Coronavirus in the White House brings bad campaign optics for Trump & Co.
White House staffers move the display of coronavirus testing equipment after President Donald Trump's news conference Monday in the Rose Garden. Credit: The Washington Post / Jabin Botsford
Coronavirus has reached the White House, supposedly the most protected inner sanctum in government. That creates bad political optics for President Donald Trump — beyond his failure to mobilize a pandemic response sooner.
A U.S. Navy valet who served Trump his meals, among other duties, tested positive. By most accounts, Trump reacted angrily with his staff, reinforcing the image of a privileged man who is quick to blame the help when something goes wrong. One senior official told The New York Times that Trump was frightened that his valet wore no mask. But the president, ignoring federal guidelines, has not covered his own face when he's with groups of people.
Trump economic adviser Kevin Hassett told CNN over the weekend that the West Wing is "a relatively cramped space" where it is hazardous to work, "even with all the testing in the world and the best medical team on Earth."
Most employers, of course, do not have access to "all the testing in the world." The lack of abundant COVID-19 tests has stalled both the response to the pandemic and reopening of businesses. On Monday, the administration announced it was recommending that more than 1 million nursing home residents and staffers be tested in coming weeks. Left unclear was how this recommendation would translate into action by the states.
Officials said they were carrying out contact tracing to protect the White House. For the national workforce at large, that practice is still in development. Three members of the president's coronavirus task force are now self-quarantined.
If the White House elite are as vulnerable to the "invisible enemy" as any other office, how safe will it be to resume normal activity in places like New York, where fatalities continue, if at a slowing rate? The facts seem to conflict with Trump's talk about "reopening" and a "comeback" just around the corner.
Trump is 73 years old and overweight, making him statistically more vulnerable than some others around him. Even a brief illness would look bad in a presidential campaign. Hillary Clinton's pneumonia late in the 2016 race, and her hiding it before collapsing in public, prompted Trump's camp to spread rumors that she was in sharp neurological decline from a serious condition. Four years later, Clinton has no obvious health problems.
On Monday, it was reported that White House officials will be asked to wear face coverings around the presidential compound. Trump still refused to do so at an afternoon briefing, apparently sending the message that rules are for others to follow. Vice President Mike Pence, who's had one of his staffers test positive, also was spotted on the grounds Monday without a mask.
If this is part of a "ready-to-reopen" posture, it may be out of step with public opinion. A Pew Research poll last week found 68% of Americans expressing concern that state governments will lift public-health restrictions too quickly.
Dan Janison is a member of the Newsday editorial board.
