The video, posted to Twitter by The Independent, shows Trump throwing out a few navy “Make American Great Again” hats into the crowd of more than 1,000 of his supporters, many of whom were not wearing masks.
“I brought those hats out here cause Minnesota’s a little on the windy side. And like a genius, I sent them all out and now I’m getting blown to pieces and that’s fine,” he told the crowd. “That’s OK. I love it. I love you to have whatever we have, we have it together. That I can tell you.”
While Trump may not have known about his positive coronavirus diagnosis looming on the horizon, his actions at the rally spark new concern that the it could turn into a super-spreader event.
It is unclear when and how Trump contracted the virus, but he tested positive hours after one of his closest aides, Hope Hicks, also had the same diagnosis, The New York Times reported. Hicks began experiencing symptoms Wednesday while attending the Minnesota rally, according to the Times. Trump shortened his appearance there to about 45 minutes—about half the length of one of his typical rally speeches.
COVID-19 is thought to be spread primarily through close contact from person to person, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). As for spreading the virus through surface contact, “it is possible that the virus that causes COVID-19 can survive on surfaces or objects,” according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Experts have acknowledged, however, that this risk is quite small.
Trump revealed his diagnosis on Twitter early Friday morning, writing: “Tonight,@FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!”
The news comes after Trump has long played down the severity of the outbreak and has often not been pictured wearing a mask. Speaking at a political dinner on Thursday evening just hours before the positive test, the president remarked: “I just want to say that the end of the pandemic is in sight, and next year will be one of the greatest years in the history of our country.”
His physician, Sean Conley, later released a statement saying that both the president and first lady are “well at this time.” The Trump campaign has postponed all its upcoming engagements, including a rally in Sanford, Florida, that was meant to take place Friday.
The Minnesota Department of Health urged residents on Friday after Trump’s announcement to get tested if they attended any of his recent campaign rallies in the state.
“There is a potential risk that transmission occurred at the Duluth rally and other events associated with President Trump’s visit,” the department’s update said. “Anyone who attended events associated with the President’s visit and who now has symptoms should get tested right away.”
The update also says anyone who was in contact with Trump should get tested and go into quarantine for at least 14 days, regardless of the test results.
Update (10/02/20, 3:58 p.m.): This article has been updated to include an update from the Minnesota Department of Health.
