Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

US House Passes Stablecoin Legislation, Sending Bill to Trump

17 hours ago

Man Admits to Killing Missing Bass Lake Resident, Madera County Authorities Say

18 hours ago

Trump Diagnosed With Vein Condition Causing Leg Swelling, White House Says

19 hours ago

US Strikes Destroyed Only One of Three Iranian Nuclear Sites, NBC News Reports

21 hours ago

US Seeks One-Day Sentence for Police Officer Convicted in Breonna Taylor Case

22 hours ago

Manhattan Prosecutor Who Handled Epstein Cases Is Fired

23 hours ago

Why California Ag Is at Odds Over Converting Land to Solar Farms

23 hours ago

7.3 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Off Alaska Coast. No Danger to California

2 days ago
Trump Says He's Leaving Hospital for White House, Feels Good
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 5 years ago on
October 5, 2020

Share

BETHESDA, Md. — President Donald Trump said Monday he’s leaving the military hospital where he has been treated for COVID-19 and will continue his recovery at the White House. He said he’s feeling good and the nation should not be afraid of the virus that has killed more than 209,000 Americans.

Trump’s expected return comes as the scale of the outbreak within the White House itself is still being uncovered. Press secretary Kayleigh McEnany announced she had tested positive for the virus Monday morning and was entering quarantine.

“I will be leaving the great Walter Reed Medical Center today at 6:30 P.M.,” Trump tweeted. “Feeling really good! Don’t be afraid of Covid. … I feel better than I did 20 years ago!”

He is expected to make the journey aboard the presidential helicopter, Marine One.

Unclear How Long Trump Will Remain in Isolation at White House

It was unclear how long Trump would remain in isolation at the White House. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, those with mild to moderate symptoms can be contagious for as many — and should isolate for at least — 10 days.

On Sunday afternoon, Trump briefly ventured out of the hospital while contagious to salute cheering supporters by motorcade — an outing that disregarded precautions meant to contain the virus.

White House officials said Trump was anxious to be released after three nights at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where doctors revealed on Sunday that his blood oxygen level had dropped suddenly twice in recent days and that they gave him a steroid typically only recommended for the very sick.

Trump “is ready to get back to a normal work schedule,” White House chief of staff Mark Meadows told Fox News.

Different Experience Than Most Americans with COVID

Trump’s experience with the disease has been dramatically different from most Americans, who do not have access to the same kind of monitoring and care. While most must cope with their symptoms — and fear of whether they’ll take a turn for the worse — at home and alone, Trump has been staying in the presidential suite of one of the nation’s best hospitals. He has a team of doctors at the White House, 24-hour monitoring, and has been given experimental drugs not readily available to the public.

Less than one month before Election Day, Trump was eager to project strength despite his illness. The still-infectious president surprised supporters who had gathered outside the hospital, riding by Sunday in a black SUV with the windows rolled up. Secret Service agents inside the vehicle could be seen in masks and other protective gear.

The move capped a weekend of contradictions that fueled confusion about Trump’s health, which has imperiled the leadership of the U.S. government and upended the final stages of the presidential campaign. While Trump’s physician offered a rosy prognosis on his condition, his briefings lacked basic information, including the findings of lung scans, or were quickly muddled by more serious assessments of the president’s health by other officials.

In a short video released by the White House on Sunday, Trump insisted he understood the gravity of the moment. But his actions moments later, by leaving the hospital and sitting inside the SUV with others, suggested otherwise.

McEnany spoke briefly with reporters Sunday evening without wearing a mask, but said that no members of the White House press corps spent enough time around her to be considered close contacts.

Joe Biden’s campaign, meanwhile, said the Democratic presidential nominee again tested negative for coronavirus Sunday. The results came five days after Biden spent more than 90 minutes on the debate stage with Trump. Biden, who has taken a far more cautious approach to in-person events — and has been mocked repeatedly for it by Trump — had two negative tests on Friday.

Trump’s doctors sidestepped questions on Sunday about exactly when his blood oxygen dropped — episodes they neglected to mention in multiple statements the day before — or whether lung scans showed any damage.

It was the second straight day of obfuscation from a White House already suffering from a credibility crisis. And it raised more doubts about whether the doctors treating the president were sharing accurate, timely information with the American public about the severity of his condition.

Sunday Motorcade Drive-by Outside Hospital

Even before Trump’s motorcade outing on Sunday, some Secret Service agents had expressed concern about the lackadaisical attitude toward masks and social distancing inside the White House, but there isn’t much they can do, according to agents and officials who spoke to The Associated Press. This close to the election, thousands of agents are engaged on protective duty so they can be subbed out quickly should someone test positive.

According to CDC guidelines, in general, transport and movement of a patient with suspected or confirmed infection of the virus that causes COVID-19 “outside of their room should be limited to medically essential purposes.”

The disclosures about Trump’s oxygen levels and steroid treatment suggested the president is enduring more than a mild case of COVID-19.

Signs of pneumonia or other lung damage could be detected in scans before a patient feels short of breath, but the president’s doctors declined to say what those scans have revealed.

Asked about Conley’s lack of transparency, White House aide Alyssa Farah suggested the doctors were speaking as much to the president as to the American public, “when you’re treating a patient, you want to project confidence, you want to lift their spirits, and that was the intent.”

In all, nearly 7.4 million people have been infected in the United States, and few have access to the kind of around-the-clock attention and experimental treatments as Trump.

