Now What?
The gravest of what-ifs has become a “what now?”: This morning, while many Americans were sleeping, President Donald Trump announced that he and the first lady have tested positive for the coronavirus. He disclosed his diagnosis in a tweet, sent at nearly 1 a.m. eastern time: “We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!”
The White House did not immediately point to contingency plans should the president become too ill to continue working, nor did it offer an explanation of how Trump was infected—edging an already tense nation toward ever more confusion.
The president’s health is a national-security issue. This is why he is surrounded by a massive security may have been dispatched shortly before the announcement of the positive test. Even during ordinary times, threats to the president’s safety can move markets and awaken armaments.
