The coronavirus continues to rage through President Donald Trump’s inner circle and high-level Republican politics.
Trump is hospitalized after testing positive for the virus. He and first lady Melania Trump announced their results Friday after appearing at a slew of events during the week, including a presidential debate, a fundraiser at his Bedminster resort and a White House Rose Garden ceremony to nominate Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. Many people who attended these events, including top Republican senators, have also tested positive for the virus.
Trump is one of the more than 7.45 million Americans who have contracted the coronavirus since Chinese officials implemented the first coronavirus lockdown in the city of Wuhan in January. More than 210,000 Americans have died from the disease, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
HuffPost reporters are tracking Trump’s progress and the outbreaks stemming from events at which he appeared in the last week.
Read the latest updates below. (To see the latest updates, you may need to refresh the page. All times are Eastern. For earlier updates on the pandemic, go here.)
Trump asserted that he plans to be ready for his second debate with Democratic rival Joe Biden — originally scheduled for next week — despite still recovering from the coronavirus.
“I am looking forward to the debate on the evening of Thursday, October 15th in Miami. It will be great!” he tweeted.
“FEELING GREAT!” he said in another tweet.
Future presidential debates were thrown into limbo with Trump’s coronavirus diagnosis, which he revealed in the early hours of Friday morning. While the timeline of his illness is not entirely clear, the president’s doctor, Sean Conley, said in a press conference on Saturday that the seven-to-10-day mark is most important to watch. That mark appears to line up with the next scheduled debate.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it is safe for someone who’s had COVID-19 to be around others if it has been at least 10 days since the onset of symptoms, the patient has been fever-free for 24 hours and the patient’s other symptoms are improving.
Trump returned to the White House on Monday evening from Walter Reed, where he was flown for treatment after developing a high fever.
— Sara Boboltz
A military staffer directly assigned to support President Donald Trump in the White House tested positive for COVID-19 over the weekend, CNN and The New York Times reported.
The aide, who has not been publicly identified, is the latest addition to the growing list of White House personnel and members of Trump’s inner circle who have contracted the virus. Others include first lady Melania Trump, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany and at least three Republican senators.
Trump was released from Walter Reed medical center on Monday after a three-day stay to treat his coronavirus infection. His doctors warned Trump is “not out of the woods” yet, even though he claims to be feeling very well.
— Hayley Miller
President Trump on Tuesday relaunched what appeared to be his normal Twitter routine during his first morning back at the White House following his three-day hospitalization at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
In a series of tweets, Trump falsely accused Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden of being in favor of abortion “right up until the time of birth and beyond” and praised Americans for having “learned to live” with the flu and the coronavirus, which has killed more than 210,000 people in the United States.
“Flu season is coming up!” he tweeted. “Many people every year, sometimes over 100,000, and despite the Vaccine, die from the Flu. Are we going to close down our Country? No, we have learned to live with it, just like we are learning to live with Covid, in most populations far less lethal!!!”
Medical experts have warned that this year’s flu season, coupled with potential surges of coronavirus cases, could overwhelm the nation’s health care system. Roughly 22,000 people in the U.S. died from the flu during the 2019-2020 flu season.
Getting a flu shot — especially this year — is “really important,” one doctor told WVNS-TV last month. “The flu vaccine will help to decrease the severity of the illness if you still get the flu but it will actually also help to decrease the burden on our health care system that is already being stressed.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends getting a flu shot by the end of October.
— Hayley Miller
Thirteen restaurant staffers are in quarantine after catering a fundraising dinner for President Donald Trump at a private home in Minnesota, the restaurant said.
The staffers for Murray’s Restaurant, a steakhouse in downtown Minneapolis, worked at the fundraiser Wednesday at the Lake Minnetonka home of Marty Davis, CEO of quartz countertop manufacturer Cambria.
“Our staff was there to work the party only and at no point did any staff come in close proximity to the president,” the restaurant said in a statement. The restaurant said staffers will be given a COVID-19 test.
About 40 guests paid $200,000 a couple to meet the president and hear him speak. One guest said they had to stay in their cars and await the results of a coronavirus test before entering the home for the event.
— Liza Hearon
Shortly after he arrived back at the White House on Monday evening, President Donald Trump released a video downplaying COVID-19 and defending his actions leading up to his infection.
“Don’t let it dominate you. Don’t be afraid of it. You’re going to beat it,” he said of a disease that’s killed more than 209,000 Americans under his watch.
He repeated the sentiment several times. “Don’t let it take over your lives. Don’t let that happen,” he said as he made a push for the economy to reopen, despite the advice of public health officials.
“Nobody that’s a leader would not do what I did,” he said, referring to himself going “back to work.”
The coronavirus outbreak at the White House is believed to be linked to a celebratory event Trump hosted at the Rose Garden on Sept. 26.
“I know there’s a risk. There’s a danger, but that’s OK,” he said. “And now I’m better, and maybe I’m immune, I don’t know.
― Lydia O’Connor
President Donald Trump left Walter Reed hospital late Monday and returned to the White House, where he was filmed promptly removing his mask.
The president has coronavirus and is likely contagious. His mask removal flouts his own administration’s guidelines on preventing the spread of the coronavirus and puts anyone in his vicinity, including White House staffers, at risk.
More than a dozen people in Trump’s circle have tested positive for the coronavirus in recent days, including two White House residence housekeepers. (The workers reportedly did not come in direct contact with Trump or the rest of the first family.)
— Sarah Ruiz-Grossman
President Donald Trump left Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Monday, three days after he said he had tested positive for COVID-19.
The president left the hospital wearing a mask and walked to a waiting vehicle without taking questions from the press. He gave a thumbs up before heading to Marine One to go home to the White House.
Questions remain about the president’s health despite his stay in the hospital. White House physician Sean Conley said he is doing well, but “he may not entirely be out of the woods yet.”
— Nick Visser
The White House won’t do any contact tracing related to a COVID-19 outbreak believed to be linked to a large event in the Rose Garden 10 days ago, a person familiar with the matter told The New York Times.
According to the Monday report, the White House is doing little to investigate the scope and source of a coronavirus outbreak affecting President Donald Trump and several members of his staff. The likely source of this new cluster of cases, experts say, is an event Trump held in the Rose Garden to celebrate his nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court.
So far, the source told the Times, the White House has gotten in touch only with people who came in close contact with Trump in the two days leading up to his Thursday evening diagnosis. The source also said that Trump’s administration has pushed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention out of the contact tracing process.
― Lydia O’Connor
President Donald Trump claims to be on the mend after COVID-19 landed him in the hospital Saturday, and Democratic nominee Joe Biden hopes he’ll put that newfound energy to use implementing a national policy to contain the coronavirus instead of just “tweeting campaign messages.”
Speaking Monday in Miami, Biden called on Trump to “listen to the scientists” and support a nationwide mask mandate.
“My prayers continue to be with the President and the First Lady for their health and safety as they, like so many American families, are dealing with COVID-19,” Biden said. “I was glad to see the President speaking and recording videos over the weekend.”
“Now that he’s busy tweeting campaign messages,” Biden added, “I would ask him to do this: Listen to the scientists. Support masks. Support a mask mandate nationwide. Require masks in every federal building and facility, and in interstate travel. Urge every governor and mayor to do the same. We know it saves lives.”
— Ryan Grenoble
Vice President Mike Pence and Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris will have a plexiglass barrier between them during Wednesday’s debate, Politico reported Monday.
The Commission on Presidential Debates approved the measure, according to the report. Harris’ campaign supported it and Pence’s opposed.
“If Sen. Harris wants to use a fortress around herself, have at it,” said Katie Miller, a Pence spokesperson. Miller had COVID-19 earlier this year.
― Paige Lavender
President Donald Trump on Monday defended his decision to leave the hospital by car so he could wave to supporters, even though he was still being treated for COVID-19.
