Dr. Vin Gupta called out the Trump White House for unabashedly and repeatedly disregarding Covid-19 best practices on wearing masks, social distancing, and avoiding mass gatherings after the bombshell news that President Donald Trump has tested positive for the coronavirus.
Speaking with MSNBC host Brian Williams during extended live coverage of the breaking news early on Friday morning, Gupta said the country was “flying blind” as there was little information as yet made public about the timeline of the virus’ suspected path into the Oval Office. Williams began the interview ticking off a list of just some of the possible shock waves that Trump’s diagnosis could set off.
“What does it mean to the presidential election?” Williams asked. “We can assume that presidential debates will now be canceled. Presidential travel will likely canceled. We are 30 days out. What is running through your mind as a medical professional?”
“First, I want take sure that the president and the first lady and everybody that might have been exposed, Hope Hicks, that they are doing okay, and I’m glad to hear, it sounds like they are doing okay,” Gupta said. “This is bigger than just the president, the First Lady, the inner circle, everyone of whom must be quarantined for 14 days, regardless of what the results says. This is high risk exposure. We talked about this. That is number when with, retrace the steps. It’
Gupta then wondered if Vice President Mike Pence could have been exposed as well, before pointing out that members of Trump’s entourage who traveled to the debate in Cleveland did not wear masks inside the auditorium — while Joe Biden’s staff and family did.
“Finally, I will say, Brian, if the president’s team new that he — that Hope Hicks was positive and they were all in close contact with her, why did he go to an event today?” Gupta pointedly asked. “And willingly — I mean, expose other individuals at a fund-raiser? To me, I don’t understand that. What is the medical advise he is getting from [White House Physician] Dr. [Sean] Conley and others? Who is encouraging him to do that? At that moment when Hope Hicks shows up positive and symptomatic, it should have raised alarm bells, everybody should shelter in place until we get tested and even then, we should repeat over time. This is a big deal.”
Williams then put the question to Gupta that how sure the White House is that Hicks was the vector that infected the First Family: “Are we just assuming that Hope Hicks was the person, the means of transmission to the president, given the ground he has covered all those he has come in contact with?”
“That a great point. We are flying blind here, Brian, who knows?” a clearly alarmed
“And yes, the presidential race is fundamentally altered tonight. Should be no more in-person gathering for the remainder of the season,” Gupta advised of the remaining 32 days to Election Day. “And if the president remains asymptomatic, he may use it to tamp down the seriousness of the infection.”
Gupta then took direct aim at the president’s ongoing downplaying and dismissal of the virus and his insistence to restart mass rallies — even a few indoor — where there was little evident mask wearing and no social distancing.
“This was preventable,” he emphasized. “They’ve been mocking masks in some cases. The fact it even occurred is a damning indictment, and unfortunately a kind of ‘we told you so’ in reality, based on their months and months of misrepresenting good public health practice. This is avoidable. This did not have to happen. If they were practicing the proper procedures and not going to these rallies and having these chaotic events, where of course airborne exposure was going to happen, even in an outdoor setting. No masking, no distancing, what they did expect was going to
Watch the video above, via MSNBC.