“Don’t Tell Anyone,” said Trump to an Advisor
The Wall Street Journal reports Trump Didn’t Disclose First Positive Covid-19 Test While Awaiting a Second Test on Thursday
President Trump didn’t disclose a positive result from a rapid test for Covid-19 on Thursday while awaiting the findings from a more thorough coronavirus screening, according to people familiar with the matter.
As the virus spread among the people closest to him, Mr. Trump also asked one adviser not to disclose results of their own positive test. “Don’t tell anyone,” Mr. Trump said, according to a person familiar with the conversation.
The initial secrecy within Mr. Trump’s inner circle has created a sense of anxiety within the West Wing. Publicly, the White House has issued evolving and contradictory statements about the president’s health that has some officials worried about their own credibility.
“I’m glued to Twitter and TV because I have no official communication from anyone in the West Wing,” an administration official said.
At a press briefing Saturday, the president, who has been hospitalized at Walter Reed Medical Center since Friday, watched as the White House physician, Dr. Sean Conley, told reporters that his symptoms were improving. Minutes later, Mr. Trump grew alarmed when another person familiar with the situation warned reporters that Mr. Trump’s recent condition had been concerning. An angry president quickly dialed an adviser from his hospital room.
“Who the f— said that?” Mr. Trump demanded, according to a person familiar with the call. The Associated Press later identified the person as White House chief of staff Mark Meadows.
How Many in the West Wing Have Covid?
It’s a secret. The White House Press Secretary Won’t Disclose the Number.
After White House Director of Strategic Communication Alyssa Farah said earlier today that the White House would be releasing numbers of West Wing staffers who have tested positive for coronavirus, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said they would not, citing privacy concerns.
She also would not answer when repeatedly pressed whether Trump was tested before the presidential debate or on Wednesday, saying she wouldn’t give a “time stamped” readout of his testing schedule.
Another Trumpian Photo Op
WATCH: President Trump’s motorcade drives past supporters outside of Walter Reed medical center. pic.twitter.com/vxKWAFv83t
— NBC News (@NBCNews) October 4, 2020
Trump left the hospital briefly to appear in a motorcade photo op.
“Every single person in the vehicle during that completely unnecessary Presidential ‘drive-by’ just now has to be quarantined for 14 days. They might get sick. They may die. For political theater. … This is insanity,” #TrumpCovid19 #TrumpVirus https://t.co/8qOZZ4abtn
— 🍁 Leanne Lancaster 🍁 #IStandWithTrudeau 🍁 (@LancasterLeanne) October 4, 2020
Politically Foolish
I understand he wants to project strength, but polls show that a large majority of the public doesn’t think Trump took COVID seriously and that colors their response to his illness. So even apart from putting Secret Service members in danger, etc., not sure it’s wise politically.
— Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) October 4, 2020
i suspect this drive through is going to haunt Trump. not because he needlessly exposed a lot of people but because for someone so image conscious he looked ridiculous. a slow speed drive by by sick old man needing a boost from a small crowd of fans. not a good look.
— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) October 5, 2020
I might add that the exposure to the Secret Service in the SUV was unconscionable. This is an airtight vehicle. This is close exposure for many minutes. Masks decrease the odds of infection, but if POTUS is spewing very high viral loads, the risk is very real to the agents.
— Jeremy Faust MD MS (ER physician) (@jeremyfaust) October 4, 2020
Even if one claims this was low risk medically, it was politically foolish.
Trump’s ego has insatiable demands.
And his supporters are so inflicted with their own TDS they fail to see the problem.
This stunt will cost Trump votes.
Mish
While every American Citizen has the right to criticize the government about policy, they should do so with the understanding that criticism is decisive and undermines the ability of the government to function.
When the purpose of criticism is no longer to voice concern about policy, and instead become a tool with the specific purpose of undermining the ability of government to function, and thereby undermine the nation itself, then you have crossed the line from being a concerned citizen to a traitor. This blog crossed that line long ago.
My guess is that leaving the hospital early, and telling people not to be worried about Covid, even after he just took thousands of dollars worth of experimental drugs, and even as he struggles to breathe, will play badly.
I think if he had said that he had learned something, and that he had empathy for those who had suffered with Covid he’d have gotten a sympathy bump in his approval rating. Doing as he has done, he will gain no sympathy, but rather antipathy. I’d expect he’ll lose a couple points off his approval, and his support in the election. Not much, though, as his support is very hard core, but a bit of a ding at the margin.
The most amazing thing is the progression of Covid-19; first, there’s an asymptomatic period 3-10 days, then sometimes nothing (like my sister in law) the mild cold (with a loss of smell and taste — often (like Boris Johnson) the patient feels better — to have a sudden fall off the cliff with lung problems.
My guess, Trump has had COVID for some time! Was tested and though everything was ok, his behavior, sweats, and red face at the Presidential Debate would suggest steroids — which are often administered to patients with COVID… As they say, it will all come out in the end. No way was he first sick on Thursday, and on supplemental Oxygen on Saturday.
