By Eli Stokols, Chris Megerian and Noah Bierman

Los Angeles Times

WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Donald Trump and the first lady are suffering mild symptoms from COVID-19, his chief of staff confirmed Friday amid rising concerns about the impact of the president’s diagnosis as lawmakers and other government officials sought to reassure a nervous public.

On the eve of a pitched battle over a Supreme Court nomination and a pivotal presidential election just 32 days away, Republicans looked to steady a jittery stock market and to keep their legislative plans on track while Pentagon officials tried to allay concerns about the nation’s military readiness.

Vice President Mike Pence tested negative for the coronavirus Friday, his office announced, alleviating immediate concerns about the presidential line of succession should Trump’s symptoms worsen to the point that he is unable to perform his duties.

Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee who pounded Trump’s handling of the pandemic when they met Tuesday on the debate stage in Cleveland, tested negative for the virus Friday, according to his doctor. Dr. Jill Biden also tested negative.

At the White House, where staffers were suddenly wearing face masks after months of eschewing the practice mostly to placate the president, senior aides sought to calm public anxieties as Trump and the first lady remained under quarantine in the residence.

White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said Trump was showing “mild symptoms” but was in “good spirits” and energetic. “His first question to me this morning was, ‘How is the economy doing?’”

Meadows said aides and others near the president and first lady in recent days, and none had tested positive, but he made clear that he expects the outbreak to spread.

“I fully expect that as this virus continues to go on other people in the White House will certainly have a positive test result,” he told reporters in the north driveway outside the West Wing.

He acknowledged the seriousness of a virus that the president and aides have spent months downplaying. “Even with a lot of mitigating factors, what you have is a virus that’s contagious,” he said.

Meadows declined to say what treatment the president and his wife are receiving. At 74 and obese, Trump faces increased odds to develop serious symptoms from the coronavirus. Mrs. Trump is 50 and at less risk.

The president’s top aides are tested regularly, but they rarely wear masks despite advice from public health experts.

It’s unclear where the president contracted the virus, but one of his closest aides, Hope Hicks, tested positive on Thursday. She flew with him recently on Air Force One and Marine One, the president’s helicopter.

Meadows sought to explain Trump’s decision to travel Thursday afternoon to a fundraiser at his golf club in New Jersey after officials knew about Hicks’ test results. He claimed staffers didn’t learn about them until Trump was lifting off the South Lawn in the early afternoon, although another aide, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Hicks’ test had occurred hours earlier.

Ronna McDaniel, the Republican National Committee chairwoman, announced that she had also tested positive for COVID-19. She often travels with the president and was last with him last Friday when he traveled to Virginia.

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, one of a half-dozen advisers closely involved with helping the president prepare for his debate Tuesday with former Vice President Joe Biden, told ABC News Friday that “no one was wearing masks in the room when we were prepping the president.”

Trump did not tweet Friday morning, which was unusual for him, but Melania Trump sent a short message of thanks to well-wishers.

“I have mild symptoms but overall feeling good,” she tweeted. “I am looking forward to a speedy recovery.”

The president’s forced quarantining will keep him off the campaign trail for at least several days during the critical final stretch of the campaign, although it’s possible he could address supporters from the White House.

Biden, the Democratic nominee, offered well wishes to the president and first lady Friday.

“Jill and I send our thoughts to President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump for a swift recovery. We will continue to pray for the health and safety of the president and his family,” Biden tweeted Friday morning.

The Bidens’ primary care physician, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, said they both underwent PCR testing Friday “and COVID-19 was not detected.”

“Thank you to everyone for your messages of concern,” Biden tweeted later. “I hope this serves as a reminder: wear a mask, keep social distance, and wash your hands.”

Trump had mocked Biden during their debate for limiting his public appearances and frequently wearing masks, as public health experts recommend.

“I don’t wear masks like him,” Trump said. “Every time you see him, he’s got a mask.”

On Capitol Hill, Republicans insisted that the presidential health crisis would have little impact on the effort to confirm conservative judge Amy Coney Barrett to fill a vacancy on the Supreme Court in the 32 days before the election.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., tweeted that he and Trump spoke by phone Friday and “talked business —especially how impressed Senators are with the qualifications of Judge Barrett. Full steam ahead with the fair, thorough, timely process that the nominee, the Court, & the country deserve.”

Hours earlier, McConnell sounded more circumspect in a radio interview, calling the virus “the biggest enemy” to a swift confirmation process. Confirmation hearings are scheduled to start on Oct. 12, but McConnell said it may conducted, at least in part, remotely.

Noting that Trump’s diagnosis “underscores that the coronavirus is not concerned about the American election and that it’s not going away until we get a vaccine,” McConnell urged GOP lawmakers to take “every precaution” because of the narrow vote margin he has to confirm Barrett.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who is third in the line of succession to the presidency, said she received the news of Trump positive diagnosis “with great sadness.” She said she was tested “out of an abundance of caution” and her results were negative.

“Maybe now that people who see the President of the United States with all the protection that he has and the first lady still having this exposure, it might be, as you say, a learning experience,” Pelosi, D-Calif., said on MSNBC. “But more than learning it has to be something that is acted upon.”

Defense Secretary Mark Esper, who last met with Trump on Sunday and is traveling overseas, was awaiting coronavirus test results Friday. Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, tested negative on Friday, according to a Pentagon spokesman.

The spokesman said that the appearance Thursday night of two E-6B Mercury aircraft, which can serve as airborne command posts in emergencies, on both the Pacific and Atlantic coasts just before Trump’s announcement shortly after midnight were on “pre-planned missions” and the timing was “purely coincidental.”

“There’s been no change to (Defense Department) alert levels,” said Jonathan Hoffman, assistant to the Secretary of Defense for public affairs. “The US military stands ready to defend our country and interests. “There’s no change to the readiness or capability of our armed forces. Our national command and control structure is in no way affected by this announcement.”

Pence’s office said Pence has been tested for COVID-19 every day for months. But the office did not immediately respond to questions about when he was last in contact with Trump, who announced his positive test results shortly after midnight Friday morning.

During a rally in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, however, Pence told the crowd he had met with the president in the Oval Office earlier that day.

Pence is scheduled to participate in a debate Wednesday in Utah with Sen. Kamala Harris, the Democratic vice presidential nominee. The event may carry greater importance for voters given the concerns about the Trump’s health.

Ashish Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, said Trump’s diagnosis will create a challenge for tracing his contacts because of the virus’s incubation period, which can last days before it’s detected.

“Anyone near Ms. Hicks from Monday on, President from Tuesday on should quarantine,” he tweeted. “I’d go back, test everyone near President from at least Saturday on to see if we can identify source.”

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