Margaret Brennan Confronts NatSec Advisor O’Brien: ‘Who Is Responsible’ for the Lapses That Led to the President Getting Infected?

CBS’ Margaret Brennan spoke with White House national security advisor Robert O’Brien Sunday on President Donald Trump testing positive for the coronavirus and — most importantly — what lapses led to him being infected in the first place.

Brennan asked O’Brien about the issue of a potential transfer of power, as well as the status of the contact tracing for everyone who was recently around the president.

At one point, she said, “I want to ask you, though, how the president was put at such extraordinary risk. He attended a fundraiser Friday the 25th with someone who has since tested positive, he was at indoor and outdoor masked gatherings Saturday the 26th at the White House. Was that the chief of staff’s call? I mean, who is responsible for allowing him to be in such close proximity and ultimately get infected?”

O’Brien responded, “The president made this very clear, he’s going to continue to run this government, and we have to face this virus, we have to open up the country, we’ve got to make sure that America’s moving forward.”

“It’s very hard no matter what precautions you take,” he continued.

“It’s highly infectious, but that would only seem to indicate that around the president of the United States, you need to be even more careful,” Brennan said. “So how was he put in these circumstances?”

You can watch the rest of the exchange above, via CBS.