The editor of a prominent Chinese state-run media outlet seized on news of President Trump’s positive COVID-19 diagnosis and said that he “paid the price.”
Soon after news broke that Trump and first lady Melania Trump were suffering from the illness, Hu Xijin, editor-in-chief of the Global Times, mocked the diagnosis over Twitter.
“President Trump and the first lady have paid the price for his gamble to play down the COVID-19,” Hu said, according to Business Insider.
“The news shows the severity of the US’ pandemic situation,” he added. “It will impose a negative impact on the image of Trump and the US, and may also negatively affect his reelection.”
Hu appears to have deleted the tweets from his account as of Friday afternoon. He later retweeted a post by Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying, which read: “Saddened to learn #President and the #FirstLady of the #US tested positive. Hope they both have a speedy recovery and will be fine.”
Trump announced his diagnosis Friday at about 1 a.m. The tweet sent social media into a flurry and became the president’s most shared and most liked message on the platform.
COVID-19 first developed in central China late in 2019 before spreading across the globe. It has infected nearly 35 million people and killed more than 1 million. Trump has taken a firm stand against China and has accused it of covering up the severity of the virus early on in the pandemic. He recently used his speech before the United Nations General Assembly to blast China for its response to the health crisis.
White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said on Friday that the president is experiencing “mild symptoms.” White House physician Sean Conley said that Trump was receiving a treatment described as a polyclonal antibody cocktail. He also said that Trump “remains fatigued but in good spirits.”
