Hope Hicks, one of President Trump’s closest aides, has tested positive for the coronavirus. She began feeling symptoms on Wednesday night and was quarantined away from everyone on the flight home from Minnesota:
Hicks began feeling mild symptoms during the plane ride home from a rally in Minnesota Wednesday evening, according to an administration official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to disclose private information. She was quarantined away from others on the plane and her diagnosis was confirmed Thursday, the person said.
She traveled with President Trump multiple times this week.
According to the AP, the president revealed the news during an interview with Sean Hannity:
“Whether we quarantine or whether we have it, I don’t know,” Trump said during a call-in interview with Fox News Channel’s Sean Hannity on Thursday night. “I just went for a test and we’ll see what happens.”
President Trump also tweeted out 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
It didn’t take long for the hate from the left to flood social media.
Joy Reid led the pack with a swipe at the president:
Huge upside: Wisconsin could now be spared those covid superspreader rallies this weekend, since the coronavirus is now superspreading within the White House. Going into quarantine might be the first thing Trump has actually done to save lives during the pandemic.
— Joy Reid (@JoyAnnReid) October 2, 2020