Vice President Pence tests negative for Covid after Trump’s diagnosis
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WASHINGTON — Vice President Mike Pence tested negative for the coronavirus Friday, following President Donald Trump’s announcement that he and first lady Melania Trump had become infected with the virus.
Pence’s press secretary Devin O’Malley said that Pence underwent a routine Covid test Friday morning, and he and his wife Karen Pence had both tested negative. It is unclear whether or not Pence will enter isolation, as is recommended by health experts due to the incubation period of the virus.
Pence has said very little publicly outside of a tweet wishing the first couple a “full and swift recovery” and there were no public events listed on the his schedule for Friday.
Trump’s diagnosis rattled the country and threw an already chaotic election into further turbulence, raising questions as to whether the president will be forced to halt in-person campaigning for the remaining 32 days left before Nov. 3.
Trump’s diagnosis also put a spotlight on the White House’s continued downplaying of the seriousness of the coronavirus pandemic. Pence, the head of the administration’s virus task force, has denied that Trump’s reluctance to take the pandemic seriously has hindered the country’s recovery.
The last known public contact between Pence and Trump appeared to be an outdoor Rose Garden event on Monday. But at a campaign event in Lititz, Pennsylvania on Tuesday ahead of the presidential debate, Pence told an indoor crowd of supporters that he had spoken with the president in the Oval Office earlier that day.
“It’s gonna be a great night. I can tell you, I left the president earlier today in the Oval Office and he’s ready,” Pence said to a large crowd of mostly maskless supporters.
Following Pence’s meeting with Trump Tuesday, the vice president continued to travel around the country hosting campaign events.
On Wednesday Pence traveled to Atlanta where he attended a fundraiser lunch and delivered remarks at a faith conference. Pence was seen deplaning Air Force Two without a mask, later putting one on as he waved to cameras. Pence was greeted at the airport by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who gave the vice president a fist bump.
On Thursday, the vice president hosted a campaign rally in Carter Lake, Iowa and spoke at a faith event in Des Moines.
At many of these events, hundreds of supporters gathered indoors without masks and no social distancing. Pence was interacting with voters at the conclusion of his speeches in Atlanta and Carter Lake.
Pence is scheduled to travel to Salt Lake City, Utah on Wednesday for the only vice presidential debate of the election cycle against Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif. It is unclear whether the debate can continue as planned.
The Centers for Disease Control guidelines recommend quarantining for 14 days after coming into contact with someone who has Covid, even in the event of a negative test result since symptoms may take up to two weeks to appear after exposure. If Pence followed those recommendations, he would have to quarantine through Oct. 13.
Harris wished the first couple a “speedy recovery” on Friday and said she and her husband were “keeping them and the entire Trump family in our thoughts.”
Although the White House has described the president’s symptoms as mild, Pence would be tapped if Trump became sicker and unable to perform the duties of the presidency.
The 25th Amendment in the U.S. Constitution allows for the president to temporarily hand control of the country over to the vice president if he becomes incapacitated or is unable to fulfill his duties.
President George W. Bush most recently invoked the 25th Amendment in 2007, handing over the presidency temporarily to Vice President Dick Cheney prior to going under anesthesia for a colonoscopy.
In May, Pence’s press secretary Katie Miller tested positive for the coronavirus but the vice president was not infected. Pence was criticized at the time for not quarantining.
Amanda Golden contributed.