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Skimm This

Special Update: President Trump Tests Positive for COVID-19

Skimm This

theSkimm

News

4.53.6K Ratings

🗓️ 2 October 2020

⏱️ 6 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

President Donald Trump announced Friday morning that he and First Lady Melania Trump tested positive for COVID-19. The news has already sent shockwaves around the world. We’ll break down what we know right now, and what we could expect in the days and weeks to come. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

Like all Americans, we woke up this morning to the news that President Trump and First Lady

0:07.6

Melania Trump had tested positive for COVID-19. That news could have profound impacts in ways we

0:14.4

can't predict yet, but there are still some details we can fill you in on. And the first is how

0:20.1

this unfolded. Just before 1 a.m. Eastern time on Friday, Trump tweeted that he and the First Lady

0:26.6

had tested positive that night, and that they were beginning the, quote, quarantine and recovery

0:31.3

process immediately. Trump's announcement was a complete surprise, but in the hours before that,

0:37.3

there were some signs of concern. Trump held a fundraiser Thursday afternoon at his golf course

0:42.9

in New Jersey. According to the New York Times, he was displaying cold-like symptoms and appeared

0:48.3

with thargic. The paper reported that the President came into contact with around 100 people at

0:53.2

the event. Then on Thursday evening, news broke that one of President Trump's senior advisors,

0:58.4

Hope Hicks, had tested positive for COVID-19 after traveling with Trump multiple times this week.

1:04.6

We don't know and may never know how Trump contracted COVID, but after the news about Hicks broke,

1:10.7

he announced on Thursday night that he was quarantining as a precaution.

1:15.2

In terms of what comes next, we know a few details, but not many. First, the President's physician

1:21.6

released a note early this morning saying that the President and First Lady, quote,

1:25.7

planned to remain at home within the White House during their convalescence.

1:29.6

In the medical world, this is called isolation. It's what you do once you've already caught COVID

1:34.7

and don't want to spread it. Whereas quarantine is a precaution when you might have been exposed

1:39.7

to the virus. Assuming Trump's symptoms remain mild, his physician said he expects the President

1:45.2

to, quote, continue carrying out his duties without disruption while recovering.

1:50.0

Second, in the event the President does get seriously ill, the 25th Amendment in the Constitution

1:55.1

was created to try to provide some sort of plan. It states that if a President were to become ill,

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