The Biggest Trumpworld Players To Contract COVID-19
"Tonight, @FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!" President Donald Trump tweeted on October 2, 2020. Later that evening, Trump was flown by Marine One to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center after feeling "fatigued and feverish" from the novel coronavirus (via USA Today). "Going welI, I think! Thank you to all. LOVE!!!" he tweeted after he was admitted.
Almost immediately after his diagnosis, several high-profile Trump surrogates and people within his administration revealed their own positive tests for COVID-19. According to The Washington Post, the outbreak may have started at a White House Rose Garden event on September 26, 20202, to officially nominate Amy Coney Barrett to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court.
At the time of this writing, over 11 people who attended the maskless event tested positive a week later. So stay six feet away, put on a mask, and let's discuss the biggest Trumpworld players to contract COVID-19.
Hope Hicks is reportedly upset at the suggestion she infected Donald Trump
On October 1, 2020, White House aide Hope Hicks became the first person within the Trump administration to have her positive COVID-19 test released publicly. According to Bloomberg, Hicks traveled aboard Air Force One to the first presidential debate and to a Trump rally in Minnesota the following day. She reportedly became ill on the trip back from the rally and quarantined inside the plane.
"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 tweeted, a day before his diagnosis.
Per Vanity Fair, Hicks experienced a "high fever and a cough" and "lost her sense of smell." However, her friends state that she is frustrated with the Trump administration's "cavalier approach" to the pandemic. According to the report, Hicks was the only one to wear a mask during West Wing meetings and was routinely "made fun of" by people in the room. She's also allegedly upset at the media for suggesting she was the one who infected the President. "It's so unfair she's sort of being blamed," her friend said.
Melania Trump refuses to leave The White House
On October 2, 2020, First Lady Melania Trump confirmed her COVID diagnosis. "Thank you for the love you are sending our way. I have mild symptoms but overall feeling good. I am looking forward to a speedy recovery," she wrote on her official Twitter account. Since her diagnosis, Melania has been sequestered at the Executive Residence while her husband received treatment at Walter Reed.
Three days later, Melania gave an update on her condition and thanked her caretakers. "My family is grateful for all of the prayers & support! I am feeling good & will continue to rest at home. Thank you to medical staff & caretakers everywhere, & my continued prayers for those who are ill or have a family member impacted by the virus," she tweeted.
According to CNN, Melania "cut back on travel and public events six months ago" because she didn't want to risk her health or the health of her team during the COVID-19 pandemic. And don't expect to see the First Lady in public any time soon as White House officials say she isn't leaving until she's fully recovered. "Melania is aware of the dangers of Covid-19," a White House official told the publication. "Potentially exposing others is not a risk she would take."
Chris Christie checked himself into the hospital as 'an important precautionary measure'
Former New Jersey governor and 2016 primary opponent of Trump, Chris Christie, announced that he tested positive for the novel coronavirus on October 3, 2020. "I just received word that I am positive for COVID-19. I want to thank all of my friends and colleagues who have reached out to ask how I was feeling in the last day or two. I will be receiving medical attention today and will keep the necessary folks apprised of my condition," he tweeted.
Christie added that he checked himself into the hospital due to preexisting conditions. "In consultation with my doctors, I checked myself into Morristown Medical Center this afternoon. While I am feeling good and only have mild symptoms, due to my history of asthma we decided this is an important precautionary measure," he tweeted.
Christie, who also attended the Rose Garden ceremony to announce Amy Coney Barrett's nomination without wearing a mask, was a member of Trump's debate prep team. "No one was wearing masks in the room when we were prepping the president," Christie told Good Morning America a day before his diagnosis. "The group was about five or six people in total."
Kellyanne Conway's daughter broke the news of her COVID diagnosis
Former Trump senior adviser Kellyanne Conway announced that she tested positive for the novel coronavirus on October 2, 2020. "Tonight I tested positive for COVID-19. My symptoms are mild (light cough) and I'm feeling fine. I have begun a quarantine process in consultation with physicians. As always, my heart is with everyone affected by this global pandemic," she tweeted.
