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DEVELOPING STORY
US president and first lady are currently under quarantine after Trump’s aide Hope Hicks also tested positive.
- US President Donald Trump has said in a tweet that he and his wife Melania have contracted the coronavirus and are entering quarantine.
- Trump’s tweet on Friday came after Hope Hicks, one of his closest advisers, tested positive for the disease, after months of downplaying the severity of a pandemic that has killed more than 200,000 people in the United States.
- The news reverberated through world media and financial markets, raising questions over what will be the effects on next month’s presidential election.
Here are the latest updates:
07:07 GMT – Trump’s rally in Florida cancelled
The US health protection agency, CDC, recommends a 14-day quarantine for people who test positive to COVID-19. Within this timeframe, Trump was due to speak at rallies in Florida, Wisconsin and Arizona. All three are swing states.
The White House already issued a new schedule for Trump’s activities that did not include his planned trip to Florida. His only scheduled event is a “phone call on COVID-19 support to vulnerable seniors”.
The White House just released an updated press schedule for tomorrow. President Trump’s only scheduled event is “a phone call on COVID-19 support to vulnerable seniors.” pic.twitter.com/Nbm1PWB70I
— Andrew deGrandpre (@adegrandpre) October 2, 2020
06:51 GMT – At greater risk
Questions loom over the health effects of COVID-19 on Trump, who is 74 years old and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, who is 77.
Due to their ages, both are in a category of people at greater risk of severe illness from the virus.
Trump is 74 pic.twitter.com/fmGE9CoRhv
— Helen Sullivan (@helenrsullivan) October 2, 2020
06:30 GMT – The UK wishes Trump speedy recovery
The British government wishes Trump a speedy recovery but the United States has a clear succession protocol should it be needed, said a British minister.
“All of us want to send our best wishes to President Trump, the first lady and the Trump family and wish them a speedy recovery,” Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick told Sky News.
“We know what it’s like to have, in our case a prime minister who tested positive for COVID and setting aside politics we all want to see him and his wife get better soon,” he said, referring to Boris Johnson who fell gravely ill after catching COVID-19 in March.
06:15 GMT – Speaker Nancy Pelosi ‘should be in isolation’
Speaking to CNN, George Washington School of Medicine professor Jonathan Reiner said House speaker Nancy Pelosi should be in isolation as it is possible that both Trump and Vice President Mike Pence could become ill, in which case she would likely need to step in.
Dr. Jonathan Reiner says on CNN that Nancy Pelosi should be in isolation right now, because given that they’ve been exposed to Covid, it’s possible both Trump and Pence could become sick pic.twitter.com/pkcdT33vYN
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 2, 2020
05:30 GMT – Trump says he tests positive to COVID-19
Trump announced on Twitter that he and the First Lady Melania Trump tested positive to the coronavirus.
Tonight, @FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 2, 2020
The news came a few hours after the president and the first lady started quarantining after they found out that Hope Hicks, one of his closest aides, had tested positive.
Hope Hicks, who has been working so hard without even taking a small break, has just tested positive for Covid 19. Terrible! The First Lady and I are waiting for our test results. In the meantime, we will begin our quarantine process!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 2, 2020
