President Donald Trump has
tweeted to say he and First Lady Melania have tested positive for coronavirus.
‘We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get
through this TOGETHER!’ he wrote.
The president is 74, putting him at higher risk of
serious complications from the virus. In his 2019 physical, Mr Trump also met
the technical threshold for obesity, which is considered another risk factor.
A statement from the White House doctor said both the
president and first lady are ‘well at this time’ but did not say if either have
symptoms.
The First Lady also tweeted to
say the pair were feeling well.
She wrote: ‘As too many Americans have done this
year, @potus & I are quarantining at home after testing positive for
COVID-19. We are feeling good & I have postponed all upcoming engagements.
Please be sure you are staying safe & we will all get through this
together.’
Mr Trump earlier said he and the first lady, 50, were
self-isolating after one of his top aides Hope Hicks tested positive.
Ms Hicks, 31, who serves as a counsellor to the president,
reportedly tested positive for the disease on Thursday, the day after she
travelled with the president to a rally in Ohio.
She has travelled with the
president a number of times during the past week, including on presidential
helicopter Marine One, and on Air Force One to Tuesday night’s first
presidential debate. Earlier on Thursday Trump had told Fox News Hicks had
tested positive adding: ‘Whether we quarantine or whether we have it, I
don’t know. ‘I just went for a test and we’ll see what happens.’
He later tweeted to confirm he and Melania were in
quarantine, writing: ‘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!’
The positive test means the
president will have to scrap Friday’s plans for a fundraiser at his Washington,
D.C., hotel and a political rally in Sanford, Florida.
Mr Trump is now expected to be in quarantine for some
two weeks while facing treatment for the disease. It comes at a critical time
for the president, who will come out of quarantine with just weeks to go until
the November 3 election. Coronavirus cases in the US have continued to spiral,
killing more than 200,000 Americans and infecting more than seven million
nationwide.
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 Mr
Trump, the White House and his campaign have consistently downplayed the threat
of the virus and refused to abide by basic public health guidelines such as
wearing masks in public and practising social distancing. Instead, he has
continued to hold campaign rallies that draw thousands of supporters.
Several world leaders have been struck down with the
disease, including Prime Minister Boris Johnson who spent two nights in
intensive care as he battled the virus.
Source: Metro.co.uk
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