Trump Covid: President downplays virus on leaving hospital

  • 2020-10-06 17:58:04
US President Donald Trump has made a theatrical return to the White House to continue his treatment for coronavirus after a three-night hospital stay. Mr Trump, who is still contagious, removed his mask on the balcony of the White House, while posing for pictures. His physician said he would continue treatment from there, and he "may not entirely be out of the woods yet". Several of Mr Trump's staff and aides have also tested positive for the virus in recent days. Questions remain over the seriousness of Mr Trump's illness after a weekend of conflicting statements. On Tuesday, his first morning back in the White House, the president took to Twitter to compare Covid-19 to the flu. "Flu season is coming up!" he wrote. "Are we going to close down our Country? No, we have learned to live with it, just like we are learning to live with Covid." The US remains the country worst-hit by Covid-19, with 210,000 deaths and 7.4 million cases. Between 1 October 2019 and 4 April 2020, the flu caused between 24,000 and 62,000 deaths in the US, according to government figures. Mr Trump's diagnosis has upended his campaign for a second term in office, less than a month before the Republican president faces Democratic challenger Joe Biden in the presidential election.

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