Despite his infection and symptoms, Trump decided on Sunday to surprise his supporters who had gathered outside of Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he has been receiving treatment for the coronavirus. The president was seen wearing a mask and waving to the crowd from the back of a black SUV, while a driver and a passenger sat in the front seats wearing personal protective equipment.
Trump did not notify the White House press pool that he was going to step outside the hospital for a photo-op, a dangerous decision for the commander-in-chief to make while he battles a virus that has already killed more than 209,000 people in the U.S. News outlets pointed out Trump’s irresponsibility toward both his own health and the health of his security detail.
“It is reported that the Media is upset because I got into a secure vehicle to say thank you to the many fans and supporters who were staying outside of the hospital for many hours, and even days, to pay their respect to their President,” Trump tweeted Monday. “If I didn’t do it, Media would say RUDE!!!”
A White House doctor said earlier on Sunday that Trump’s blood oxygen levels had dropped below normal twice during the previous day. The doctor also said the president is being administered dexamethasone ― a steroid that many medical experts have said is reserved for more severe cases of COVID-19.
Trump has said he will leave hospital on Monday evening.
— Sanjana Karanth
President Donald Trump tweeted Monday that he plans to leave Walter Reed National Military Medical Center at 6:30 p.m.
“Feeling really good!” he wrote. “Don’t be afraid of Covid. Don’t let it dominate your life. We have developed, under the Trump Administration, some really great drugs & knowledge. I feel better than I did 20 years ago!”
His announcement comes a day after he briefly left the hospital to wave to supporters from a car.
― Lydia O’Connor
Two White House residence staff members who tested positive for COVID-19 worked in housekeeping, reported The New York Times. They worked on the third floor and did not come in direct contact with President Donald Trump or his family.
The two housekeeping staff members were reportedly told to use “discretion” in discussing their positive COVID-19 test results.
More than a dozen people in Trump’s inner circle have tested positive for the virus in the last few days, including at least two Republican lawmakers, the White House press secretary, and several other people who attended the Sept. 26 event at the White House’s Rose Garden for Amy Coney Barrett’s Supreme Court nomination.
— Sarah Ruiz-Grossman
Pastor Who Attended Rose Garden Event For Barrett Tests Positive ― 10/5/20, 2:10 p.m. ET
A California pastor is one of the latest attendees of a packed White House Rose Garden event held Sept. 26 to test positive for the coronavirus, New York Magazine reported.
Greg Laurie, the senior pastor for Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California, reportedly told church officials on Sunday of his diagnosis. He is experiencing mild symptoms and quarantining at home, New York Magazine reported.
Laurie participated the National Prayer March in Washington on Sept. 26 before heading over to the Rose Garden later that day for Amy Coney Barrett’s Supreme Court nomination ceremony.
At least eight other people have tested positive for the virus since attending the Rose Garden event, including President Trump, first lady Melania Trump, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany and two Republican senators. Vice President Mike Pence attended both the National Prayer March and the Rose Garden event. He has reported testing negative for the virus every day since Trump revealed his diagnosis Friday.
― Hayley Miller
White House aides Chad Gilmartin and Karoline Leavitt have tested positive for the coronavirus, making them the latest members of President Trump’s inner orbit to reveal such a diagnosis, multiple outlets reported Monday.
Gilmartin has been working in the West Wing since May as principal assistant press secretary. He is the cousin of White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany’s husband, MLB pitcher Sean Gilmartin. Leavitt is an assistant press secretary.
Earlier Monday, McEnany announced that she too had tested positive for the virus, three days after Trump was hospitalized for COVID-19. Several other members of the White House communications office have tested positive in recent days as well, reported Bloomberg News.
― Hayley Miller
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany is the latest member of Trump’s inner circle to test positive for COVID-19.
McEnany said Monday that she is asymptomatic and will be self-quarantining.
On Thursday and Sunday, McEnany briefed reporters without wearing a face mask.
