Chris Wallace says Trump arrived too late in Ohio to be tested for Covid-19 before debate: 'Not until 5 pm'
According to Fox News anchor Chris Wallace, President Donald Trump did not arrive in Cleveland, Ohio, in time to get tested prior to the first presidential debate. Wallace was the moderator for the event and said that Trump "didn't arrive until Tuesday afternoon" in Cleveland, as reported by The Hill, where he faced off against his presidential candidate rival Joe Biden. The debate took place on Tuesday, September 29 around 9 pm.
Given how long Trump took to arrive at the event, he did not allow enough time for himself to be tested for the coronavirus there and receive a result. While speaking to his colleague Bill Hemmer, Wallace said, "The difference was I arrived on Sunday, you arrived on Monday." "[The Trump family] didn’t arrive until Tuesday afternoon. So for them to get tested, there wouldn’t have been enough time to have the test and have the debate at 9.00 that night. They didn’t show up until 3.00, 4.00, 5.00 in the afternoon. There was an honor system when it came to the people that came into the hall from the two campaigns," Wallace added.
Hemmer shared "the candidates themselves ... had been tested and tested negative by their respective campaigns. They weren't tested by the clinic based on that statement, Chris. And to me, that sounds like an honor system." The Cleveland Clinic who had hosted the event. Wallace made the comments on Friday, October 2, post the news that both Donald Trump and his wife Melania had tested positive for Covid-19. As per White House physician, Trump was experiencing fatigue and had mild symptoms of Covid-19.
The White House revealed that Trump had been taken to Walter Reed Military Medical Center unannounced on early Friday, October 2 evening "out of an abundance of caution". Trump himself had confirmed the news that he had been diagnosed with the virus and had taken to Twitter to make the announcement. His tweet read, "Tonight, FLOTUS, and I tested positive for Covid-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!"
We had earlier reported that Trump's senior-most and closest White House aide Hope Hicks had tested positive for coronavirus. According to reports, Hicks, who serves as counselor to Trump had been in close proximity to the president and had traveled with him to a rally in Minnesota on September 30 after which she tested positive on Thursday, October 1.
At the time, Trump had taken to Twitter to say that he and Melania would be quarantining as they awaited results on their Covid-19 test. He had written on Twitter, "Hope Hicks, who has been working so hard without even taking a small break, has just tested positive for Covid-19. Terrible! The First Lady and I are waiting for our test results. In the meantime, we will begin our quarantine process!”
In a statement, White House spokesman Judd Deere said the president "takes the health and safety of himself and everyone who works in support of him and the American people very seriously."