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‘Where is Trump’: Lincoln Project gets question trending after 44 hours without on-camera appearance by president

Speculation about the president’s health continues

Oliver O'Connell
New York
Wednesday 07 October 2020 22:14 BST
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New Lincoln Project ad says 'Trump is Not Well'
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Republican anti-Trump group The Lincoln Project taunted the Donald Trump on Wednesday, after he went unseen since he was discharged from Walter Reed Medical Centre two days ago.

Speculation continues regarding Trump’s health after he tested positive for Covid-19 last week.

The group tweeted: “Trump hasn’t been seen on camera for 44 hours. Where is the president? We need 5,000 people to respond to this tweet with #WhereIsTrump.”

Echoing the way in which Trump used to attack Joe Biden, the tweet ended: “Come out of the basement, Donald.”

With more than 37,000 retweets by mid-afternoon, the hashtag was trending across Twitter.

At 3.30pm eastern time Mr Trump broke isolation and emerged from the White House residence, but has not yet been seen.

According to a spokesperson he was in the Oval Office being briefed on the status of stimulus bill talks and the threat of Hurricane Delta in the Gulf of Mexico.

A US Marine was posted to stand guard outside the West Wing, which indicates that the president was in the Oval Office.

The Lincoln Project tweeted again, asking: “Why is Donald Trump scared to show himself live on camera? What are they hiding?”

White House correspondents reported that full PPE is available for staff who interact with the president, but also noted that this is likely to be for a photo opportunity.

Trump’s physician, Sean Conley, has reported that the president no longer has symptoms, although, if he is still Covid-19 positive he is likely to be shedding airborne coronavirus particles each time he breathes, experts say.

There has been widespread outrage over the cavalier way in which Mr Trump has conducted himself since his diagnosis, downplaying its severity as he receives the best medical care in the nation, and unnecessarily potentially exposing others to the virus.

There is also concern over the welfare of those at work in the White House. At least 27 people in the White House, Congress, and the military have now tested positive for Covid-19.

Many were present at Trump’s announcement of Amy Coney Barrett as his nominee to the vacant seat on the Supreme Court.

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