—Marina Fang
President Trump’s condition continues to improve as he heads into his fourth day of being hospitalized with the coronavirus, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows told Fox News on Monday.
“Spoke to the president this morning,” Meadows said. “He continued to improve overnight and is ready to get back to a normal working schedule. He will meet with his doctors and nurses this morning to make further assessments of his progress.”
“We are still optimistic that he will be able to return to the White House later today,” he added.
Though Trump’s medical team has said the president is doing “very well,” some medical experts have suggested that Trump’s condition may be more serious than his doctors are letting on. White House physician Sean Conley announced Sunday that Trump’s blood oxygen level had dropped below 95% ― an important threshold ― on Friday and Saturday. This prompted Trump’s doctors to give him dexamethasone, a steroid that has been shown to reduce deaths among critically ill COVID-19 patients in a clinical trial.
― Hayley Miller
Attorney General Barr Received 4 Negative COVID-19 Tests Since Trump Diagnosis — 10/4/20, 8:04 p.m. ET
Attorney General William Barr reportedly received four negative COVID-19 test results since Friday morning, when President Donald Trump announced that he tested positive for the virus.
Despite his negative results, including from Sunday, the attorney general plans to self-quarantine “for now,” Justice Department spokesperson Kerri Kupec told CNN and MSNBC on Sunday. Kupec said he is expected to return to the department midweek.
Barr recently came in close contact with members of Trump’s inner circle who have tested positive for COVID-19, including former White House adviser Kellyanne Conway. The attorney general attended the Sept. 26 ceremony in which Trump formally nominated Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court — an event that is quickly revealing itself to be the source of many high-level figures’ coronavirus infections.
— Sanjana Karanth
Former Vice President Joe Biden’s campaign said Sunday evening that the Democratic presidential nominee again tested negative for COVID-19 after he began regular testing following news Friday of President Donald Trump’s positive test result.
“Vice President Biden underwent PCR testing for COVID-19 today, and COVID-19 was not detected,” the campaign said, according to a pool report. The campaign said Saturday that it will disclose the results of every coronavirus test the candidate takes from now on.
Axios reporter Alexi McCammond said that the pool “was given no additional guidance” after asking the campaign if Biden was tested once or twice.
Biden previously said he was tested twice before going to Michigan on Friday, the day Trump announced he was infected with the virus.
The campaign reportedly also didn’t give guidance about the last time Biden received a negative COVID-19 test result before this one. The nominee told reporters Sunday morning that he did not get tested on Saturday.
— Sanjana Karanth
Trump Leaves Hospital To Surprise Supporters Outside Walter Reed — 10/04/20, 5:50 p.m. ET
Despite his sickness and infection, Trump decided to surprise his supporters gathered outside Walter Reed National Military Medical Center as he recovers from the novel coronavirus.
Early Sunday evening, Trump tweeted a video message to his followers saying that he was “going to pay a little surprise to some of the great patriots out on the street.”
Shortly after, reporters tweeted videos of Trump wearing a mask and waving from the back of a black SUV with a driver and passenger in the front seats wearing personal protective equipment.
Trump has spent the last three days at Walter Reed after he and first lady Melania Trump contracted the virus.
Earlier Sunday, a White House doctor said Trump’s blood oxygen level dropped below normal to 93% twice on Saturday.
— Carla Russo
New Jersey Health Officials Say At Least 206 Trump Fundraiser Guests Possibly Exposed To COVID-19 — 10/04/20, 4:40 p.m. ET
New Jersey health officials said Sunday that more than 200 guests may have been exposed to COVID-19 during President Donald Trump’s campaign fundraiser on Thursday, just hours before the administration announced his diagnosis.
The state’s Department of Health tweeted that it has finally received enough information to contact trace those who attended the high-dollar event at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster. The White House supplied New Jersey officials with the names of at least 206 individuals, not including staff working at the golf course.
