Who saw POTUS and for how long?
That was the question on the minds of those in top Minnesota Republican circles Friday after news broke overnight that President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump and at least one close advisor have tested positive for the coronavirus.
Trump visited Minnesota Wednesday. That would put him within the window where he could have been contagious. He was seen often not wearing a mask, as has been his typical conduct. The primary benefit of wearing a mask is to protect others from your own germs because you can have the virus and be contagious but not know it.
The news prompted a number of Republican officials who had contact with Trump to say they would quarantine, to varying degrees, and be tested Friday. While some reported negative results, health experts cautioned that testing so soon after possible exposure means little because the virus might have not had time to reproduce enough for tests to pick it up.
Trump’s Minnesota itinerary included:
- Landing in Minneapolis-St. Paul and greeting supporters and officials.
- A private fundraiser in a west suburban Shorewood home hosted by Cambria CEO Marty Davis.
- Flights aboard Air Force One with some Republican officials aboard, including Minnesota members of Congress.
- An outdoor rally at Duluth International Airport attended by 3,000 people.
Of those who had contact with the president, here are among the questions being asked:
- How close?
- For how long?
- What was the setting? (Outside? Inside? Inside a small area?)
- Who was wearing a mask?
Answers to these questions weren’t entirely clear Friday, and it wasn’t clear which agency or organization, if any, were coordinating a complete contact tracing effort for the president.
The Minnesota Department of Health said it would be involved in contact tracing “Minnesota residents.” Typically, county health departments would attempt to track residents in their counties.
“While we work with other public health departments collaboratively, our department does not get involved in the contact tracing for President Trump and his staff, or for others who are not Minnesota residents,” according to a statement from the Health Department.
Other details emerged from the president’s time in Minnesota.
SHOREWOOD FUNDRAISER
The Shorewood fundraiser was advertised at “$200,000 per couple,” according a flyer.
Images and video from the event obtained by the Pioneer Press show a disregard for COVID-19 precautions at times. Trump is not pictured in the images.
In some of them, apparently later in the evening after Trump left, video shows Davis and others frolicking close to each other without masks, and singing karaoke.
The images were posted to the Instagram feed of Sergio Gor, a staffer for U.S. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky who is working as chief of staff for the Trump Victory Finance Committee. Gor could not be reached for comment.
Among those pictured: South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem.
Ian Fury, a spokesperson for Noem, told Forum News Service Friday that Noem tested negative for the virus Tuesday night, and she “was not a close contact of anyone who has tested positive.” He declined to comment further.
AIR FORCE ONE
Republican members of the state’s congressional delegation who flew aboard Air Force One were taking similar precautions, although their levels of self-quarantine were unclear.
Three Minnesota Congressmen — U.S. Reps. Jim Hagedorn (R-1st), Tom Emmer (R-6th) and Pete Stauber (R-8th) — traveled on Air Force One with the president from Washington, D.C. to Minnesota, as well as by motorcade. They planned to fly back to Washington with the president, as well.
All three were tested Friday and all three reported their results were negative.
Trump’s announcement of his positive test at 1 a.m. Friday came hours after he confirmed that Hope Hicks, one of his most trusted and longest-serving aides, had been diagnosed with the virus Thursday. Hicks began feeling mild symptoms during the plane ride home from the rally in Minnesota on Wednesday evening, according to an administration official who spoke on condition of anonymity to not disclose private information. She was isolated from other passengers aboard the plane, the person told the Associated Press.
Hicks had been with Trump and other senior staff aboard Marine One and Air Force One en route to that rally and had accompanied the president to Tuesday’s presidential debate in Cleveland, along with members of the Trump family. The Trump contingent removed their masks during the debate, in violation of the venue rules.
STATE LEADERS
Minnesota GOP Chair Jennifer Carnahan, who is married to Hagedorn, said she did not attend any of the Trump events.
Several political leaders who had close contact with Trump said they would isolate themselves and get tested. That would be a second test. Everyone who is expected to have contact with Trump and Vice President Mike Pence is required to be tested ahead of time, and such people are asked to not shake hands with him.
Like a number of Minnesota officials, state House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt, R-Crown, was psyched to briefly interact Trump and pose for a picture on the tarmac outside the Minnesota Air National Guard station at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
It was an honor to greet President @realDonaldTrump as he arrived in Minnesota for his latest campaign visit.
The Trump campaign and @mngop have built an unprecedented ground game and Republicans are fired up to win in November! #mnleg #mngop pic.twitter.com/EXQZ6RkAgv
— Kurt Daudt (@kdaudt) September 30, 2020
On Friday, Daudt said the interaction was no more than five minutes and mostly from a distance of 6 to 8 feet. “The photo was about 30 seconds, and that’s when I was in close proximity to him,” Daudt said in an interview.
He said he had been tested again Friday and would self-quarantine in the meantime.
MORE: MN Health Dept: If you attended Trump event and have symptoms, get tested now
The tarmac gathering included Daudt, Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka, and former congressman and Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Jason Lewis. All were unmasked, except for three military officers who were also in the group.
Gazelka said he, too, would self-quarantine and get tested. “I’ll follow the doctor’s advice about how long I quarantine,” he said in a tweet.
I appreciate that Sen Susan Kent texted me I note wishing me well. I’m getting a Covid test today and another next week. I’ll follow the doctors advice about how long I quarantine. I have no symptoms.
— Paul Gazelka (@paulgazelka) October 2, 2020
Christine Bauman, a spokesperson for Lewis’s Senate campaign, said in a written statement Friday that the Republican candidate is not displaying any symptoms of COVID-19 after his contact with the president, “but out of an abundance of caution he has already begun the self quarantine process and will be getting COVID tested as soon as possible.”
‘THOSE TESTS MEAN NOTHING’
The rush to test so soon after possible exposure — and the idea that a negative test might put you in the clear — isn’t backed up by science, experts said.
“Those tests mean nothing,” said Michael Osterholm, an epidemiologist and director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy and the University of Minnesota. “The earliest you might pick up the virus is day four or day five.”
Osterholm said he couldn’t speak to who should quarantine because he doesn’t know the particulars of each person’s contact, or how infectious Trump or other staffers were. “It’s just not clear at this point what those exposures were,” he said.
But, he said, a negative test Friday is no justification for ending quarantine.
The Minnesota Department of Health issued similar recommendations Friday.
While the department said in an announcement Friday that anyone with symptoms should be tested “right away,” it also cautioned that those without symptoms should wait to be tested to allow for the virus to incubate.
“People should get tested five to seven days after the event,” the agency said, referring to the Duluth rally. “If they test negative, they should get tested again around 12 days after the event.”
The guidance then continued: “Anyone who was a direct contact of President Trump or known COVID-19 cases needs to quarantine and should get tested. It is important to understand that quarantine for 14 days is necessary regardless of test results.”
Forum News Service and the Associated Press contributed to this report.