Trump starts 'quarantine process' after aide Hope Hicks tests positive for coronavirus

[webfact]

Trump starts 'quarantine process' after aide Hope Hicks tests positive for coronavirus

By Jeff Mason

 

Hope Hicks, an adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump walks to Air Force One to depart Washington with the president and other staff on campaign travel to Minnesota from Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, U.S., September 30, 2020. REUTERS/Leah Millis

 

(Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he was beginning a quarantine process after Hope Hicks, a top adviser and trusted aide, tested positive for the coronavirus.

 

Hicks travels regularly with the president on Air Force One and, along with other senior aides, accompanied him to Ohio for the presidential debate on Tuesday and to Minnesota for a campaign event on Wednesday.

 

"Hope Hicks, who has been working so hard without even taking a small break, has just tested positive for Covid 19. Terrible! The First Lady and I are waiting for our test results. In the meantime, we will begin our quarantine process!" Trump said in a tweet.

 

Earlier, in an interview on Fox News, Trump said he and first lady Melania Trump had been tested for the virus and would know the results later on Thursday or Friday.

 

"I spend a lot of time with Hope, and so does the first lady. And she's tremendous," he said.

 

The president, who is tested regularly for COVID-19, has kept up a rigorous travel schedule across the country in recent weeks, holding rallies with thousands of people in the run-up to the Nov. 3 election, despite warnings from public health professionals against having events with large crowds.

 

Hicks' positive test raises the possibility that others within Trump's immediate circle and at the highest levels of the U.S. government may have been exposed and have to quarantine as well.

 

Trump has come under sharp criticism for his response to the coronavirus pandemic that has killed more than 200,000 people in the United States alone. The president has touted his management of the crisis.

 

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has lambasted Trump for not having a clear national plan to tackle the pandemic. Biden, a former vice president, regularly wears a mask and has eschewed campaign events with large crowds. He is leading Trump in national polls.

 

Trump and his staff regularly do not wear masks, and Trump has denigrated people who wear them often. Health professionals say mask-wearing is one of the key things people can do to help prevent the spread of the virus.

 

At the White House, people who are around Trump, including some reporters, get tested on a regular basis.

 

But the White House did away with daily temperature checks for everyone who enters the complex months ago, and people who are tested for the virus interact with others in the White House campus who are not.

 

The White House said in a statement that Trump "takes the health and safety of himself and everyone who works in support of him and the American people very seriously" and that it followed guidelines for limiting COVID-19 exposure to the greatest extent possible.

 

Trump said he was surprised that Hicks had tested positive.

 

"She knows there's a risk, but she's young," he said on Fox News.

 

Hicks returned to the White House earlier this year after a stint in the private sector. She served previously as White House communications director and as a spokeswoman for Trump's 2016 presidential campaign.

 

(Reporting by Jeff Mason; Additional reporting by Eric Beech; Editing by Peter Cooney and Raju Gopalakrishnan)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-10-02

 

- Whatever you're going through, the Samaritans are here for you

- Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking COVID-19 updates

[dabhand]

Bit of Karma here after Trump, during the 'debate', slagged off Biden for wearing masks. No doubt Ms Hicks had a bit of of laugh at that quip as she seems to be rather averse to wearing them. Bet both she and Trump are not laughing now.

[Jingthing]

3 minutes ago, dabhand said:

Bit of Karma here after Trump, during the 'debate', slagged off Biden for wearing masks. No doubt Ms Hicks had a bit of of laugh at that quip as she seems to be rather averse to wearing them. Bet both she and Trump are not laughing now.

Of course nobody "deserves" Covid-19 but if anyone did this "president" and also his good buddy in demagoguery Bolsanaro do (who already had it).

Edited October 2, 2020 by Jingthing

[stevenl]

What does 'beginning a quarantine process' mean? Why not just say what he's doing, but that may be because he doesn't know.

Edited October 2, 2020 by stevenl

[Jingthing]

1 minute ago, stevenl said:

What does 'beginning a quarantine process' mean? Why not just say what he's doing, but that maybe because he doesn't know.

I assume it just means he will be isolating. But as long as he can keep rage tweeting which he imagines is 90 percent of the job as president he can keep acting as president. Emphasis on acting. Hopefully soon we will have a real president again. 

[stevenl]

Just now, Jingthing said:

I assume it just means he will be isolating. But as long as he can keep rage tweeting which he imagines is 90 percent of the job as president he can keep acting as president. Emphasis on acting. Hopefully soon we will have a real president again. 

Don't presume anything with some kind of logic with Trump. It could mean anything, he could e.g. have himself locked up in the Oval Office, only allowing trusted people in.

 

It is again one of those vague statements, that gives him all sorts of leeway. Did you notice BTW that after the debate, when his complete entourage was gathering, no one, except for Melania was wearing a mask? The children, close staff, wives/girlfriends/husband, none were wearing masks. Also Hicks was not.

[Laza 45]

..I think the debate rules just changed.. 

[Jingthing]

1 minute ago, Laza 45 said:

..I think the debate rules just changed.. 