Previously, reports said that Trump had come into contact with 100 people at the fundraiser and seemed “lethargic,” a common symptom of the virus. A senior aide to Gov. Phil Murphy (D) told HuffPost on Friday afternoon that the state was still waiting for the full roster of everyone who attended the event.
Health officials said they’re reaching out to the attendees to make them aware of potential COVID-19 exposure, and recommending that the individuals self-monitor for any symptoms and quarantine if they were in close contact with Trump, who is currently hospitalized due to the virus. Health officials in Somerset County are interviewing club staff to assess how much contact they had with Trump and his staff, and providing appropriate health recommendations.
“The contact tracing process is ongoing. Attendees that are seeking a test should consider waiting at least 5-7 days from the event. While the risk is low, a negative test earlier than that time cannot definitively rule out that COVID-19 will not develop,” the state’s Health Department tweeted on Sunday. “Those who are concerned that they were in close contact should quarantine for 14 days. New Jersey officials have been informed that the federal government is also conducting contact tracing.”
— Sanjana Karanth
Vice President Mike Pence and his wife, Karen Pence, on Sunday tested negative again for the coronavirus days after President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump revealed they contracted the virus, the vice president’s office reported.
The Trump campaign has said Pence, who is tested daily for the virus, will continue to campaign following Trump’s hospitalization on Friday.
Pence is scheduled to face off against Democratic vice presidential nominee Sen. Kamala Harris of California on Wednesday in Salt Lake City.
— Hayley Miller
Trump’s Condition Improving Despite Blood Oxygen Level Dipping Twice, W.H. Doctor Says — 10/04/2020, 12:25 p.m. ET
President Donald Trump’s blood oxygen level twice dipped below 95% — an important threshold — including a transient dip to 93% on Saturday, White House physician Sean Conley said Sunday.
A normal blood oxygen level ― which indicates the oxygen saturation of someone’s blood ― usually ranges from 95% to 100%, according to the Mayo Clinic.
In response to the second blood oxygen level drop, Trump’s medical team administered dexamethasone, a steroid that has been shown to save the lives of people seriously ill with COVID-19 in a clinical trial.
Despite the transient blood oxygen level drops, Trump’s doctors said during a news conference Sunday that the president is doing “very well.” Conley said he hopes to discharge Trump “as early as tomorrow.””
Read more here.
— Hayley Miller
Trump To Remain Hospitalized For ‘A Period Of Time,’ White House Aide Says — 10/04/20, 10:55 a.m. ET
President Trump feels “very well” but will likely remain hospitalized for “a period of time” following his coronavirus diagnosis, national security adviser Robert O’Brien said Sunday.
“I think he’s going to stay at [Water Reed National Military Medical Center] for at least another period of time,” O’Brien said during an appearance on CBS’s “Face The Nation.”
“Day 7 and 8 are the critical days,” he added, referring to the timeline of Trump’s infection. “I think the doctors want to make sure they’re there for the president.”
Trump and his doctors said Saturday that the president is feeling well and is continuing to govern from the hospital. Trump’s condition caused his aides to be “very concerned” on Friday as the president suffered a fever and his blood oxygen level dropped rapidly.
Trump is not yet “out of the woods” but doctors are “cautiously optimistic” about his recovery, White House physician Dr. Sean Conley said in a statement late Saturday.
— Hayley Miller
Trump ‘Governing Actively’ During Day 3 Of Hospital Stay, Campaign Adviser Says — 10/04/20, 9:45 a.m. ET
President Trump is “doing well” and “governing actively” as he heads into the third day of being hospitalization after contracting the coronavirus, Trump campaign adviser Steve Cortes told “Fox News Sunday.”
Cortes on Sunday defended members of Trump’s family who refused to wear masks during Tuesday’s presidential debate. Attendees of the event were required to wear masks, per rules agreed upon by both the Trump and Biden campaigns ahead of the debate.
First lady Melania Trump, Ivanka Trump, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump entered the debate hall wearing masks but took them off after being seated. An official from the Cleveland Clinic, the health security adviser for the debates, reminded the Trumps of the mask policy, but they still refused to wear them.
