White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany Tests Positive for Coronavirus
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany announced that she tested positive for coronavirus on Monday, the latest official among President Trump’s inner circle to contract the illness.
“After testing negative consistently, including every day since Thursday, I tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday morning while experiencing no symptoms,” McEnany said in a statement. “With my recent positive test, I will begin the quarantine process and will continue working on behalf of the American People remotely.”
— Kayleigh McEnany (@PressSec) October 5, 2020
McEnany said that the White House Medical Unit confirmed that no reporters were counted among her “close contacts” in previous days, although she personally briefed reporters outside the White House on Saturday without a mask.
The press secretary tested positive following the diagnoses of the president and first lady, as well as Senators Ron Johnson (R., Wis.), Mike Lee (R., Utah), and Thom Tillis (R., N.C.), and other top Republican officials.
President Trump was flown to Walter Reed Medical Center on Friday to be treated for coronavirus. Doctors administered supplemental oxygen to Trump that day, and White House chief-of-staff Mark Meadows confirmed that officials were concerned about the president’s condition.
However, Meadows said on Monday that Trump was “ready” to return to the White House.
“Spoke to the President this morning. He continued to improve over night and is ready to get back to a normal working schedule. He will meet with his doctors and nurses this morning to make further assessments of his progress,” Meadows told reporters.
