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© Alex Brandon/AP President Trump removes his face mask and places it in his pocket as he stands on a White House balcony on Oct. 5. (Alex Brandon/AP)In President Trump’s personal orbit, the coronavirus case count continues to creep upward.
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More than a dozen White House officials have recently tested positive for the novel coronavirus, including some who are among the at least nine guests and two journalists who tested positive after they attended Amy Coney Barrett’s Sept. 26 Supreme Court nomination event in the Rose Garden.
Trump announced his positive test early Friday, and was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center later that day. He returned Monday to the White House, where he removed his mask, despite doctors saying he was still contagious.
Meanwhile, Taiwan — the self-ruled island home to 23 million people — reported just eight new cases in the past week.
More than a dozen countries have reported fewer than 10 new coronavirus cases in the past seven days, including several that have not reported any cases at all. Not all such case numbers are reliable. Some countries are facing serious testing shortages. Others stand accused of avoiding public disclosure of their case numbers. But Taiwan has been widely praised for its handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
Late last year, as word of an unusual respiratory illness in the Chinese city of Wuhan began to spread, Taiwanese officials scrambled to start screening passengers arriving from the city as early as Dec. 31. In January, a Taiwanese health official raised serious alarm about the virus in an attempt to warn the rest of the world about what could come next.
But it was months before many other governments realized the virus was set to upend the world as we know it.
As hospital wards became overwhelmed in hot spots across the globe, Taiwan — which was prepared to launch intensive contact-tracing initiatives — has managed to avoid the worst of the pandemic. The island has confirmed just 521 coronavirus cases and seven deaths, according to a Johns Hopkins University tally. The vast majority of cases have not been domestically transmitted.
In August, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar visited the island, where he commended officials for their fast response to the pandemic, calling it “world-class.” Speaking to reporters in Taipei, Azar told reporters that Taiwan acted quickly in part because it had been “scarred” by Beijing’s handling of the SARS outbreak nearly two decades earlier.
A Taiwan health official tried to warn the world about the novel coronavirus. The U.S. didn’t listen. Elsewhere, numbers are a bit cloudier.Several countries reporting fewer than 10 cases in the past week are located in sub-Saharan Africa, including some that did not report any new cases to the World Health Organization. Although many countries in Africa appear to have fared far better against the virus than experts initially suggested they might, in some places, testing shortages or other factors could be affecting case counts.
Experts have questioned the caseload in Tanzania, for example, where President John Magufuli has insisted that the country’s outbreak is “absolutely finished.”
And when it comes to cloudy numbers, the same holds true for how many infections may trace their roots back to the White House. Numerous guests who attended the Rose Garden event told The Washington Post they have not been subject to a contact-tracing effort.
And Trump’s behavior since his diagnosis — including his decision to leave the hospital to drive past his supporters and to remove his mask upon return to the White House on Monday — has stunned epidemiologists, who fear he continues to put those around him at risk of contracting the highly contagious virus.
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The coronavirus has hit a growing number of figures in President Donald Trump’s White House orbit, with potential links to recent campaign events, the first presidential debate, and the Rose Garden nomination ceremony of Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court.
In addition to President Trump and First lady Melania, other people to test positive for COVID-19 include White House adviser Hope Hicks, campaign manager Bill Stepien, and RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel. Most of them have reported mild to no symptoms.
The origins of the infections are murky and could remain that way. But as the New York Timeshas noted, many of the names attended the same events with the president as he criss-crossed several states in recent days. The first potential site of transmission may have been a September 25 fundraiser at Trump International Hotel in Washington attended by the president and McDaniel.
Other potential spreader events include a September 26 White House meeting with Amy Coney Barrett, attended by several people including Sens. Thom Tillis (R-NC), Mike Lee (R-UT), and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie — all three of whom have since tested positive for COVID-19.
The Rose Garden nomination ceremony for Barrett on the same day may also have led to the spreading of the virus. The ceremony was attended by former counselor to the president Kellyanne Conway and University of Notre Dame president Rev. John Jenkins, both of whom also have the virus. Several members of the White House press corps have also contracted the virus.
The following is a list of the figures in the White House orbit who have so far tested positive COVID-19 since Thursday, listed in order of public disclosure or the first public report.
Hope Hicks, adviser to the president
The president tweeted late Thursday that his adviser had tested positive for the virus, following reports earlier in the day that broke the news.
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!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 2, 2020
President Donald Trump and First lady Melania
The president confirmed shortly thereafter that he and the first lady had just tested positive and were beginning the quarantine process.
Tonight, @FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 2, 2020
Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT)
The Republican senator from Utah announced Friday morning that he got tested Thursday after experiencing symptoms “consistent with longtime allergies.” The test came back positive. “I will remain isolated for the next 10 days,” he said.
— Mike Lee (@SenMikeLee) October 2, 2020
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC)
The Republican senator from North Carolina announced Friday evening that his COVID-19 test came back positive. “Thankfully, I have no symptoms and feel well,” he said.
Tonight my COVID-19 test came back positive. I’m following the recommendations of my doctor. Thankfully, I have no symptoms and feel well. COVID is a very contagious virus. If you were exposed or start to display symptoms, please call your doctor, self-isolate, and get tested. pic.twitter.com/fwc826dkvQ
— Senator Thom Tillis (@SenThomTillis) October 3, 2020
Kellyanne Conway, former special adviser to the president
The former White House staffer announced late Friday that she tested positive and was experiencing “mild” symptoms that included a light cough. “I’m feeling fine,” she tweeted. “I have begun a quarantine process in consultation with physicians.”
People Orbit
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. ❤️
People Orbit
— Kellyanne Conway (@KellyannePolls) October 3, 2020
Bill Stepien, campaign manager for President Trump
Stepien hasn’t publicly confirmed that he tested positive for the coronavirus. However, Politicoreported Friday that he received his diagnosis Friday evening and “was experiencing what one senior campaign official described as ‘mild flu-like symptoms.'”
Ronna McDaniel, chairwoman of the RNC
McDaniel also hasn’t publicly confirmed that she has the virus. The New York Timesreported Friday that she tested positive.
Rev. John Jenkins, University of Notre Dame president
The university confirmed Friday that its president has the coronavirus. “My symptoms are mild and I will continue to work from home,” Jenkins said. “The positive test is a good reminder for me and perhaps for all of how vigilant we need to be.”
Chris Christie (R), former governor of New Jersey
Christie tweeted Saturday morning that he is positive for COVID-19. He later tweeted that “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.”
People In Orbit
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.
— Governor Christie (@GovChristie) October 3, 2020
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.
— Governor Christie (@GovChristie) October 3, 2020
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