US Cases: 7,294,029*
US Deaths: 200,611*
Worldwide Cases: 34,495,372*
Worldwide Deaths: 1,026,646*
* - Numbers are a lower bound. True numbers are being suppressed by the Trump administration
It was only a matter of time. Anyone with an understanding of how viruses work should have seen this coming. After all, Trump is famously disdainful of both masks and social distancing, and he has recently resumed holding campaign rallies, with people packed side by side.
And it's not like there weren't warning signs. A number of people in the administration have previously tested positive, including Stephen Miller's wife, Katie; Trump's personal valet; and Donald Trump Jr.'s girlfriend, Kimberly Guilfoyle, among others. Trump surrogate Herman Cain even died from coronavirus after attending a Trump rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma --- a rally at which EIGHT Trump campaign staffers also tested positive.
And yet, Trump insisted on behaving as though it were no big deal. "It is what it is". And eventually, it caught up to him.
Less than 24 hours from public confirmation of Trump's positive test result, there are still more questions than answers. And the White House is doing is usual outstanding job of providing no transparency. However, one credible theory is that the infection began last Saturday, September 26, at a White House event for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett. Since that event, five attendees have tested positive for coronavirus: Donald and Melania Trump, Senator Mike Lee (R-UT), former White House advisor Kellyanne Conway, and Notre Dame president Rev. John Jenkins. As of this writing, there are 12 known coronavirus cases affecting people who have worked or visited the White House in the past week. That number will certainly rise.
Given the large number of positive test results for people attending the Barrett ceremony (with more to come), it seems likely that's when Trump was infected. So another interesting question is: when did he first learn he was infected?
Trump is well-known as a germaphobe, and reportedly is tested several times a day, which is only appropriate for a head of state. So one has to wonder: did Trump know he was #COVID19 positive when he debated Joe Biden on Tuesday night?
He was almost certainly infected then, but it takes a while for the infection to be detected via test. So it's possible he didn't know. However, there is some reason to suspect that he did.
For one thing, even though the rules for the debate specified that each candidate and member of their entourage was to be tested before the debate, Trump wasn't. Apparently he arrived too late to be tested, and so the debate organizers relied on the Trump campaign's promise that Trump had received a negative test --- basically, Trump was allowed in on the honor system. And when has Trump ever done anything dishonorable?
If Trump or anyone in his campaign knew there was a concern about the virus, they didn't act like it. They refused to wear masks --- even when offered --- and they did not notify anyone in the Biden camp that there was a concern. Needless to say, it would be essentially a criminal act to participate in the debate and expose everyone in attendance if they knew someone in their campaign was infected.
For what it's worth, at no point did the Trump campaign ever notify the Biden campaign about the infections, even after they were known. Biden and his campaign learned about it the same way everyone else did. Classy.
Right now, Trump is at Walter Reed hospital, and the White House is providing no information about his condition. Just like they provided no information about Trump's visit to Walter Reed last Thanksgiving, which some speculate came in response to a series of mini-strokes. Whatever the reason, if has given some cause to believe that he has co-morbidities which may put him at elevated risk as a 74-year-old man.
As I write this, the situation can only be described as chaotic:
Multiple sources telling CNN on & off air that the WH Coronavirus Task Force does not know @POTUS’ condition, senior national security officials don’t know what is happening & ACB nomination event attendees have not been contacted for tracing.
— Joseph Robertson (@poet_economist) October 3, 2020
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