He may be in that stage where he feels better, just before he falls off the cliff. We’ll just have to see how his disease progresses. The guy who may have a really rough case, though, is Chris Christie. There seems to be no news on him at all.
What’s remarkable to me is actually how stable his support has been. Tells you a lot about where America is at when consistently he gets 40% of the polls. The irony here is that all he had to do from the very start was to sit back and let the experts speak, keep his mouth shut, and sign stimulus checks for Americans. Does re-election get any easier than that? And he couldn’t even do that.
His support has been waning. This is why more states are now in play for being flipped to blue. This isn’t 2016.
Exactly. Had he simply behaved normally, his support would have shot up. When he started making goofy statements about things like “poof, it will vanish in May”, his support headed south, and has never recovered.
What’s up with the junky music stand?
Are you entertained yet?!?!
I thought masks worked, why would the driveby be a problem if all have a mask?
Masks are not a magical force field. They are a middle ground between not taking any precautions and social distancing and full quarantine. (Not saying what Trump should or shouldn’t do, just saying….masks are awesome, but it’s well understood that they’re not 100% safety). This post is descriptive, not prescriptive, so no flames, please.
Masks make is somewhat less likely that a person will be infected. The longer the exposure, however, the better the chance that an infection will take place. So, for a person going to the grocery, where they don’t get close to to many people, and don’t stay close very long, masks are great. Trap a bunch of people in a small enclosed space, like a car, for 15-30 minutes, you are asking for infection.
N95 masks work ok with 6 feet of seperation and good air circulation, respirators are much more foolproof. No mask or a crappy one is covid roulette.
Kayleigh now has it…
The more of them get sick in the administration and the sicker they get , the fewer people outside the administration will get sick. It will dawn on more and more cult members they have been scammed.
No it won’t. They don’t dare criticize Trump.
They’ll jump straight to “deep state conspiracy to commit genocide on white people”. Liberals are not white people.
Did you see the story the other day where they interviewed the idiot Trumpbot supporter who claimed they injected Trump with COVID?
Much depends on whether Trump can stay out of the hospital. If he can, and can at least appear sort of functional, they will conclude Coronavirus is no big deal. If he has a relapse, they might conclude he was wrong, and it is a big deal.
No one here or elsewhere has asked the obvious question: Was Trump trying to give Biden Covid-19 knowingly ? He skipped the test in Cleveland for a reason. He was clearly symptomatic Wednesday during a rally in Minnesota. I use to give Trump the benefit of the doubt but I think he would try to get Biden sick given he has stated he will likely challenge the election in courts.
I doubt it would play out well to Americans if Trump knew he was sick and it came out he intentionally infected Biden to win the election. I know Trump’s question is questionable, but I don’t it being a positive if they track a Biden positive back to Trump.
All they have to do is shriek “fake news!” and they don’t have to worry about any of that.
The fact is that he didn’t infect a single Democrat, but he infected a heck of Republicans. The debate was Tuesday. He didn’t have a positive test until Thursday. I think you’re grasping at straws here. It he even suspected he had it, his behavior was reckless. I think Chris Christie, who helped with the debate prep, is likely to have a really bad run.
I think this might belong here. Anyone who trusts anything this administration does or says it just being foolish and willfully ignorant.
Trump official pressured CDC to change report on Covid and kids
Amid Trump’s push to reopen schools, Michael Caputo’s science adviser asked that the health agency alter its warning about a study of pediatric coronavirus.
This ill-advised car ride reminds me a lot of how foolish Dukakis looked when he popped out of the tank with the helmet on.
I think you are foolish if you think anything Dukakis did is on the same foolish level as Trump. Trump is the GREATEST of ALL foolish fools.
it should be abundantly clear trump’s creedo is: do as i say, not as i do
I have no confidence in the timelines One minute he got oxygen then he didn’t the doctors flip flopped on whethe Trump tested positie on Wed or Thurs. Based on the doctor stating and confirming Wed I suspect we’re getting a lot of fabricated facts. We just don’t know. This level of mendacity is unprecedented. And while the doctor’s first responsibility is ot his patient the correct answer should be he can’t discuss it rather than lying.
Do these seem like typical Trump tweets??
VOTE (except by mail, where I’ll try to throw your vote away)!
He’s also come down with an acute case of Hammer Hands.
Trump has successfully pushed more gun control than Obama.
I don’t condone the drive by, but let’s wait and see who gets infected, when the symptoms show and how sick they get before blaming anything on Trump.
So you’re cool with people pointing a gun at your head, as long as they don’t shoot? Those secret service guys were PISSED.
We have 2 old men running to be President. For those who advocate hiding from the virus through lockdowns, mask mandates, etc. … must they choose the leader who has immunity? After all, to be a leader one can’t continue to hide.