Election 2020: It’s a month until Election Day, and Trump has Covid. Now what?
One of them was Donald J. Trump, the President of the United States, who has for so long denied the severity of the outbreak and promised it would go away.
A year to remember. 2020 has wrought:
- A country on edge because of a destabilizing pandemic;
- A teetering economy;
- A moment of truth election;
- The total breakdown of civil discourse;
- Wildfires and storms and all the rest of it;
Now, on top of that, we need to consider the humanity of a flawed, charismatic leader who is vying to remain in office.
Trump’s positive Covid-19 test pierces the bubble that was built up around him and reveals the lie underneath his repeated promise the virus was under control, even though more than 208,000 Americans have already died.
He’s both the President, and a 74-year-old medically obese man with the disease. He’s in the at-risk category. He was taken Friday to Walter Reed medical center. Read more about the prognosis for the President and first lady.
CDC guidelines for someone who tests positive — Trump should be in isolation, preferably in a separate room and using a separate bathroom than other people. His doctor says a team of medical professionals are keeping watch and that Trump will continue to carry out his duties.
Can you trust what they say about Trump’s condition? It’s important to note, as Chris Cillizza does, this White House does not have a track record for truth-telling, so everything they say about Trump’s condition must be viewed skeptically.
The campaign must go on. Election Day will remain November 3 unless Congress were to change it. But Trump’s events, rallies and fundraisers — which have been conducted until now as if Covid were not an issue — have been canceled.
The vice presidential debate on Wednesday is still, for now, on. But the future of any further debates between Trump and his Democratic rival Joe Biden is obviously very much in question.
CNN’s chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta: People who have been near Trump should be in quarantine.
But it’s a contact tracing nightmare — A large portion of the top levels of government may have been touched by this instance.
Click here for a full list of top officials we know have been tested recently.
Trump shared a debate stage with Biden this week. Biden has tested negative. So has Vice President Mike Pence.
Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin has been close to Trump and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as they try to hammer out a new Covid-19 stimulus plan.
Trump’s Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett has been working from the White House (she tested negative) but has been in contact with multiple senators in recent days. She had the virus “late this summer,” according to CNN’s report.
Notre Dame’s president tested positive after attending the announcement of her nomination.
Sen. Mike Lee of Utah tested positive after meeting with her.
Trump had closed-door events in New Jersey and with South Dakota’s governor. He’s conducted rallies. He’s traveled in helicopters and planes.
What happens if Trump gets too sick to govern? I went down this rabbit hole earlier today, researching the 25th Amendment and the presidential succession act.
Trump can temporarily cede power if he gets so sick he can’t work. I can’t imagine him intentionally doing that, but Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush both did it when they were put under anesthesia.
And if he becomes fully incapacitated, his vice president and Cabinet can vote to temporarily take power. The closest we’ve ever come to this is that George H.W. Bush and the Reagan Cabinet were ready to transfer authority after Reagan was shot in 1981. But they never had to.
