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Politico | Donald Trump’s coronavirus diagnosis ‘worst nightmare’ for his campaign: strategist
- The US president will find it difficult to steer public attention away from his biggest political liability – his handling of the Covid-19 pandemic
- For his election rival Joe Biden, the news is a stroke of political fortune, but he will have to tread carefully to avoid appearing insensitive to Trump
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This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by David Siders and Charlie Mahtesian on politico.com on October 2, 2020.
Donald Trump had done everything possible to shift the focus of the presidential campaign away from his handling of the coronavirus.
His own infection now ensures that he can’t – pulling Trump off the road 32 days before the election, throwing debates into question and fixing the public attention’s more squarely than ever on a pandemic dragging down his prospects for a second term.
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A president who once seemed impervious to October surprises is suddenly confronting one big enough to alter the outcome of the election.
The ultimate rebuke to his callous mishandling of Covid.
“The campaign as we knew it is over,” said Andrew Feldman, a Democratic strategist in Washington. “This is the worst nightmare for the Trump campaign.”
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Practically speaking, Trump’s announcement early on Friday that he tested positive for the coronavirus will immediately remove him from in-person campaigning, though for how long is unclear.
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