NBC TELEVISION NETWORK AFTER
THIS BRIEF PIECE OF ANIMATION.
>>> THIS IS A NBC NEWS SPECIAL
REPORT.
HERE IS BRIAN WILLIAMS.
>> -- STATES HAS TESTED POSITIVE
FOR THE CORONAVIRUS AFTER A
AIDE OF HIS TESTED POSITIVE AS
WELL.
IT ALSO APPLIES TO THE FIRST
LADY, MELANIA TRUMP.
GOOD EVENING, WE ARE COMING TO
YOU ON THE NBC TELEVISION
NETWORK IN ADDITION TO LIVE
CONTINUING COVERAGE ALL NIGHT
LONG ON MSNBC.
THIS WAS BECOMING SUSPECTED AS
THE EVENING WENT ALONG.
WE HEARD THE NEWS ABOUT HOPE
HICKS, LONG TIME AIDE TO THIS 39
AND THIS WEST WING, TESTING
POSITIVE HERSELF AND SHOWING AT
LEAST MILD SYMPTOMS ALREADY OF
THE CORONAVIRUS.
HOPE HICKS IN THAT VERY TIGHT
INNER CIRCLE AROUND THE
PRESIDENT.
THERE ARE FEW IF ANY AIDES ANY
CLOSER TO DONALD TRUMP.
SEEN HERE THIS WEEK WALKING TO
THE HELICOPTER WITH THE
PRESIDENT’S SON-IN-LAW AND THE
WHITE HOUSE AIDE TO HER LEFT.
THE OTHER GENTLEMAN, THE
PRESIDENT’S SOCIAL MEDIA
DIRECTOR.
BUT THE BIG STORY TONIGHT IS
WHEN THE PRESIDENT SAID HE AND
THE FIRST LADY WERE GOING TO
BEGIN THE QUARANTINE PROCESS.
THAT LEFT US WITH SEVERAL HOURS
OF SPECULATION THAT HE WAS GOING
FOR FURTHER TESTING.
THE ABBOTT BRAND RAPID TESTS
THAT THE PRESIDENT HAS TOUTED.
THE DEVICE ITSELF HAS APPEARED
ALONGSIDE HIM IN THE ROSE GARDEN
IS THE FIRST CHOICE IN THE TRUMP
WEST WING.
BUT IT’S THEN COMMON TO GO
DEEPER WITH TESTS THAT GIVE A
BETTER CHANCE OF FINDING A
POSITIVE RESULT, TESTS THAT HAVE
FEWER FALSE NEGATIVES OR
POSITIVES.
WHAT WE LEARNED, LITERALLY,
WITHIN THE LAST FIVE MINUTES,
THE PRESIDENT HAS INDEED TESTED
POSITIVE FOR COVID-19.
ALONG WITH THE FIRST LADY.
PETER ALEXANDER, OUR WHITE HOUSE
CORRESPONDENT, HAS BEEN
REPORTING THIS ON HIS OWN AND
HAS BEEN ABLE TO JOIN OUR
COVERAGE.
PETER, WHAT CAN YOU ADD?
>> THIS IS A STRIKING ANNOUNCEMENT THAT WE ARE HEARING
ANNOUNCEMENT THAT WE ARE HEARING
FROM THE PRESIDENT.
BECAME SUSPICIOUS IN THE LAST
FEW HOURS.
MORE THAN HOUR HOURS SINCE THE
PRESIDENT SAID HE WAS TESTED AND
HE SAID HOE COULD BEGIN THE
QUARANTINE PROCESS.
I REACHED OUT TO WHITE HOUSE
OFFICIALS WHO HEARD LITTLE IN
RESPONSE.
AND SOMEONE WHO GOES IN THE
WHITE HOUSE, WE RECEDE THE RAPID
TEST.
IT BECAME UNCLEAR HOW IT WOULD
TAKE THAT LONG FOR THE WHOUGS TO
GET THE RESULT.
CLEARLY, NOW, WE HEARD THAT THE
PRESIDENT HAS TESTED POSITIVE.
TO GET TO THIS PLACE, NOT JUST
THE PRESIDENT.
THE FIRST LADY AS WELL.
WE LEARNED A MATTER OF HOURS
AGO, ONE OF THE PRESIDENT’S
CLOSEST AIDES, HOPE HICKS,
TESTED POSITIVE. HE HAS BEEN
TRAVELING WITH THE PRESIDENT
THIS WEEK.
IN PENNSYLVANIA ON SATURDAY.
AT THE DEBATE IN CLEVELAND ON
TUESDAY AND SHE TRAVELED WITH
HIM AGAIN ON WEDNESDAY TO
MINNESOTA, I GUESS THAT IS JUST
YESTERDAY, FOR A RALLY THAT TOOK
PLACE THERE.
AS WE UNDERSTAND IT, IT WAS
ON -- WHEN SHE WAS THERE IN THE
EVENING LATE WEDNESDAY, SHE
BEGAN TO FEEL SYMPTOMED.
SHE WAS QUAUNRANTINED ON AIR FOR
WON.
AND THIS MORNING, SHE TESTED
POSITIVE.
STRIKINGLY AFTER OUR SOURCES SAY TESTS POSITIVE THIS MORNING, THE
TESTS POSITIVE THIS MORNING, THE
PRESIDENT CONTINUED WITH HIS EYE
ITINERARY.
THE WHITE HOUSE NONETHELESS PUT
OUT THEIR SCHEDULE FOR
PRESIDENT.
THE PRESIDENT TOMORROW WAS
SCHEDULE AT LEAST FOR THE
MOMENT, THE RED REMAINS HE WAS
GOING TO HAVE A PHONE CALL
SPECIFICALLY ABOUT SENIORS
VULNERABLE TO COVID-19.
CLEARLY THERE IS NO MORE SENIOR
VULNERABLE THAN DON’T TRUMP
HIMSELF.
THE 74-YEAR-OLD MAN, SCHEDULED
TO BE TRAVELING TO A RALLY
TOMORROW IN SANFORD, FLORIDA,
AND SATURDAY, WAS SCHEDULE AT A
PAIR OF RALLIES IN WISCONSIN.
OVER THE COURSE OF THIS NIGHT,
BRIAN, I HAVE BEEN REACHING OUT
TO MANY OF THE PRESIDENT’S
FAMILY MEMBERS AND AIDES AND
THINK HAVE BEEN RELUCTANT TO SAY
ANYTHING.
HAVING REACHED OUT TO IVANKA
TRUMP AND JARED KUSHNER WHO SEE
IF THEY HAVE QUARANTINED.
AND MARK MEADOWS AS WELL.
48 HOURS AGO, THE PRESIDENT WAS
TRAVELING TO CLEVELAND AND BACK.
HE WAS SURROUNDED BY A WHO’S WHO
OF WHITE HOUSE ADVISERS, TOP
CONGRESS MEMBERS, JIM JORDAN
FROM OHIO.
IRK TRUMP WAS THERE, AND AS WE
HAVE BEEN AROUND THIS, THIS IS A
STRIKING ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES,
AND IT COMES ONLY A MATTER OF
HOURS AFTER A CHARITY DINNER HE
WAS PARTICIPATING IN.
HE SAID THE END OF THE PANDEMIC