NEW YORK - President Donald Trump spent the weekend in the hospital after testing positive for COVID-19, a stunning development that injected a new layer of chaos into an already turbulent 2020 contest just one month before Election Day.
Never before has a first-term president suffered such a serious health setback so close to an election.
Trump flew to Walter Reed National Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, on Marine One on Friday evening after experiencing fever and fatigue. Officials said they expected him to be there for a few days.
Later Friday morning, White House chief of staff Mark Meadows told reporters the president was experiencing “mild symptoms.”
On Saturday, White House physician Sean Conley disclosed on the record for the first time that the president had experienced a fever. However, doctors also said Saturday that the president had been fever free for more than 24 hours, had received an antibody therapy 48 hours prior and was on a five-day course of the drug remdesivir.
Conley said Sunday that if Trump continued to feel well, "our hope is that we can plan for a discharge as early as (Monday) to the White House, where he can continue his treatment course."
Also at the Sunday morning news conference, one of the physicians treating the president said he had begun a course of the steroid dexamethasone on Saturday after a drop in his oxygen levels. The president will receive that "for the time being," Dr. Sean Dooley said.
President Donald Trump left his hospital suite for a brief ride in a motorcade Sunday, ignoring his own status as a contagious carrier of the novel coronavirus.
While Trump's doctors say he could be released as early as Monday, they also report that his blood oxygen level dropped suddenly twice in recent days and that he's taken a steroid typically only recommended for the very sick.
It’s still unclear what day the president first began experiencing symptoms as mixed messaging from the White House continues to muddle the timeline.
Reports say Vice President Mike Pence has tested negative for COVID-19 three times since Trump's diagnosis and has made multiple public appearances while the President recovers in the hospital.
The bombshell development comes days after an ugly debate performance that already had Trump allies defensive.
Things appear trending in Biden’s direction, but 29 days is plenty of time for another October surprise.