Trump Seen as Having Higher Risk for Complications

Trump’s treatment with the steroid dexamethasone is in addition to the single dose he was given Friday of an experimental drug from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. that supplies antibodies to help the immune system fight the virus. Trump on Friday also began a five-day course of remdesivir, a Gilead Sciences drug currently used for moderately and severely ill patients. The drugs work in different ways — the antibodies help the immune system rid the body of virus, and remdesivir curbs the virus’ ability to multiply.

The steroid’s use has only been proven to help in more serious cases. Among the concerns with earlier use is that steroids tamp down certain immune cells, hindering the body’s own ability to fight off infection.

Trump is 74 years old and clinically obese, putting him at higher risk of serious complications.

First lady Melania Trump has remained at the White House as she recovers from her own bout with the virus.

Many in the White House are also shaken and scared — nervous that they have been exposed to the virus and confronting the reality that what seemed like a bubble of safety has become a COVID-19 hot spot. It took until late Sunday for the White House to send a generic note to staffers suggesting they not come to the building if they do not feel well.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Stephen Colbert’s Late-Night Show on CBS to End in May 2026

DON'T MISS

Former Los Banos Teacher Indicted on Federal Child Exploitation Charges

DON'T MISS

C for Chaos? Ashjian Kicked Off Measure C Committee

DON'T MISS

Israel Demands UN Scrap Investigation Body for Palestinian Territories

DON'T MISS

Trump Signs Executive Order Creating New Classification of Non-Career Federal Workers

DON'T MISS

Judge Rules Trump’s Firing of FTC Commissioner Was Illegal

DON'T MISS

US House Passes Stablecoin Legislation, Sending Bill to Trump

DON'T MISS

US Health Department Hands Over Medicaid Personal Data to ICE

DON'T MISS

Fresno Grass Fire Near Woodward Park Prompts Brief Evacuations

DON'T MISS

Behind the Masks: Who Are the People Rounding Up Immigrants in California?

UP NEXT

Connie Francis, Whose Ballads Dominated ’60s Pop Music, Dies at 87

UP NEXT

FDA Approves Juul’s Tobacco and Menthol E-Cigarettes

UP NEXT

7.3 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Off Alaska Coast. No Danger to California

UP NEXT

Age Is Just a Number: 80-Year-Old Conquers Death Valley to Mt. Whitney Ultramarathon

UP NEXT

Is US Democracy Threatened? Majority of Californians, Including Republicans, Say Yes

UP NEXT

US Senator Seeks Safety Reforms After Fatal Collision Between Army Helicopter, Regional Jet

UP NEXT

PBS and NPR Mount Last-Ditch Fight to Save Federal Funding

UP NEXT

Elmo’s X Account Gets Hacked, Posts Antisemitic and Racist Messages

UP NEXT

Fire at Boston-Area Senior Living Facility Kills at Least Nine

UP NEXT

Arizona Governor Wants Investigation of Federal Handling of Grand Canyon Fire

Israel Demands UN Scrap Investigation Body for Palestinian Territories

15 hours ago

Trump Signs Executive Order Creating New Classification of Non-Career Federal Workers

15 hours ago

Judge Rules Trump’s Firing of FTC Commissioner Was Illegal

16 hours ago

US House Passes Stablecoin Legislation, Sending Bill to Trump

17 hours ago

US Health Department Hands Over Medicaid Personal Data to ICE

17 hours ago

Fresno Grass Fire Near Woodward Park Prompts Brief Evacuations

17 hours ago

Behind the Masks: Who Are the People Rounding Up Immigrants in California?

18 hours ago

Homeowners With Solar Rise Up to Defang Bill Authored by Former Utility Executive

18 hours ago

Man Admits to Killing Missing Bass Lake Resident, Madera County Authorities Say

18 hours ago

Trump Diagnosed With Vein Condition Causing Leg Swelling, White House Says

19 hours ago

Stephen Colbert’s Late-Night Show on CBS to End in May 2026

LOS ANGELES – “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” on CBS will end in May 2026 after the upcoming broadcast season, the ne...

14 hours ago

Stephen Colbert arrives for the Saturday Night Live 50: The Anniversary Special at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City, U.S., February 16, 2025. (Reuters File)
14 hours ago

Stephen Colbert’s Late-Night Show on CBS to End in May 2026

The crest of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) is seen at their headquarters in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 10, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File photo
14 hours ago

Former Los Banos Teacher Indicted on Federal Child Exploitation Charges

15 hours ago

C for Chaos? Ashjian Kicked Off Measure C Committee

Flares fired by Israel Defense Forces light the sky above Gaza, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, July 17, 2025. (Reuters/Amir Cohen)
15 hours ago

Israel Demands UN Scrap Investigation Body for Palestinian Territories

President Donald Trump speaks during a press conference in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 12, 2025. (Reuters File)
15 hours ago

Trump Signs Executive Order Creating New Classification of Non-Career Federal Workers

Federal Trade Commissioner Rebecca Slaughter testifies on the "Oversight of the Federal Trade Commission" before the U.S. Senate Consumer Protection, Product Safety, Insurance and Data Security Subcommittee in the Russell Senate Office Building in Washington, U.S., November 27, 2018. (Reuters File)
16 hours ago

Judge Rules Trump’s Firing of FTC Commissioner Was Illegal

FILE PHOTO: A view shows the dome of the U.S. Capitol, in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 3, 2025. REUTERS/Umit Bektas/File Photo
17 hours ago

US House Passes Stablecoin Legislation, Sending Bill to Trump

A view of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services building, in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 27, 2025. (Reuters File)
17 hours ago

US Health Department Hands Over Medicaid Personal Data to ICE

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend