Tested positive in a tweet he said flotus and i have tested positive for covert 19 we will begin our quarantine and Recovery Process immediately we will get through this together of a Top White House doctor has released a memo speaking about the president and 1st lady saying they are both well at this time and that they will remain at the white house during their convalescence it goes on to say the president will continue carrying out his duties while recovering. Weve also heard from the 1st lady who tweeted to say she President Trump are in quarantine at home along a trump says theyre both feeling good and that all are upcoming engagements have been postponed she also encouraged everyone to stay safe. Lets go to our White House Correspondent kimberly how to joins us from washington d. C. So 1st of all kimberly lets start with what do we know about any symptoms has any word been said about what sort of symptoms if any the couple have. We it is my understanding that hicks may the president s advisor who we assume has been the one to pass this on to the president but of course there is no absolute certainty of that that she was exhibiting some of the symptoms theres been no understanding of what the symptoms were but i can tell you that having heard the president s voice as he called into a Fox News Program known as hannity earlier what were on friday morning now so this would have been late thursday night the president sounded tired but its something that you wouldnt think is particularly unusual given his age given his schedule and that hes been with the campaign so it wasnt particularly unusual but it was notable is so that is the only sort of tangible symptom that hes exhibited thus far i mean weve seen the president as hes been departing the white house he has been very much in good spirits and appearing strong he didnt appear to be in el health at the last departure when he barked on the helicopter to head to joint base andrews having said that you know the president is in his mid seventys he is overweight we know that these are factors that can lead to people having a very hard time dealing with this virus and so how this will play out for the president is is still a very much an open question as we move forward but in terms of how the white house is reacting clearly they are trying to present a brave front that its business as usual the president will continue his duties having said that they have already cleared his schedule he had been scheduled on friday to travel to florida for a make America Great again rally that is now been canceled as well as meeting with some supporters at the trump hotel the only thing that remains on the president s schedule now is a round table that will as we suspect beat it taking place over the telephone and that that is happen. With ironically. Seniors who are affected by cope with diet change now this will include the u. S. President all right now i know you mentioned there that he said hes going to continue with this judys but what does the quarantine of the president look like if we you know does he not come into contact with other people does he do it only virtually are there are a select group of people that contact with him. Well its very clear from a medical standpoint that he no longer can come in contact if youre following the centers for disease controls protocol that would mean that you are isolating yourself so that no one else is a for the risk presumably he can come in contact with the 1st lady. Its not clear if other members of his family for example his daughter of a car or a sons whether or not they will go into quarantine self isolation is a protocol that certainly this is a what we see americans doing when they believe that they may have had casual contact with somebody who has tested positive so in terms of the reverberations they are going to be enormous because there are so many people that come in contact with the president of the United States even kluges the media it includes those who were at the president ial debate earlier this week the president has been traveling on air force one this will members of the u. S. Military the secret service who guards him and then the number of people that have proximity to the president on a regular basis is an enormous number so this is quite i mean that many of these people will also have to self isolate for 2 weeks as a precaution so in terms of that certainly there are other people that can step in to fill the role that this is going to have an impact on the day to day operations of the white house things are going to radically change of course were also in the midst of a u. S. Election campaign 5 weeks until election day its november 3rd this essentially could mean that the campaign itself is frozen in terms of how things proceed so far now we should note that already in terms of campaigning styles the democratic president ial nominee joe biden had a very limited schedule and he was doing many things virtually it is a precaution he was when he did go to the president ial debate he did come in contact with the u. S. President they were on the same stage very far part they did not shake hands. But there is some risk for the democratic president ial nominee as well given the fact that he has been so close to the u. S. President within the same week that the president has tested positive so thats something we havent even discussed as of yet is what kind of risk there is to the other man running for the white house that helps to replace donald trump because well donald trump is in his mid seventys joe biden is even older 78 i believe and so anyone of advanced age we know is at enormous risk for coke at 90 so in terms of the ramifications theyre still being felt at the white house is in crisis mode right now as it tries to scramble and deal with the emitted responsibilities and duties of the president how things will move forward the continuity of government is being activated we know will even a confirmation of that i can tell you my sources said this would be standard protocol and in terms of how things play out for the Election Campaign that is still very much an open question and for a president who has relied more on personal campaigning appearances and campaigning rallies shall we say than for example joe biden whos been trying to do it i think if id say more virtually than donald trump this represents a more potentially Disruptive Development right. This is absolutely a disruptive element its very hard to see how this Campaign Continues moving forward given the fact that joe biden was already doing a very a u. S. Campaign donald trump was trying in the midst of the pandemic in the fact that there are still many areas of the United States that are in some sort of shutdown type mode are not fully reopened he was trying to proceed as if this was 2016 but we know its not and now the person who was trying to act as if it was still 4 years ago has tested positive so it doesnt appear that this campaign is going to resemble anything weve ever seen before in terms of the election itself that is in trying to the u. S. Constitution what it will take place is always in early november it always takes place on tuesday and there is no reason to believe at this point the u. S. Election is going to change in terms of the date. That we take an act of congress at the same time people are already voting if for example at myself i received my mail in ballot today in the mail the ballots have already been drawn up and they have 2 names and those are joe biden and donald trump people are going to be voting for those individuals so right now things are still proceeding as normal but its its hard to see how it can continue that way in the coming days or even the coming hours. Got asked to stay with us from what im going to ask us to join in doing now is to take a look about donald trump what he said and what hes been feeling about moss during that president ial debate you might remember in Cleveland Ohio on tuesday while donald trump was asked about the use of mosse to help prevent coronavirus and this is what he had to say. I mean i have a masquerade here ive put a mask on it you know when i think i need it tonight as an example everybody has had a test and youve had social distancing and all of the things that you have to but i was there mistakes when needed when needed i were a mess ok i dont have to i dont where mass like him every time you see hes got a mask it be speaking 200 feet away from him he shows up with the biggest mask ive ever seen all right so we heard there kimberly what donald trump was it sounded like he was outlining his mosque policy shall we say is there any reason to believe that is now under review and other Safety Measures the president was or was not following in line to whats just been announced. Well that this was already under review in the the court of a Public Opinion and the u. S. President has already received enormous criticism not just from his rival joe biden but from i would argue 50 percent of americans who believe that the president has been reckless being one of the last to don a mask which many people would argue is his responsibility to put on him to lead by example and that he was really one of the last 2 to do so because this u. S. President you have to remember was counting on winning reelection on historic gains in the u. S. Economy decimated by coke at 19 he has constantly been trying to project things are back on track as and as a reelection strategy and so one of these aspects of that projection was. Trying to present this image of this brand of things being ok even if they work for he was reluctant to wear a mask only when he went to visit soldiers at a hospital just north of washington d. C. A Military Hospital did we really see him wearing a mask for the 1st time then the president almost rebranded it as a patriotic thing to do even as we saw him after that still appearing in public without a mask so in terms of the demands that could be made on the president really the president doesnt have to abide in the same way i would have to or or anyone even a member of congress so whether the met the president if he survives this and certainly everyone around him as well as many of the American Public is hoping that he does. But at the same time the president does what the president wants to do hes never been one to follow the rules and its really hard to see how that behavior is going to change for a man it is that seventys he has been known to resist change on the. Pressure shall we say do you think though we might see some change in how politically divisive an issue Wearing Masks has been in the us you know in a way that perhaps we havent seen in other countries around the world. I dont think so its its this is such a large country geographically there are such an enormous population certainly there are other countries that are more densely populated but this is still a country of 330000000 plus people its very large in terms of the geography and there are people that live within their silos as we like to say and their personal reality and are very much in denial in many ways because they havent come in contact with someone who has covered 19 they dont know anybody who has been affected in any way so its really just almost like a movie theyre watching on the on the Television Set or in the nightly news so for many people i dont know if this will change their behavior this is we say it so often it is a divided country its unlikely that this is going to change anything. There are going to be those that support the president and those that might even wish his demise as a result of this thats where our we are in the United States right now the feeling of hate of anger of animosity is very strong it is almost tangible palatable on the streets particularly in washington d. C. I personally live very close to the u. S. Capitol where the tensions because youre surrounded by people on both sides of the political spectrum are very real and well there is this sense of sort of a public decorum its always percolating underneath the surface and you have to remember that dont forget the social unrest we were covering not just listening but all across the United States that hasnt gone away in terms of the frustrations so the end ease that americans have been feeling leading up to this u. S. Election is now going to be intensified times 10 knowing the fact that this u. S. Election will no longer resemble anything most americans have seen in their lifetime and the outcome and the uncertainty has only been exacerbated by the news that not only that donald trump has tested positive but the potentially the democratic president ial nominee joe biden could also be at risk given the fact that he was just face to face with the president just days ago all right thanks so much can we how could that from washington d. C. And the news about President Trump as a fight to trading on the asian markets from a prime joins us live from sol so how they taking this. Thats right to east asia it was lunch time early afternoon here friday local time when they we got the shock news people here have been following this since early friday morning when we had notification that hope pics had tested positive had fallen sick with symptoms the speculation about whether or not donald trump had also been infected and when news came through that indeed he had tested positive along with the 1st lady then we had the an instant response on the markets that were open here it has to be said that a lot of these days or is actually in a holiday period at the moment the Chinese Markets hong kong and taiwan they are closed also south korean market is closed but the nikkei in japan the 3rd largest market that was open and instantly shares dropped by one full percentage point they also fell in australia on the all ordinaries index in australia so an instant response there from markets obviously markets anywhere in the world do not like uncertainty and there is nothing to cause uncertainty than the news that the leader of the free world has come down with a covert 19 so there has been a instant taint response here we have had confirmation from the economy minister in japan yes the touchiness you more is saying that this news has had a negative impact on trading in japan confirming that also a wishing the the 1st president of the 1st lady well sending best wishes we know that the upright president ial office here in south korea well though its a holiday we know that they are monitoring the situation and they will soon be sending messages of goodwill from president moon jay and weve been getting other responses from the taiwanese president ial office again sending best wishes there has been a slightly more caustic response from china at least from some of the media. Outlets in Mainland China with the editor of the global times the global times is a very nationalistic jingoistic mouthpiece in china speaks its mind they tweet from the editor in chief says this is this shows that the president and the 1st lady are paying the price he says for the President Trump playing down a coded 19. 00 so that is far Less Charitable more caustic response from Media Outlets at least in Mainland China as this part of the world continues to absorb the news as obviously we go around the clock and europe wakes up they will be absorbing this to rob any any feeling as well that this introduces not only some market uncertainty a degree of Political Uncertainty for u. S. Policy on a number of very sensitive asian issues right now whether its the trade relationship with china to the whole situation with north korea. This is bound to have a geo political ramifications we know that u. S. Policy in this part of the world east asia has been very significant and donald trump has been a significant driver of that we have seen the increased tensions for example as you mentioned between the u. S. And also china over trade on a number of other issues and also the at the start of the coronavirus and chinas initial response to that of course so it remains to be seen just if President Trump is now to some degree incapacitated what that is going to do to that policy and we know that john will trump has been instrumental in these negotiations with north korea that now remains to be in doubt to the South Koreans will be scratching their heads wondering how this affects their policies u. S. Policies in this part of the world the northeast asia is preparing for a visit by mike pompei of the u. S. Secretary of state coming to visit japan and south korea next week it was hoped that that visit to may find a way to try to restart negotiations maybe with north korea the South Koreans have been continuing to talk about their relationship with the north that this process of dialogue is certainly not dead there was talk about maybe the u. S. Agreeing to some sort of formal end finally to the end of the korean war which is obviously only ever been settled by an armistice but having some sort of formal peace treaty which might then restart negotiations but all of that of course is seen dependent upon having donald trump at the helm to sign off on this and so it remains to be seen just where all these initiatives are at the moment and there was even talk at one point of course about some sort of east asian october surprise being a surprise meeting between kim jong un of north. Career and donald trump well people no longer talk about that anymore but obviously all of these policies are now on hold while everyone wonders in the coming hours in the coming days around a number of capitals in asia just how this will affect policies in this part of the world or a roman pride there thanks so much for that that is not just asian markets affected this just in european stocks have sank after news that trump tested positive for covert 19 chemical mining oil and gas stocks were the biggest decliners in early trading down between 1. 3 and 1. 5 percent or don nickles is a clinical professor in pathology at the university of hong kong and researches covert 19 he joins us live via skype good to have you with us so 1st of all let me start with the question of from what we know from what we know about Trumps Health profile is there anything one should anticipate about how intense this virus might impact him yeah so the the evidence which has been put forward by the c. D. C. Shows that anyone over the age of 60 is of high risk by virtue of their age coupled with that. Being said before is also an extra i risk and coupled with that is also then anybody who has a b. M. I. Which is an indicator of obesity has also got a very much increased risk of ending up in our lives ation as well as in intensive care so i think just from the show demographics is that. Present trump is in the high risk category so if he is in the high risk category without im not asking to look into a crystal ball and tell us you know how hes going to weather this obviously but somebody whos in the high risk category what does that mean in terms of his ability to continue to function normally usually. Well i do know the its over 75 percent of the people over 70 are able to function well but the c. D. C. Data shows that about 25 percent or people who are over 72 have been it would end up being hospitalized and about 5 to 10 percent of those will end up in intensive care so its you know so the vast majority if i could jump into a subject just to clarify when you say that 75 percent of people i think it was you said continue to function well does that i mean what does functioning well look like do you still need to take more rest breaks the you know what kind of arcane and do you need to introduce into your daily routine well you know that they are relatively very few symptoms that they are still out to carry on their normal. Activities you know even though they will be at home but it just you know the evidence of the c. D. C. Shows that about 25 percent will end up being hospitalized. Does the same thing about hydra clocks a queen which don trump said i think on may 18th that he was taking the lead daily dosages off. I dont think hes hes taking that now the this is where theres been no quite a bit of study about after that for these patients who have to be early diagnosis about are there any mechanisms any treatment which could be seen which could actually ameliorate or cut down on this if it is ease and the number of trials which are going on using things like in help steer oits or. Even the which might might be able to shut some effect but right now i think the most important thing is to make sure that hes being closely monitored and see which i think most likely this will be happening in some regions be having regular Pulse Oximetry because one of the things about the early stages that everybodys had experience on is that these patients may turn very quickly is that they may be very well one day and then the next day can actually get into quite a few distress thats why you know in some places like in hong kong is that even though it will can be positive if there are hospitalized so they can be monitored so in case they do turn is that so they have a readily via available supply of medical staff were able to ask them but i think President Trump will certainly be having around the clock and medical care to make sure that he is being a monitored or i professor when i was going to stay with us for a 2nd while we look at the president s health now from for the courses 74 years old he is considered overweight as Professor John was pointing out there that makes it makes him high risk for coronavirus concerns were raised about his condition in june when he appeared to have difficulty Drinking Water and coming down the stage of an event where he tweeted that the ramp was steep and very slippery dismissing speculation of course about his health or in november last year trump made an unscheduled visit to the doctor for tests something. And thats usually noted in his public diary the white house said he was in good health during his campaign in 2016 trump produced a note saying hed be the healthiest individual ever elected to the presidency a doctor later said trump had written the letter himself. So Professor John looking at that sort of context the president as well as being i think quite open about showing color his mosque policy. The fact that hes now tested positive took over 19 does it suggest in your mind that perhaps some of the Safety Measures and precautions were not being followed that that should have been. Well as i think one of your previous speakers mentioned is at mosques have been clearly shown to decrease transmission and there was evidence of this was not in effect for the bin in the days beforehand and he was in a close environment. With you know in the helicopters and with other people and these are all known risk factors for good being with the virus so i think that if youre one of your previous stories people mentioned is that this this is one of the contributing factors to this does it raise concerns for some of the events the rallies which hes been attending as recently as wednesday. Not definitely i think you know if hes positive and is the 1st ladys positive and hope is positive then you know than it would be i think then normal Contact Tracing which would be which would be taking place would indicate that any of those whove been in close contact with him should be monitored and treated and and hopefully isolation and quarantine. And given this announcement then the usual sort of rules that would apply to somebody whos tested positive would be that he should be in absolute lockdown out of contact with absolutely everyone does that include even the 1st lady does it include other members of his immediate family who he may have already been interacting with or are other aides who he probably has been closely interacting with anyway i mean how does that apply to to him well in in a in a suit if you know it is varies from region to region you know in some regions and moment you test positive your place in hospital and your you know you have isolation you have negative pressure and your a c. Monitored and relatives cannot visit other places they said well you know step home and then you any sort of come to hospital once you develop severe symptoms so it really depends on the region the individual regions but i think the most much the evidence shows that the more cautious you are and the earlier you can sort of get people who are slated and both away from anybody else you know is the better so but you know if used as in to stay at home then thats his thats the decision of his physician and of the people who he would develop seeking to consult with. One imagines ill be quite a task ahead of officials now in terms of Contact Tracing right now i guess but if its an official Contact Tracing then theyre not think theyll be working day and night to try not isolation and knowing that the past few days theyve been very in last contact the last people that we also Contact Tracing going on so i think that the contact traces will have to work collapse them in the next turn next few days thats very clear all right thanks so much good to get your thoughts on that Professor John nichols there thank you. Scott lucas is the cofounder of america unfiltered thats a news and analysis site on american politics and Foreign Policy joins us on skype from birmingham in the u. K. Good to have you with us so lets start because it is great that youll both focused on domestic politics as well as Foreign Policy so let me start with a sort of domestic question 1st which is how this development may impact the president s popularity in the polls which havent been looking very good for him very recently well the immediate effect is it deprives donald trump of his main outlet for getting its message across in the last 30 days of this campaign and that is these large rallies often without social distancing without the audience wearing a mask where he can go on for an hour 90 minutes trying to attack the democratic challenger joe biden but it also deprives tromp really of the diversion away from coronavirus the campaign for the past few weeks has been trying to talk about other things the Supreme Court nominee amy kearney beret they have been trying to whip up the idea of cultural wars that the big issues were extremist and are anarchist are threatening america now weve got the move back to corona virus which is killed almost 207000 americans and that will probably dominate headlines now all the way through october and up to the november 3rd vote and then the 3rd thing that i think it affects is it takes away a key talking point of the Truck Campaign which is that dissent from ation that it was joe biden the democratic