By Jane Onyanga-Omara and Ryan W. Miller, USA Today–
President Donald Trump revealed early Friday that he and first lady Melania Trump have tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. It came hours after Hope Hicks, a White House aide with whom he had recently traveled, had also tested positive.
Trump tweeted just before 1 a.m. EDT 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!”
Melania Trump followed up with a tweet confirming their diagnosis and added: “Please be sure you are staying safe & we will all get through this together.”
Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen tested negative for the virus Friday morning, Devin O’Malley, his press secretary, tweeted.
In the United States, more than 7 million people have been diagnosed with COVID-19 and over 200,000 have died from the disease.
Quarantine to start ‘immediately’:Trump, Melania test positive for coronavirus
Latest COVID news:Friday updates on what’s happening around the world
This is what we know so far:
What are Trump’s symptoms?
Melania Trump tweeted: “We are feeling good.”
White House physician Dr. Sean Conley wrote in a letter about Trump’s positive test that: “The President and First Lady are both well at this time.”
Former White House doctor Ronny Jackson told Fox News early Friday that Trump was asymptomatic and predicted the president would “weather this storm.”
“I will bet you that he does not develop symptoms, that he moves on and this does not become a big deal,” Jackson said.
US coronavirus map:Tracking the outbreak
Where did Trump get COVID-19?
Trump was presumably exposed by his aide, Hope Hicks. The president tweeted that she had tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday.
Bloomberg reported that Hicks was experiencing some symptoms associated with the coronavirus, according to people close to her.
There is increasing data that people infected with COVID-19 who show symptoms have higher viral loads than those without symptoms.
Where are the Trumps now?
Melania Trump tweeted early Friday: “As too many Americans have done this year, @potus & I are quarantining at home.”
The couple “plan to remain at home within the White House during their convalescence,” Conley wrote.
Trump tested positive for COVID-19:What’s the typical course of the illness?
Is Trump at an increased risk for complications?
Because of his age and obesity, Trump is in two very high-risk groups for developing severe COVID-19 disease, hospitalization and death.
At 74, the president is five times more likely to be hospitalized and 90 times more likely to die of COVID-19 than someone between the ages of 18 and 29, according to the CDC. He’s also just over the line into obesity, tripling the risk of hospitalization due to a COVID-19 infection, according to the CDC.
What are the reactions to Trump’s positive test?
From government officials to TV commentators, wishes for prayers and a speedy recovery poured in early Friday across Twitter. Vice President Mike Pence said he and his wife “send our love and prayers to our dear friends,” the President and First Lady, and “We join millions across America praying for their full and swift recovery.”
Narendra Modi, prime minister of India, was among the first world leaders to react, writing that he wishes “my friend” Trump and his wife “a quick recovery and good health.” British prime minister Boris Johnson, who spent time earlier this year in an intensive care unit with the illness, also wished the Trumps well. “Hope they both have a speedy recovery from coronavirus,” he tweeted.
‘May God’s healing powers touch them’:Twitter reacts after Trump’s diagnosis
British PM recovered from COVID-19:What about other world leaders?
Who else could have been infected with the coronavirus?
Trump took part in a fundraiser and a roundtable in Bedminster, New Jersey, earlier in the day Thursday. He also recently appeared at a rally in Duluth, Minnesota, on Wednesday. Before that, he traveled to Cleveland, Ohio, on Tuesday for the first presidential debate with Democratic nominee Joe Biden.
Will Joe Biden get tested for COVID-19?
CNN and Bloomberg reported that Biden will be tested Friday. It was unclear if Biden will still travel to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he had campaign stops planned.
Biden and Trump shared the debate stage for 90 minutes. Although they were more than 6 feet apart, neither wore masks.
What happens to Trump’s public appearances?
The White House released an updated public schedule for the president early Friday in which his public events had been canceled, including a planned rally in Florida. Trump maintained an event on his schedule, a midday phone call focused on COVID-19 with vulnerable seniors. “Rest assured I expect the President to continue carrying out his duties without disruption while recovering,” Conley, the White House physician, wrote in his letter.
Melania Trump tweeted: “I have postponed all upcoming engagements.”
What does it mean for the pandemic response and 2020 election?
Trump testing positive has the potential to upend his all-is-well messaging on the pandemic while throwing an already contentious election into further disarray. Trump has argued for weeks that the nation had “turned the corner” on COVID-19, despite spiraling case counts, and often asserted Americans had the pandemic “under control” as he pressured states to open schools and businesses.
As well as major implications for the president’s messaging, the announcement will also have an impact on the logistics of his schedule just weeks before the Nov. 3 election. The revelation of his positive result raises questions about his ability to hold rallies, fundraisers and participate in presidential debates scheduled later this month.
Contributing: John Fritze, Elizabeth Weise
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