'Oh f***': Trump caught on hot mic before announcing unprecedented travel ban over coronavirus

AFP via Getty Images
AFP via Getty Images

Moments before announcing a ban on all travel from Europe as the number of coronavirus cases in the US balloons to nearly 1,300, Donald Trump appears to have been caught on a hot mic saying "oh f***" and asking for "white stuff" to repair a "pen mark."

Before his Oval Office address to the US on Wednesday, the president can be heard saying: "Oh, f*** — Uh oh, I got a pen mark. Anybody have the white stuff ... Do you see it? Which side is it on?"

The president's voice was heard on newscasts across the US as television stations prepared to receive the White House feed.