With a thumbs-up and a slow swagger, President Donald Trump boarded Marine One to fly to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for COVID-19 treatment.
“I think this is a very good point of it, the President of the United States in the highest position in the world, still is just like any other human that is susceptible to infection,” Congressman Greg Murphy of the 3rd District said.
Positive tests in the past 24 hours are continuing to pour in.
[ ALSO READ: Trump hospitalized; Kellyanne Conway tests positive: Live updates ]
First lady Melania Trump, Trump senior aide Hope Hicks, former Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway, Utah Sen. Mike Lee, Notre Dame President Rev. John Jenkins who attended Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s Supreme Court nomination announcement event and Sen. Thom Tillis all tested positive for COVID-19.
Less than 24 hours before the positive test result was revealed, Tillis was debating Cal Cunningham in the Spectrum News studios in Raleigh. Cunningham says he is going to get tested.
Tillis is now isolating for at least 10 days. In a statement, Tillis says he has no symptoms and is feeling well.
“As we all know, COVID-19 is a very contagious and deadly virus, especially because many carriers are asymptomatic,” he said. “I encourage all North Carolinians to follow the recommendations of medical experts, including wearing a mask, washing hands, and practicing social distancing.”
News is coming out of Washington like water out of a fire hose. The ramifications of all the positive tests are still to be determined
“This may cross over from the White House into Congress and it could affect significant numbers of our governmental officials,” said Dr. Michael Bitzer, a political scientist at Catawba College.
[ ALSO READ: N.C. Sen. Thom Tillis has tested positive for COVID-19 ]
Close contacts of all of people who tested positive are being notified. The exact source of this major outbreak is unclear. Numerous attendees attended Judge Barrett’s announcement event last weekend.
When President Donald Trump took on former Vice President Joe Biden in the debate this week, attendees had to get tested, including Sean Kilbane from Charlotte. He showed us his paperwork from the day with a negative result
“I had my temperature taken five times, I successfully passed a COVID-19 test on the day of the debate and additionally prior to meeting the President I was interviewed by White House staff members and was asked about COVID symptoms and exposures,” he said.
Kilbane, like many people, now is going to consult with his doctor about whether he should be tested again.
With Trump in the hospital and other powerful officials in isolation, the positive tests are a scary reminder that COVID-19 is still with us and no one is untouchable.
“It’s not a matter of if you get the infection, it is a matter of when,” Congressman Murphy said.
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