President Trump put on a display of vigor as he strode under his own power across the White House South Lawn, giving a thumbs up to journalists, before boarding Marine One on his way to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he is expected to receive further treatment for COVID-19.
Officials said his symptoms remained mild, with a slight fever, and that he was being transferred “out of an abundance of caution.”
Trump, wearing a mask, strode slowly to the chopper that then carried him the short flight to the military hospital in Bethesda, Maryland. He is expected to stay there for at several days and will be working out of presidential offices.
Trump did not transfer power to Vice President Mike Pence before leaving the White House.
Before leaving, he recorded a video thanking well-wishers and offering reassurance to an anxious public.
“I’m going to Walter Reed hospital, I think I’m doing very well, but we’re going to make sure that things work out,” her said. “The first lady is doing very well.”
But his departure on Friday evening is a vivid reminder that the coronavirus is an unpredictable foe and that Trump, although energetic at the age of 74, is in a high-risk group for the disease.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 2, 2020
It marks the latest setback for Trump, who is trailing Democratic nominee Joe Biden ahead of the Nov. 3 election. His campaign announced that it was postponing personal appearances by members of the first family, and the president’s illness throws a question mark over the second presidential debate in less than two weeks time.
“President Trump remains in good spirits, has mild symptoms, and has been working throughout the day,” said White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany. “Out of an abundance of caution, and at the recommendation of his physician and medical experts, the President will be working from the presidential offices at Walter Reed for the next few days. President Trump appreciates the outpouring of support for both he and the First Lady.”
Trump revealed he and his wife were suffering from COVID-19 in an early tweet Friday.
His doctor later said that he is being treated with an experimental polyclonal antibody cocktail. He is also taking zinc, Vitamin D, famotidine, melatonin, and a daily aspirin, in what experts said was an aggressive approach to treatment.
Stocks on Wall Street fell almost 1% on news of the biggest health scare for a sitting president in decades.
And details emerged during the day that another staffer and several White House correspondents had fallen sick.
But amid a growing sense of crisis, officials tried to offer a sense of business as usual, issuing a statement that Trump had approved an extension to Delaware’s COVID-19 disaster declaration.
“As of this afternoon the President remains fatigued but in good spirits,” White House physician Sean P. Conley wrote in a memo.
McEnany said the president had spent time on the telephone with Sens. Mitch McConnell and Lindsey Graham, as well as his chief of staff, to discuss coronavirus stimulus proposals.
“He is hard at work,” she said. “We have had to slow him down a little bit.”
The Biden campaign announced it was suspending its attack adverts, and the Democratic nominee said he was praying for the president’s recovery.
But at a union hall in Grand Rapids, Biden also offered a dig at Trump, who has been criticized for failing to wear a face mask and appearing at packed campaign rallies.
“Be patriotic,” Biden said. “It’s not about being a tough guy. It’s about doing your part.”
