ago. One of his family members was hospitalized with COVID- 19 and declared dead — but miraculously recovered.
But Diaz watched the president dismiss the virus repeatedly and didn’t see him wear a mask during media briefings and other appearances.
“It’s kind of ironic,” he said. “You could tell he didn’t believe in it and he was careless on his part.”
— Alejandra Reyes- Vel arde
Modesto
Nick Dokoozlian had just finished watching Thursday Night Football and had turned his attention to baseball when an alert popped up on his phone that President Trump and the f irst lady had tested positive for COVID- 19. Shocked, he immediately called his mother to share the news.
“If you didn’t think 2020 couldn’t get any more crazy, here we are,” said Dokoozlian, a junior at Colorado University Boulder who is pursuing his studies remotely from his native Modesto because of the pandemic.
Dokoozlian, who is a state captain for the organization Gen Z GOP, said that he prays the president and first lady — and all others affected — recover from the virus.
“This just reinforces that we need to continue to wear masks and be vigilant at all times,” he said.
“In California, things are starting to open back up a little bit but we still need to be cautious. This can really hit anyone.”
Huntington Beach
Trump’s timing was perfect because “he’s going to show the nation that he will recover so quickly — just in time for the election,” said Jules Adger, a retiree, walking with his dog, Gizmo, along the pier.
The Brea resident stood near a giant blue banner that read, “Masks up, Surf City, USA.”
Yet he and other visitors were not wearing face coverings. On his T- shirt, he sported a “Trump 2020" sticker.
Adger believes that by Oct. 9 or 10, the president will be back to good health and that there’s no need to use masks “because more harm will come to you by breathing back your own oxygen.”
He said he has faith that the first lady, along with her husband, “will snap out of it, because she’s healthy. I really wish both of them well.”
Greg Mitre, carrying his longboard, said Trump knew the risks.
“He’s playing with f ire, rolling the dice, and eventually, he got it. If he’s going to be holding rallies and having people all around him, it’s expected. The leader of our great country has been absolutely irresponsible.”
Mitre, a retired dockworker from San Pedro, was waiting to hear if members of the president’s Cabinet and those who often travel with him on Air Force One and Marine One would test positive for the coronavirus.
“I think it was pretty obvious that people who are wearing the mask, exercising caution, exercising social distance, will not come down with the disease,” added Mitre, 63. “Maybe some good will come of it, and the rest of the nation will start to realize that they better be careful and start wearing masks.”
— Anh Do