White House COVID-19 outbreak facts for kids
.jpg)
|
|
| Disease | COVID-19 |
|---|---|
| Virus strain | SARS-CoV-2 |
| Location | White House, Washington, D.C., USA |
| Arrival date | September 26, 2020 |
| Confirmed cases | At least 36 |
In September and October 2020, multiple people at the White House tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
Background
On September 16, it was reported that at least one unnamed staffer had tested positive.
On October 1, President Donald Trump, his wife Melania Trump, press advisor Hope Hicks, presidential campaign manager Bill Stepien, and former White House counselor Kellyanne Conway tested positive for the coronavirus. Claudia Conway, the daughter of Kellyanne Conway, announced on Oct 4 that she had tested positive as well. On October 5, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany announced she had also tested positive.
Trump tested positive days after the first presidential debate against Joe Biden in Cleveland, Ohio. Around eleven people tested positive who worked at the debates in Cleveland. Some of Trump's personal aides who prepared him for the debates also tested positive.
Many of the cases were rooted to be at the announcement of Amy Coney Barrett's nomination to the United States Supreme Court on September 26 and at a Trump campaign fundraiser event in Bedminster, New Jersey on October 1.
That same day, it was revealed that Senators Thom Tillis and Mike Lee both tested positive, as well as University of Notre Dame president John I. Jenkins. Three members of the White House press corps, including Michael D. Shear, also tested positive.
On October 2, Trump was hospitalized at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
Also on October 2, many individuals connected to the White House were diagnosed with COVID-19.
Reaction
_(2).jpg)
The incident has been compared to the non-fatal shooting of Ronald Reagan in 1981, which saw similar concerns over continuity of government amid incapacitation of the president.
Stock markets briefly fell more than 1.5 percent after Trump announced his diagnosis, but they cut their losses after Pelosi said she anticipated an economic relief deal. The S&P 500 Index ended the day down almost 1 percent.
Twitter announced that any posts wishing for Trump's death would be removed for violating the platform's terms of service. Congresswomen Rashida Tlaib, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, and Ayanna Pressley criticized Twitter for not taking threats against them seriously, pointing to longstanding posts calling for their deaths that had not been removed. Facebook and TikTok announced similar policies.
Tested negative
Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen, Presidential candidate Joe Biden, Biden's running mate Kamala Harris, Biden's wife Jill Biden, Attorney General William Barr, and Trump Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett all tested negative in the day following public revelation of the outbreak.
Many of Trump's family members, including Ivanka Trump, Barron Trump, Jared Kushner, Eric Trump, and Donald Trump Jr. also received a negative result.
Cases
| Patient | Position | Was event attended by the patient? | Current status | Date the diagnosis was first reported publicly | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barrett nomination Sep 26 |
Gold Star Day Sep 27 |
Ohio debate Sep 29 |
Duluth rally Sep 30 |
Bedminster fundraiser Oct 1 |
||||
| Multiple unidentified staffers | White House staffers | Unknown | Positive | Sep 16 | ||||
| Crede Bailey | Head of White House Security Office | Diagnosed before Barrett nomination event, hospitalized in September | Hospitalized | Oct 6 | ||||
| Hope Hicks | Senior Counselor to the President |  |
|
Isolating | Positive and symptomatic | Oct 1 | ||
| Donald Trump (R) | 45th President of the United States | |
|
|
|
|
Hospitalized; Discharged | Oct 2 |
| Mike Lee (R) | United States Senator from Utah | |
Positive and symptomatic | Oct 2 | ||||
| Thom Tillis (R) | United States Senator from North Carolina | |
Positive and symptomatic | Oct 2 | ||||
| Melania Trump | First Lady of the United States | |
|
Positive and symptomatic | Oct 2 | |||
| Kellyanne Conway | Former Counselor to the President | |
Positive and symptomatic | Oct 2 | ||||
| Ronna McDaniel | Chair of the Republican National Committee | Attended D.C. fundraiser with Trump on Sep 25 | Positive and symptomatic | Oct 2 | ||||
| Michael D. Shear & wife | White House correspondent for The New York Times | Michael Shear was at the White House on Sep 26 only for a required COVID-19 test in advance of traveling with Trump and Kayleigh McEnany to the Pennsylvania rally later that day | Positive and symptomatic | Oct 2 | ||||
| Bill Stepien | Trump campaign manager | Traveled to Cleveland debate aboard Air Force One with President, First Lady, Hope Hicks, and Steven Miller | Positive and symptomatic | Oct 2 | ||||
| Al Drago | White House press room photojournalist | |
Positive and symptomatic | Oct 2 | ||||
| One unidentified journalist | White House press room journalist | |
Unknown | Positive | Oct 2 | |||
| 11 unidentified persons | Debate preparation staff or media | |
Positive | Oct 2 | ||||
| Nick Luna | Body man to Donald Trump | |
Cancelled | Positive | Oct 3 | |||
| Chris Christie (R) | Former Governor of New Jersey | |
Exposed to Trump at Amy Coney Barrett meeting on Sep 26, at debate prep meetings and a press conference on Sep 27 | Hospitalized | Oct 3 | |||
| John I. Jenkins | President of the University of Notre Dame | |
Positive and symptomatic | Oct 3 | ||||
| Ron Johnson (R) | United States Senator from Wisconsin | Exposed to unnamed individual on Sep 14 | Positive but asymptomatic | Oct 3 | ||||
| Claudia Conway | Daughter of Kellyanne Conway | Exposed to mother | Positive and symptomatic | Oct 4 | ||||
| Kayleigh McEnany | White House press secretary | |
|
Cancelled | Positive | Oct 5 | ||
| Greg Laurie | Senior pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship | |
Positive and symptomatic | Oct 5 | ||||
| Chad Gilmartin | Principal assistant press secretary | |
Positive | Oct 5 | ||||
| Karoline Leavitt | Assistant press secretary | |
Positive | Oct 5 | ||||
| Two unidentified staffers | White House residence staff | Regularly exposed to First Family | Positive | Oct 5 | ||||
| Jayna McCarron | U.S. Coast Guard aide to the president | |
Positive | Oct 6 | ||||
| One unidentified military personnel | President's valet | Regularly exposed to Trump | Positive | Oct 6 | ||||
| Adm. Charles Ray | Vice commandant of the Coast Guard | |
Positive and symptomatic | Oct 6 | ||||
| Jalen Drummond | Assistant White House Press Secretary | |
Positive | Oct 6 | ||||
| Stephen Miller | Senior Advisor to the President | |
Positive | Oct 6 | ||||
| Salud Carbajal (D) | United States Representative from CA-24 | Reportedly exposed to Sen. Mike Lee | Positive and symptomatic | Oct 6 | ||||
| Gen. Gary Thomas | Marine Corps’ assistant commandant | Exposed to Gen. Milley | Positive and symptomatic | Oct 7 | ||||
| Mike Bost | US Representative from IL-12 | Exposed to Mike Lee | Positive and symptomatic | Oct 9 | ||||
Images for kids
-
Herman Cain died from COVID-19 on July 30, 2020
-
President Trump addresses an unmasked crowd at a White House reception for Gold Star families on Sept. 27
-
President Trump departs the White House for COVID-19 treatment on October 2, 2020
-
Trump in the Walter Reed conference room, October 3. There were some reports of speculation that this photo was "staged".
-
Trump speaking to a crowd in the White House grounds on October 10, 2020
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
See also
In Spanish: Brote de COVID-19 en la Casa Blanca para niños