“We believe in masks,” Cortes said Sunday. “We also believe in some element of individual choice. People were distanced and they had been tested.”
But host Chris Wallace pushed back: “No, Steve, they weren’t distanced, and there were rules, and there was no freedom of choice. They broke the rules.”
Trump announced he and first lady Melania Trump tested positive for coronavirus early Friday morning.
— Hayley Miller
Trump’s doctors were “very concerned” about the president on Friday when he had a fever and his blood oxygen level “had dropped rapidly,” White House chief of staff Mark Meadows told Fox News’ Jeanine Pirro on Saturday.
“The doctors said he’s not out of the woods the next 48 hours or so,” Meadows said. “But he’s made unbelievable improvements from yesterday morning when I know a number of us ― the doctor and I ― were very concerned.”
He added: “The biggest thing that we see is, with no fever now and with him doing really well with his oxygen saturation level. Yesterday morning, we were real concerned with that he had a fever and his blood oxygen level had dropped rapidly.”
Trump had a fever of 103 degrees and experienced heart palpitations on Friday night, Vanity Fair reported Saturday, citing sources familiar with his condition. The heart palpitations may have been a side effect of the experimental antibody treatment Trump received, the magazine said.
― Hayley Miller
White House aide Nick Luna has tested positive for COVID-19, extending the list of people in Trump’s inner circle who have contracted the coronavirus, Bloomberg News reported Saturday.
Luna, who serves as a personal attendant to Trump and runs Oval Office operations, accompanied Trump on his trip to Cleveland for the presidential debate on Tuesday and also traveled with Trump aboard Air Force One to his rally in Minnesota on Wednesday.
― Hayley Miller
Trump Reportedly Experienced Heart Palpitations And High Fever On Friday Night — 10/03/20, 8:10 p.m. ET
Trump had a fever of 103 degrees and experienced heart palpitations on Friday night, Vanity Fair reported Saturday, citing sources familiar with his condition.
The heart palpitations may have been a side effect of the experimental antibody treatment Trump received, the magazine said. Trump’s doctors said earlier the president had received “special antibody therapy” following his COVID-19 diagnosis.
— Dominique Mosbergen
In a video message from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center where he’s undergoing treatment, Trump thanked the medical staff at the hospital and said he was feeling “better.”
“I came here, wasn’t feeling so well,” he said in the video, which he posted to his Twitter account on Saturday. “I feel much better now. We’re working hard to get me all the way back.”
Trump added that he wasn’t out of the woods just yet, noting the “real test” is what happens over the next few days.
— Dominique Mosbergen
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie Checks Himself Into Hospital After COVID-19 Diagnosis — 10/03/20, 6:05 p.m. ET
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie — President Donald Trump’s ally who announced on Twitter Saturday that he tested positive for COVID-19 — said in a follow-up tweet that he checked himself into Morristown Medical Center in Morristown, New Jersey, as a “precautionary measure.”
Christie said he was “feeling good” and only had “mild symptoms” but decided to go to the hospital because of his history of asthma.
— Dominique Mosbergen
White House Says Trump Went Through ‘Very Concerning’ Period After COVID-19 Diagnosis — 10/03/20, 2:35 p.m. ET
Contradicting the rosy picture painted by President Donald Trump’s doctors about the president’s health, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said Saturday that Trump went through a “very concerning” period after his COVID-19 diagnosis was revealed on Friday.
Meadows said the next 48 hours will be critical for the president’s care.
Trump is currently undergoing treatment for the coronavirus at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
— Dominique Mosbergen
Attorney General William Barr said he doesn’t plan to quarantine after coming into contact with multiple people in President Donald Trump’s orbit who tested positive for the coronavirus.
Barr tested negative for the virus on Friday but has been in close contact with several White House staffers who tested positive.
— Sebastian Murdock
President Donald Trump was given supplemental oxygen at the White House on Friday before he went to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, a source told The Associated Press.
