Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Liveupdated

Trump coronavirus news: Masked President airlifted from White House lawn to begin Walter Reed hospitalisation

Follow the latest updates

Joe Sommerlad,Adam Withnall,Justin Vallejo
Friday 02 October 2020 20:25 EDT
Comments
Marine One takes off as Trump is transferred to Walter Reed medical center

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Donald Trump gave a thumbs up and waved to well-wishers as he walked to Marine 1 to begin hospitalisation at Walter Reed Medical Centre on Friday afternoon following cold-like symptoms of a fever and cough.  

A White House spokesperson said it was a precautionary measure, while Trump's doctor said the president was taking a mix of drugs, including Regeneron's polyclonal antibody cocktail as well as aspirin, zinc, vitamin D, famotidine and melatonin.

Trump's campaign staff cancelled all in-person events for the first family, with Mike Pence to step in. Joe Biden, meanwhile, flew to Michigan to continue his campaign after testing negative, saying he sends prayers for Trump's 'health and safety'.

Please allow a moment for our liveblog to load

Donald and Melania Trump test positive for Covid-19

We’ll be bringing you all the latest updates and reaction to the Trumps’ positive test result for Covid-19 here throughout the morning.

Mr Trump himself broke the news in the small hours, tweeting that both he and his wife had been infected and would “get through this TOGETHER!”

Melania Trump followed that up with a tweet of her own, writing that: “As too many Americans have done this year, @potus & I are quarantining at home after testing positive for COVID-19. We are feeling good & I have postponed all upcoming engagements. Please be sure you are staying safe & we will all get through this together.”

Here’s the very latest from Adam Withnall and Andrew Buncombe.

Donald Trump and First Lady Melania test positive for coronavirus

President and First Lady tested after infection of close aide Hope Hicks, who travelled with the Trumps this week

Joe Sommerlad2 October 2020 06:44

Welcome to The Independent’s live blog on the news that Donald Trump and the first lady Melania Trump have both tested positive for Covid-19.

Joe Sommerlad2 October 2020 06:36

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in