Could be.

Hazmat suit dress code. 

[In the jungle]

Play stupid games win stupid prizes.

[Dumbastheycome]

I wonder if Melania has requested separate isolation ?

[Chomper Higgot]

For the record, I don’t want Trump to have COVID-19, not because I have any aversion to him suffering, I don’t want him to die on the job.

 

I want to see him removed from office by the popular vote, suffer the humiliation of defeat and the inevitable conviction for his crimes.

[J Town]

I thought he was impervious cuz he took hydroxychloroquine before?

 

Don't tell me he LIED?!?

[J Town]

If he tests positive, will he deny it and continue on sans mask/distancing?

[Surelynot]

8 minutes ago, Dumbastheycome said:

I wonder if Melania has requested separate isolation ?

I would imagine since about 2015 at least

[4reaL]

Sure hope this won't interfere with his TH travel plans.

 

oH and that Hope Hick is OK, she's rather purty.

[Odysseus123]

34 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Of course nobody "deserves" Covid-19 but if anyone did this "president" and also his good buddy in demagoguery Bolsanaro do (who already had it).

Yes,they are both a special kind of crazy or as poster "Yinn" would put it-"loons"

[Tie Dye Samurai]

Well, I think we all need to remember that regardless of your feelings about Donald Trump, he is still the POTUS and we should all be concerned about his health and well being. He is 74 years old and this could potentially be a huge problem going forward. I have made it known many times that I do not like him but his health and well being is paramount for the country.

[J Town]

Seeing as it was just published how 45 spreads more misinformation about Covid than any other source, perhaps he can take this time-out to catch himself up on the facts. Oh, sometimes I crack myself up!

 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/tommybeer/2020/10/01/trump-is-single-largest-driver-of-covid-19-misinformation-cornell-study-finds/#740ea786d70f

[J Town]

Just now, Tie Dye Samurai said:

Well, I think we all need to remember that regardless of your feelings about Donald Trump, he is still the POTUS and we should all be concerned about his health and well being. He is 74 years old and this could potentially be a huge problem going forward. I have made it known many times that I do not like him but his health and well being is paramount for the country.

I concern myself about his health as much as he concerned himself KNOWINGLY putting tens of thousands of people to death.

[OneMoreFarang]

14 minutes ago, J Town said:

If he tests positive, will he deny it and continue on sans mask/distancing?

He will go out and say: I am positive

And he thinks that's good news.

[Opl]

2 minutes ago, Tie Dye Samurai said:

Well, I think we all need to remember that regardless of your feelings about Donald Trump, he is still the POTUS and we should all be concerned about his health and well being. He is 74 years old and this could potentially be a huge problem going forward. I have made it known many times that I do not like him but his health and well being is paramount for the country.

we all remember he has good genes

[polpott]

7 minutes ago, Opl said:

we all remember he has good genes

The greatest genes. The best presidential genes since Abraham Lincoln.

[Somtamnication]

Karma is a real............itch. 

[polpott]

25 minutes ago, J Town said:

If he tests positive, will he deny it and continue on sans mask/distancing?

Positive or negative, he is now required to isolate for 14 days. For him, every cloud has a silver lining. He is now debarred from taking part in the next presidential debate.

[J Town]

2 minutes ago, polpott said:

Positive or negative, he is now required to isolate for 14 days. For him, every cloud has a silver lining. He is now debarred from taking part in the next presidential debate.

As his history would indicate, he don't play by the rules. I would wager he'd completely ignore quarantine even if he DID test positive.

[Tie Dye Samurai]

15 minutes ago, J Town said:

I concern myself about his health as much as he concerned himself KNOWINGLY putting tens of thousands of people to death.

make no mistake, it is the POTUS I am concerned about not Trump personally. Unfortunately for another 33 days they are one in the same.... 

[EVENKEEL]

37 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

For the record, I don’t want Trump to have COVID-19, not because I have any aversion to him suffering, I don’t want him to die on the job.

 

I want to see him removed from office by the popular vote, suffer the humiliation of defeat and the inevitable conviction for his crimes.

Please show proof of crimes or retract.

[Odysseus123]

11 minutes ago, polpott said:

Positive or negative, he is now required to isolate for 14 days. For him, every cloud has a silver lining. He is now debarred from taking part in the next presidential debate.

Yes but unlimited time on social media instead..the tortures of right wing "popularism" will probably be upped a notch or two..

Edited October 2, 2020 by Odysseus123

[jcsmith]

Just now, EVENKEEL said:

Please show proof of crimes or retract.

Mueller gave you 10 articles of Obstruction of Justice. 

[xylophone]

32 minutes ago, Surelynot said:

I would imagine since about 2015 at least

Apparently so, according to a recent "item" I read, she does have her separate bedroom/bed, anyway.

 

Also there was a recent post asking whether if this idiot lost the election, she would stay with him, and a few responders suggesting that she might leave...... but IMO she is onto a good thing, getting well paid for what she does (in office or not) so why would she want to leave this cushy number even if she is having to put up with this clown.

 

She knows which side her bread is buttered.