In a news conference Saturday, doctors treating Trump would not clearly answer whether or not Trump was given oxygen but said he was not currently on oxygen and was breathing normally.
— Sebastian Murdock
Many of the top officials coming down with COVID-19 are linked to President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nomination event in the White House Rose Garden, including first lady Melania Trump, Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and former senior adviser Kellyanne Conway.
But not all of them were there. Top White House aide Hope Hicks, for example, began displaying symptoms shortly before a campaign rally Trump held Wednesday in Minnesota. She traveled with the president aboard Air Force One and was quarantined in the plane on the ride back before getting tested.
Find a list of the people in Trump’s orbit who recently tested positive for the virus here.
— Sara Boboltz
The White House pool, the group of reporters who follow President Donald Trump throughout the day, passed along a statement on the president’s health from a source on background:
“The president’s vitals over the last 24 hours were very concerning, and the next 48 hours will be critical in terms of his care. We’re still not on a clear path to a full recovery.”
— Paige Lavender
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) tested positive for the coronavirus.
“I just received word that I am positive for COVID-19,” Christie wrote in a tweet Saturday. “I want to thank all of my friends and colleagues who have reached out to ask how I was feeling in the last day or two. I will be receiving medical attention today and will keep the necessary folks apprised of my condition.”
Christie attended a White House event on Sept. 26, when President Donald Trump announced the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. Video showed that he and others in the Rose Garden mingled without masks during the event.
Christie also interacted with Trump during debate preparation last week.
— Sebastian Murdock
Doctor Says Trump Is ‘72 Hours’ Into Diagnosis, Contradicting The President — 10/3/20, 11:55 a.m. ET
Dr. Sean Conley, President Donald Trump’s physician, said in a news conference Saturday that he is doing “very well” 72 hours into his diagnosis.
That timeline means Trump was positive as early as Wednesday. Trump attended campaign events on Thursday and did not disclose that he and the first lady tested positive for COVID-19 until early Friday morning.
Another doctor said Trump received an antibody therapy about 48 hours ago, which would be Thursday morning.
The physicians also did not disclose if Trump was on oxygen at any point this week, saying only that he is not currently on oxygen or having difficulty breathing.
Conley said the medical team assisting with Trump’s care is “extremely happy” with his progress, noting the president’s “mild cough, fatigue and nasal congestion” are improving. He said Trump has been fever-free for more than 24 hours.
— Paige Lavender
Secret Service Agents Reportedly Frustrated With Trump Putting Them At Risk — 10/3/20, 11:35 a.m. ET
Members of the Secret Service — who rarely speak critically of the presidents they serve — reportedly expressed “anger and frustration” to colleagues Friday, worried that President Donald Trump’s actions have put them at risk of contracting the coronavirus, too.
“He’s never cared about us,” one agent told a friend, who spoke to The Washington Post.
Another agent reportedly said, “This administration doesn’t care about the Secret Service. It’s so obvious.”
Secret Service agents complained about not being tested for the virus after returning from rallies with the president in recent weeks, the Post reported. Trump held three rallies in the days leading up to his positive test result.— Sara Boboltz
Pences Test Negative Again — 10/3/20, 10:51 a.m. ET
White House officials said Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen both tested negative for COVID-19 on Saturday morning, according to Fox News.
— Paige Lavender
Dr. Sean Conley will speak from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where the president is currently hospitalized, to give an update on Trump’s condition at 11 a.m. ET.
—Paige Lavender
Trump’s presidential campaign announced Friday afternoon that “all previously announced campaign events involving the President’s participation are in the process of being moved to virtual events or are being temporarily postponed.” Trump had already canceled a scheduled rally in Florida Friday night.
In addition, any events involving the president’s immediate family will also be “temporarily postponed,” and campaign events in general “will be considered on a case-by-case basis,” Trump’s campaign manager Bill Stepien said in a statement.
— Marina Fang
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, have both tested negative for the coronavirus, their physician said Friday.
— Marina Fang
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