Trump addresses 2,000 supporters at White House rally in first public speech since Covid diagnosis
Donald Trump’s first public speech since his dramatic exit to hospital and early return on Monday, saw no social distancing of attendees, but many wore masks as the White House remains at the centre of a Covid-19 outbreak.
It is unclear whether Trump is still contagious, and questions remain about his health and the timeline of his infection. The White House has refused to declare that he is no longer capable of infecting others.
Trump’s first in-person event since his positive test for the coronavirus just over a week ago was watched anxiously by health experts, as while the focus may be on the president, more than two dozen staffers were also infected.
Addressing the 2,000-strong crowd on Saturday from the Blue Room balcony of the White House, overlooking the South Lawn, Trump appeared wearing a mask and removed it to speak.
Lafayette Square and surrounding streets were shut down by police and Secret Service for the rally, the president’s return to public appearance since being discharged from Walter Reed Medical Centre on Monday.
Many of those in attendance had come from an earlier event organised by conservative activist Candace Owens’ group Blexit, which aims to encourage black people and other minorities to abandon the Democratic Party and register as Republicans.
“I’m feeling great,” Trump told the enthusiastic crowd, before repeating his claim that the virus is going away, despite in excess of 50,000 new cases a day and a projected 235,000 deaths by the end of October.
Trump spoke for 18 minutes at the rally, which was billed as a “peaceful protest for law and order” — aides had said his speech would be half an hour long.
Off to the side of the White House event, not wearing a mask: Dr. Scott Atlas pic.twitter.com/yECbfzyU6t
— Jonathan Lemire (@JonLemire) October 10, 2020
Despite fears that the virus could still spread within the presidential mansion and offices, Dr Scott Atlas, Trump’s advisor on Covid-19, was spotted off to the side of the crowd not wearing a mask.
As a radiologist and not a specialist in public health or infectious diseases, his appointment as an adviser to the president earlier in the summer drew criticism.
Dr Atlas advocated for the reopening of schools and the Washington Post reported that he favoured a herd immunity strategy, something he later denied, despite speaking about the subject in a Fox News interview in July.
When the president tested positive for Covid-19 at the beginning of the month, Dr Atlas again appeared on the network, saying that is is no surprise that people get the infection, even with precautions.
“I anticipate a complete and full and rapid recovery back to normal after his necessary confinement period. I anticipate he’ll be back on the road and in full swing," he said.
Despite the president encouraging those present to vote, as well as taking swipes at Democratic running mates former vice president Joe Biden and Senator Kamala Harris, The White House insisted that Saturday’s rally was not a campaign event.
Judd Deere, White House deputy press secretary, told pool reporters that the event was not a campaign rally when asked about whether it violated the Hatch Act.
He said that any campaign signs seen would have been brought by the attendees: “We're not handing out anything but people can bring things onto the complex.”
The speech comes two weeks to the day since the Rose Garden superspreader event that was the celebration of Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination as a potential Supreme Court justice.
More than 30 people linked to the White House have tested positive for the virus since then.
On Monday the president will be back on the campaign trail in Sanford, Florida at what he has described as a "BIG RALLY".
With reporting from The Associated Press
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