President Trump said Friday he “most likely” will be tested for the coronavirus after coming into close contact with a member of the Brazilian president’s delegation over the weekend who later tested positive for COVID-19.
After declaring a national emergency in the White House Rose Garden to combat the pandemic, Trump was asked by a reporter if it was “selfish” not to be tested for the coronavirus, potentially putting others at the risk of infection.
“I didn’t say I wasn’t going to be tested,” he said, contradicting an answer he gave another reporter only moments earlier.
“Are you going to be?” a reporter asked.
“Most likely, yeah. Most likely. Not for that reason, but because I think I will do it anyway,” the president said.
Asked when the test would happen, Trump said, “Fairly soon. We’re working out a schedule.”
Minutes earlier, Trump maintained there was no reason to be tested for the virus.
“No, we have no symptoms whatsoever,” Trump said. “We had a great meeting with the president of Brazil, Bolsonaro. Great guy, very tremendous. He’s doing a fantastic job for Brazil,” he said. “And, as you know, he tested negative, meaning nothing wrong, this morning. And we got that word, too.”
During a Friday interview before Trump’s announcement, Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said he recommended a coronavirus test for anybody who had similar interactions experienced by Trump.
“Generally speaking, if I were standing next to someone who had been diagnosed with coronavirus, should I isolate myself and find a test as well?” asked MSNBC host Willie Geist. “Yes,” Fauci said.
“OK, so that goes for the president, likely, in theory, at least, but you’ll leave it to his doctor?” Geist asked Fauci.
“I’m going to leave it to his physician, who’s a very good physician,” Fauci added.
White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said on Thursday that neither Trump nor Vice President Mike Pence would “require” testing for COVID-19 after meeting with the Brazilian delegation at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida.
In making her case, Grisham said the president did not have an extended interaction with Brazilian press secretary Fabio Wajngarten, who tested positive for the illness.
“The White House is aware of public reports that a member of the Brazilian delegation‘s visit to Mar-a-Lago last weekend tested positive for COVID-19; confirmatory testing is pending. Exposures from the case are being assessed, which will dictate next steps,” Grisham said. “Both the president and vice president had almost no interactions with the individual who tested positive and do not require being tested at this time.”
Both Wajngarten and Bolsonaro attended a dinner with Trump and Pence at the resort in South Florida, taking several photographs with them. Reports on Friday said Bolsonaro tested positive for the virus, but the Brazilian president, along with his son Eduardo Bolsonaro, denied the “fake news” reports and said he tested negative.
“Too much lies and little information. Coronavirus exam done with the team that were with JB in USA have not yet been completed There are always those people who tell lies in the media and if the story is confirmed they say ‘I told you!’, if not will be just 1 more fake news,” Bolsonaro’s son said in a series of tweets.
Other administration officials, including first daughter Ivanka Trump, Attorney General William Barr, and White House counselor Kellyanne Conway, have also been exposed to people who tested positive for the coronavirus. Peter Dutton, the Australian minister for foreign affairs, interacted with them at a gathering last week in D.C.
CNN’s Kaitlan Collins reported on Friday that Ivanka Trump had “worked from home” though did not require testing because she did not exhibit any symptoms.
COVID-19 cases have appeared in every continent except Antarctica. Nearly 135,000 people have tested positive for the virus around the world, killing at least 4,988 people, according to the New York Times. In Italy, there have been approximately 15,113 confirmed cases and 1,016 deaths. The country has closed all businesses, with the exception of grocery stores, banks, and pharmacies, and has placed the entire nation on lockdown.