However, Conway wasn't the first person to break the news of her COVID-19 diagnosis. That honor would go to her 15-year-old daughter Claudia Conway – who told everyone on Tik Tok thirty minutes earlier. "Update my mom has COVID," Claudia wrote in a series of posts (via Vulture). "I'm furious. Wear your masks. Don't listen to our idiot f*****g president piece of sh*t. Protect yourself and those around you," she posted on another. Earlier that night, before Conway received her test results, Claudia wrote, "My mom coughing all around the house after Trump tested positive for COVID." Claudia has since tested positive for COVID-19.
Kellyanne Conway also attended the Rose Garden event for Amy Coney Barrett without a mask and joined Chris Christie, Rudy Giuliani, Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien, and White House adviser Stephen Miller in participating in Trump's maskless debate prep.
Sen. Mike Lee thought COVID-19 was allergies
On October 2, 2020, Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) announced on his official Twitter account that he tested positive for the novel coronavirus. Lee claimed the day before he was "experiencing symptoms consistent with longtime allergies," but took a COVID-19 test "out of an abundance of caution" after seeking "medical advice."
"Unlike the test I took just a few days ago while visiting the White House, yesterday's test came back positive. On advice of the Senate attending physician, I will remain isolated for the next 10 days," his statement continued. "I have spoken with Leader McConnell and Chairman Graham and assured them I will be back to work in time to join my Judiciary Committee colleagues in advancing the Supreme Court nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett in the committee and then to the full Senate."
Three days before his COVID-19 diagnosis, Lee met with SCOTUS nominee Amy Coney Barrett. "I was remarkably impressed by Judge Barrett. My meeting with her was fantastic. She is a judge, a legal scholar, a lawyer, and a jurist with outstanding credentials. We had a great conversation and I am very much looking forward to speaking with her more during her confirmation hearing," he said on his website after their meeting where both Lee and Barrett did not wear masks.
Sen. Thom Tillis claims he is now symptom-free
On October 2, 2020, Sen.Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina), who attended the Rose Garden event to announce his nomination of Amy Coney Barrett, stated that he tested positive for the novel coronavirus after several negative tests. "I will be following the recommendations of my doctor and will be self-isolating at home for 10 days and notifying those I've been in close contact with," Tillis said in a statement (via WRAL). "Thankfully, I have no symptoms, and I feel well."
Tillis warned his supporters that COVID-19 is a "very contagious and deadly virus" since carriers can be asymptomatic. "I encourage all North Carolinians to follow the recommendations of medical experts, including wearing a mask, washing hands, and practicing social distancing," he continued. "For any North Carolinian who believes they were exposed to the virus or starts to display symptoms, please call your doctor, self-isolate and get tested to protect those around you."
Three days later, Tillis claimed he was now symptom-free. "Senator Tillis feels great and has regained his sense of taste and smell," his spokesman said in a statement (via News & Observer). "He is no longer exhibiting any symptoms and will continue to self-isolate. Senator Tillis and his wife Susan remain grateful for the outpouring of prayers and well wishes they've received from North Carolinians."
Sen. Ron Johnson says he'll vote 'in a moon suit' to confirm Amy Coney Barrett
On October 3, 2020, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisconsin) revealed that he tested positive for the novel coronavirus during a conference call with reporters. "I feel fine, I feel completely normal," Johnson said during the call (via the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel).
After speaking at an Oktoberfest Dinner hosted by the Ozaukee County Republican Party, Johnson said he received his diagnosis. "It was on the drive back that I got the call that I was positive," Johnson said. He claims that his doctors told him he probably contracted the virus through his Chief of Staff. "I do a really good job with social distancing," Johnson continued.
The Wisconsin senator, who also attended the Rose Garden ceremony without a mask, said that he was trying to be fully healthy in order to vote to confirm Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court. "If we have to go in and vote, I have already told leadership, I'll go in a moon suit," he said during a Denver radio interview (via CNN). "We think this is pretty important. People can be fairly confident that Mitch McConnell is dedicated to holding this vote," he said.
Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany was slammed for not wearing a mask during press conferences
On October 5, 2020, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany revealed that she tested positive for the novel coronavirus. "After testing negative consistently, including every day since Thursday, I tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday morning while experiencing no symptoms," she wrote in a Twitter statement. "No reporters, producers, or members of the press are listed as close contacts by the White House Medical Unit. Moreover, I definitively had no knowledge of Hope Hicks' diagnosis prior to holding a White House press briefing on Thursday."
McEnany added that "as an essential worker," she would "begin the quarantine process" and continue to work. Kayleigh McEnany, who attended the Rose Garden event for Amy Coney Barrett, was slammed by reporters for repeatedly holding press conferences without wearing a mask. "I felt safer reporting in North Korea than I currently do reporting at The White House. This is just crazy," CBS News White House Correspondent Ben Tracy tweeted. Washington correspondent for New York Magazine, Olivia Nuzzi, didn't pull any punches in her critique of the press secretary. "Kayleigh McEnany has repeatedly spoken to reporters without a mask on. She has recklessly endangered lives," she tweeted.
According to CNN, two of McEnany's deputies, Chad Gilmartin and Karoline Leavitt, also tested positive for COVID-19.
RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel was in contact with Donald Trump a week before her COVID-19 diagnosis
Chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, Ronna McDaniel, tested positive for coronavirus an RNC spokesman revealed. "After a member of her family tested positive for COVID-19, the Chairwoman was tested for the virus. On Wednesday afternoon, she got confirmation she was COVID-19 positive. [She] has been at her home in Michigan since last Saturday," RNC spokesman Mike Reed said in a statement on October 2, 2020 (via Politico).
According to The New York Times, McDaniel was in contact with Trump a week before his diagnosis "and has been at her home in Michigan since then." McDaniel has been strongly supportive of Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Less than a month before his diagnosis, McDaniel appeared on NBC News' Meet the Press, to defend Trump's response to COVID-19. "The president was calm and steady in a time of unrest and uncertainty. And I think history will look back on him well as to how he handled this pandemic," she said.
Despite the mounting deaths and growing number of cases, McDaniel suggested that Trump was correct in downplaying the deadly disease. "Think of what would have happened if he'd have gone out and said: 'This is awful. We should all be afraid. We don't have a plan,'" she said. "It would have been a run on the banks. It would have been a run on the hospitals. It would have been a run on the grocery stores."
Trump senior advisor Stephen Miller is separated from his family
Stephen Miller released a statement on October 6, 2020, revealing he tested positive for the novel coronavirus. "Over the last 5 days I have been working remotely and self-isolating, testing negative every day through yesterday. Today, I tested positive for COVID-19 and am in quarantine," the Senior Advisor to the President said (via CNN).
On the Southern Poverty Law Center's list of extremists, Miller is the architect behind Trump's Muslim ban, the border child separation policy, and he buried a Department of Health and Human Services study that concluded refugees bring in billions more in government revenue than they cost. Emails leaked in 2019 showed that Miller promoted white nationalist literature and websites that posted discredited race science.
A day before his diagnosis, Miller's wife and Vice President Mike Pence's communications director, Katie Miller (who tested positive for COVID-19 in May), mocked Joe Biden's running mate Kamala Harris for requesting that plexiglass be used as a barrier between herself and Pence during their debate. "If Sen. Harris wants to use a fortress around herself, have at it," Katie said (via Politico).
Donald Trump's 'body man' Nick Luna has remained quiet on his diagnosis
According to Bloomberg, President Trump's "body man" Nick Luna tested positive for the novel coronavirus on October 4, 2020. Due to the nature of his job, Luna is required to remain in constant close contact with Trump. A White House report revealed that Luna's official title is "Assistant to the President and Director of Oval Office Operations," which comes with a salary of $183,000.
In addition to his work in the Trump administration, Luna is also pursuing an acting career. Per IMDb, his last completed filed was 2020's As Long As I'm Famous starring Michael Paré and Tracy Nelson. He also found love in The White House, marrying Cassidy Dumbauld, an assistant to Jared Kushner, on September 5, 2020.
Neither Luna nor the White House has spoken publicly about Luna's diagnosis or the status of his condition.
Donald Trump's campaign manager Bill Stepien
In July 2020, Bill Stepien was hired as Trump's campaign manager to replace Brad Pascale. "I am pleased to announce that Bill Stepien has been promoted to the role of Trump campaign manager," Trump said in a statement (via The New York Times). "Brad Parscale, who has been with me for a very long time and has led our tremendous digital and data strategies, will remain in that role, while being a senior adviser to the campaign. Both were heavily involved in our historic 2016 win, and I look forward to having a big and very important second win together."
On October 2, 2020, Stepien was diagnosed with the novel coronavirus. According to Politico, the 42-year old "traveled to and from Cleveland for Tuesday's presidential debate" and "joined Trump and Hicks aboard Air Force One." Stepien is reportedly experiencing "mild flu-like symptoms," and sent a memo urging staff to "immediately begin self-quarantine" if they had exposure to anyone who tested positive. "While we do not believe anyone without symptoms needs to self-quarantine at this time, it is on all of us to continue to exercise the smart judgment and practices the campaign has long encouraged," the memo continued.
Fox News reports that Stepien worked for President George W. Bush's re-election campaign in 2004, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani's campaign, and Sen. John McCain's in 2008.
Mystery surrounds Donald Trump's time at Walter Reed
Once Donald Trump stepped inside Walter Reed, doctors threw whatever they had at him. In addition to numerous drugs, including Regeneron's experimental antibody cocktail that is currently being developed, Trump was also given the steroid drug dexamethasone "after his oxygen levels dropped twice" according to his doctors (via CNN). He was not administered Hydroxychloroquine.
However, despite an aggressive treatment regimen not afforded by the average American, Trump's stay at Walter Reed was marked by conflicting and suppressed information. Trump's physician, Dr. Sean Conley, reassured reporters that Trump was doing "very well," but that message was undercut a mere minutes later by Trump's Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, who called his condition "very concerning" and stated that "we're still not on a clear path to a full recovery" (via Vanity Fair).
Conley later admitted that he wanted to give a positive outlook on Trump's condition. "I didn't want to give any information that might steer the course of illness in another direction, and in doing so, you know, it came off that we were trying to hide something, which wasn't necessarily true," Conley said, per CNBC. Conley also announced (via AP) that there were "some expected findings" in regards to Trump's lung scans, but refused to elaborate on those findings.
Donald Trump's handling of his own COVID-19 diagnosis has sparked controversy
Desperate to show strength while being treated for COVID-19, Trump requested a ride around Walter Reed to wave to his crowd of supporters who had gathered outside the facility. Wearing a mask and accompanied by two Secret Service agents, Trump's joyride was met with scorn by the medical community. "Every single person in the vehicle during that completely unnecessary Presidential 'drive-by' just now has to be quarantined for 14 days. They might get sick. They may die. For political theater. Commanded by Trump to put their lives at risk for theater. This is insanity," Dr. James P. Phillips, a physician at Walter Reed tweeted.
Trump's behavior inside Walter Reed also spooked his family. According to Vanity Fair, Donald Trump, Jr. thought his father was "acting crazy" and wanted to state intervention, but Ivanka and Jared Kushner didn't want to participate. "They're all worried. They've tried to get him to stop tweeting," a source said.
Trump was released three days later and returned to the White House, where he appeared – maskless - struggling to walk and breathe before posing for pictures on the balcony. He then recorded a video where he told the American public: "I learned so much about coronavirus. And one thing that's for certain: don't let it dominate you. Don't be afraid of it." When the video was recorded, America had over 7.5 million COVID-19 cases and over 210,000 deaths.